December 6, 2025
Saturday of the First Week of
Advent
Lectionary: 180
Reading
1
Thus says the Lord
GOD,
the Holy One of Israel:
O people of Zion, who dwell in Jerusalem,
no more will you weep;
He will be gracious to you when you cry out,
as soon as he hears he will answer you.
The Lord will give you the bread you need
and the water for which you thirst.
No longer will your Teacher hide himself,
but with your own eyes you shall see your Teacher,
While from behind, a voice shall sound in your ears:
"This is the way; walk in it,"
when you would turn to the right or to the left.
He will give rain for the seed
that you sow in the ground,
And the wheat that the soil produces
will be rich and abundant.
On that day your flock will be given pasture
and the lamb will graze in spacious meadows;
The oxen and the asses that till the ground
will eat silage tossed to them
with shovel and pitchfork.
Upon every high mountain and lofty hill
there will be streams of running water.
On the day of the great slaughter,
when the towers fall,
The light of the moon will be like that of the sun
and the light of the sun will be seven times greater
like the light of seven days.
On the day the LORD binds up the wounds of his people,
he will heal the bruises left by his blows.
Responsorial
Psalm
R. (see Isaiah
30:18d) Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
Praise the LORD, for he is good;
sing praise to our God, for he is gracious;
it is fitting to praise him.
The LORD rebuilds Jerusalem;
the dispersed of Israel he gathers.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
He heals the brokenhearted
and binds up their wounds.
He tells the number of the stars;
he calls each by name.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
Great is our LORD and mighty in power:
to his wisdom there is no limit.
The LORD sustains the lowly;
the wicked he casts to the ground.
R. Blessed are all who wait for the Lord.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia,
alleluia.
The LORD is our Judge, our Lawgiver, our King;
he it is who will save us.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Jesus went around
to all the towns and villages,
teaching in their synagogues,
proclaiming the Gospel of the Kingdom,
and curing every disease and illness.
At the sight of the crowds, his heart was moved with pity for them
because they were troubled and abandoned,
like sheep without a shepherd.
Then he said to his disciples,
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;
so ask the master of the harvest
to send out laborers for his harvest."
Then he summoned his Twelve disciples
and gave them authority over unclean spirits to drive them out
and to cure every disease and every illness.
Jesus sent out these Twelve after instructing them thus,
"Go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.
As you go, make this proclamation: 'The Kingdom of heaven is at hand.'
Cure the sick, raise the dead,
cleanse lepers, drive out demons.
Without cost you have received; without cost you are to give."
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/120625.cfm
Commentary on Isaiah
30:19-21,23-26
The first part of today’s reading consists of words of
consolation for the people of Zion, who are God’s people. They shall weep no
more and the Lord will respond to their cries for help. This is so:
Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and the
water of affliction…
This is always a mystery for many—how a God who loves us so
much can allow us to endure pain and hardships. Some common reactions one hears
from people are that God wants us to suffer so he sends us sufferings, or that
a God who tolerates such sufferings is not a loving God at all, or simply that
God does not exist.
Yet, if we reflect, we will understand that the sufferings
we endure either have natural causes which can be explained, or else are the
result of the distorted actions of other human beings. But as to why I should
suffer a particular mishap rather than someone else is something we cannot
understand in this life. Nearly 3,000 people died in the 9/11 horror in 2001,
but a far larger number, including some in the buildings, escaped. As Jesus
once asked, on the occasion of a tower’s collapsing and killing a number of
people:
…do you think that they were worse offenders than all the
other people living in Jerusalem? (Luke 13:4)
Jesus did not think so.
Let us rather listen to the promise in today’s Reading:
Though the Lord may give you the bread of adversity and
the water of affliction, yet your Teacher will not hide himself any longer, but
your eyes shall see your Teacher. And when you turn to the right or when you
turn to the left, your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the
way; walk in it.”
