Daily Mass Readings For Saturday, January 4, 