God, who in the past taught through the veiled language of
the prophets, will at a future time help his people to understand his teaching
more clearly. This is a straightforward pointer to the coming of the Prophet
Jesus, whose teaching made so much clear.
That time will be one of great fertility and fruitfulness:
He will give rain for the seed with which you sow the
ground, and grain, the produce of the ground, will be rich and plenteous. On
that day your cattle will graze in broad pastures, and the oxen and donkeys
that till the ground will eat silage that has been winnowed with shovel and
fork.
The prophet expresses it in agricultural terms, a language
easily understood by the ordinary person of the day. He also says that even:
…the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun,
and the light of the sun will be sevenfold…
But with the coming of Jesus as indicated in today’s Gospel,
it will be a different kind of fertility:
…on the day when the Lord binds up the injuries of his
people and heals the wounds inflicted by his blow.
Jesus will bring healing, wholeness, freedom and peace into
people’s lives. And this is not only the work of Jesus, but also the work of
his followers.
That is the paradox: although there is healing, it does not
mean the end of pain or hardship or unexpected tragedies. Jesus himself, in the
midst of the most terrible pain imaginable, died in the peace of a relationship
of total acceptance and self-surrender to his Father. Jesus is our Teacher and
invites us to walk this way.
Comments Off
Commentary on
Matthew 9:35—10:1,5,6-8
The promises of today’s First Reading are shown being
fulfilled in the person of Jesus in the Gospel, and they are arranged in two
sections.
First, Jesus is shown constantly on the move, teaching in
synagogues all over the region, proclaiming the Good News of God’s reign coming
among them and bringing healing to all who are sick and diseased. Matthew does
not use the title of Good Shepherd for Jesus, but he does indicate the deep
compassion of Jesus for all those who are harassed and depressed, people with
no direction in their lives, who are like sheep without a shepherd. Jesus is
clearly the Shepherd who can lead them back to where they belong.
Second, Jesus then says to his disciples that there is a
huge harvest waiting to be reaped. Up to this he has been working alone, but he
needs help, especially after he is gone. There are very few people available to
work in the harvest field. He then calls the Twelve and hands on to them his
own powers to liberate people from evil powers and to heal all kinds of
sickness.
The harvest is still great and the need for labourers is as
great as ever. In asking the Lord to send labourers into the harvest, we have
to ask ourselves what the role is for each one of us. It is not just a question
of priests and religious. Jesus was not talking to priests and religious (there
was no such thing as ‘religious’ at the time the Gospels were written), but to
every one of his followers—to every one of us who has been baptised. Every one
of us is being called to be a harvester. Each one of us can reach a corner of
the harvest field that is accessible to no one else.
These include our family, neighbours, our work colleagues
and others who come into our lives. I may be the only person who brings Jesus
with his healing and compassion into someone’s life.
And what are we to do? We are to let people
know that the Reign of God is very close, because God himself and Jesus are so
close. Once we say yes to God and his Son, they become part of our lives. And
we are to do the same work Jesus told his disciples to do:
- Cure
the sick: by our sympathy and support, which can often add
tremendously to the effects of any medical treatment.
- Raise
the dead: clearly not literally. But there are many who are
intellectually, emotionally or socially dead. They are physically alive,
but they have stopped living meaningful lives. We can help them to find
life again.
- Cleanse
the lepers: all those people who are on the fringes of society, whom
we neglect, ignore, despise, reject or avoid. There are the dropouts,
those suffering from addictions (e.g. drugs, alcohol or pornography), the
homeless, single mothers, ‘sex workers’, and others—we can let them know
they are accepted and loved by God.
- Cast
out demons: help people liberate themselves from the demons of fear,
anger, hatred and violence; from drugs, alcohol, nicotine or sexual abuse
(themselves and others); from greed for money, attention, status or the
adulation of others.
There are so many people who need to hear and to experience
the message of Christmas. And there are many, alas, for whom Christmas is bad
news, a time of misery, depression and loneliness. Let’s work to change that.
Comments Off
https://livingspace.sacredspace.ie/a1017g/
Saturday,
December 6, 2025
1st Week of
Advent
Opening Prayer
God of mercy and compassion, in
your Son, Jesus Christ, you have revealed Yourself as a God of people.
Turn our empty hearts to You, give us eyes to see the depth of
our poverty and our inability to build a better world with our own resources,
and then come and build it with us through your Son and our Savior Jesus
Christ, our Lord.
Gospel Reading - Matthew 9: 35 - 10: 1, 5-8
Jesus made a tour through all the
towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of
the kingdom and curing all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness. And when
He saw the crowds He felt sorry for them because they were harassed and
dejected, like sheep without a shepherd. Then He said to His disciples, 'The
harvest is rich but the laborers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to
send out laborers to His harvest.' He summoned His twelve disciples and gave
them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to cure
all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.
These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing
them as follows: 'Do not make your way to Gentile territory, and do not enter
any Samaritan town; go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as
you go, proclaim that the kingdom of Heaven is close at hand. Cure the sick,
raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from diseases, drive out demons. You
received without charge, give without charge.
Reflection
The Gospel today has two parts: (a) A brief summary of the
apostolic activity of
Jesus (Mt 9: 35-38) and (b) The
beginning of the “Sermon of the Mission” (Mt 10:1: 5-8). The Gospel of today’s
Liturgy omits the names of the Apostles which are found in the Gospel of
Matthew (Mt 10: 2-4).
•
Matthew 9: 35: Summary of the apostolic activity
of Jesus. “Jesus made a tour through all the towns and villages, teaching in
their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the Kingdom and curing all kinds
of diseases and all kinds of illness.” Matthew describes in a few words the
central points of the missionary activity of Jesus:
•
(a) to travel through all the towns and
villages. Jesus does not wait for people to come to Him, but He goes out to
look for the people, travelling Himself through the towns and villages.
•
(b) To teach in the Synagogues, that is, in the
communities. Jesus goes to the place where the people are gathered together
around the faith in God.
And it is there that He proclaims the Good News of the
Kingdom, that is, the Good News of God. Jesus does not teach doctrine as if the
Good News were a new catechism, but in everything He says and does there
emerges something of the great Good News which dwells within Him, that is, God,
the Kingdom of God. (c) He cures all kinds of diseases and illness. What poor
people experienced most was illness, all kinds of diseases, and what
distinguishes the activity of Jesus is the consolation given to the people,
whom He relieves from their pain.
•
Matthew 9: 36: The compassion of Jesus before
the situation of the people. “And when He saw the crowds, He felt sorry for
them because they were harassed and dejected, like sheep without a shepherd.”
Jesus accepts persons as they are before Him: sick, exhausted, tired. He
behaves like the Servant of Isaiah, whose central message consists of
“consoling the people” (cf. Is 40: 1). The attitude of Jesus toward the people
was like the attitude of the Servant whose mission was very specific: “He does
not cry out or raise his voice, his voice is not heard in the street; he does
not break the crushed reed or snuff the smoldering wick.” (Is 42: 2-3). Like
the Servant, Jesus feels sorry when He sees the situation of the people who
were “tired, exhausted, and dejected like sheep without a shepherd.” He becomes
their shepherd, identifying Himself with the servant who said: “...be my
servant so as to raise up the tribes of Jacob, and so as to convert the dregs
of Israel. Behold, I have offered you as a light for the Gentiles, so that you
may be my salvation, even to the furthest regions of the earth.” (Is 49:6). And
from the contact with the Father, Jesus receives the consolation to communicate
it to the poor.
•
Matthew 9: 37-38: Jesus involves the disciples
in the mission. Because of the immensity of the missionary activity, the first
thing that Jesus asks the disciples to do is to pray: “The harvest is rich but
the laborers are few! So ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers to
his harvest.” Prayer is the first form of commitment of the disciples for the
mission. Because if one believes in the importance of the mission one has to
carry out, everything possible is done so that it will not die with us, but
rather that it will continue with others, through us and after us.
•
Matthew 10: 1: Jesus gave the disciples the
power to cure and to cast out demons. “He summoned His twelve disciples and
gave them authority over unclean spirits with power to drive them out and to
cure all kinds of disease and all kinds of illness.” The second thing that
Jesus asks the disciples is that they do not begin to teach doctrine and laws,
but rather, to help the people who are overcome by unclean spirits and to help
them in the struggle against illness. Today, what often frightens people are
certain missionaries who threaten them with the punishment of God and with the
danger of demons. Jesus does the contrary. “If it is through the finger of God
that I drive demons out, then the Kingdom of God has indeed caught you unaware”
(Lk 11: 20). It is unfortunate, but today there are some people who believe
they need demons in order to make money by driving them out. It would be
worthwhile for them to read what Jesus says against the Pharisees and the doctors
of the Law (Mt 23).
•
Matthew 10: 5-6: Go first to the lost sheep of
the House of Israel. Jesus sends out the twelve with these recommendations: “Do
not make your way to Gentile territory, and do not enter any Samaritan town. Go
instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel.” At the beginning, the
mission of Jesus was directed to “the lost sheep of the House of Israel.” Who
were these lost sheep of the House of Israel? Were they the persons who were
excluded, for example, the prostitutes, the tax collectors, and the unclean who
were considered lost and condemned by the religious authority of the time? Were
they those of the directing class, the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the elders and
the priests who considered themselves the faithful people of Israel? Or were
they the crowds, tired and exhausted, as sheep without a shepherd? Probably,
here in the context of the Gospel of Matthew, it is these poor and abandoned
people who are accepted by Jesus (Mt 9: 36- 37). Jesus wanted the disciples to
participate with Him in this mission with these people.
But the way in which He takes care of these people, Jesus
himself extends the horizon. In the contact with the Canaanite woman, a lost
sheep of another race and another religion who wishes to be heard, Jesus repeats
to his disciples: “I have been sent only to the lost sheep of Israel” (Mt
15:24). It is at the insistence of the mother who does not cease to intercede
for her daughter that Jesus defends himself saying: “It is not fair to take the
children’s food and throw it to the dogs” (Mt 15:26). But the reaction of the
mother changes the attitude of Jesus: “Ah, yes, Lord, but even little dogs eat
the scraps that fall from their masters’ table” (Mt 15:27). The answer of the
woman counters the argument of Jesus. He takes care of the woman. Jesus listens
to the woman: “Woman, you have great faith: Let your desire be granted. And
from that moment her daughter was well again” (Mt 15: 28). Through the
attention given to the lost sheep of Israel, Jesus shows that throughout the
whole world there are lost sheep who want to eat the scraps or crumbs.
•
Matthew 10: 7-8: Summary of the activity of
Jesus. “Go instead to the lost sheep of the House of Israel. And as you go,
proclaim that the Kingdom of Heaven is close at hand.
Cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those suffering from
diseases, drive out demons. You received without charge, give without charge.”
How can the closeness of the Kingdom be revealed? The response is simple and
concrete: curing the sick, raising the dead, cleaning the lepers, driving out
demons and serving gratuitously, without enriching oneself from the service
given to the people. Where this takes place, the Kingdom is revealed.
Personal questions
• We
all receive the same mission given by Jesus to the disciples. Are you conscious
and aware of this mission? How do you live your mission?
• In
your life, have you had any contact with the lost sheep, with people who are
tired, exhausted and searching? What lesson did you draw out of this?
Concluding prayer
The Lord heals the broken-hearted
and binds up their wounds; He counts out the number of the stars, and gives
each one of them a name. (Ps 146: 3-4)
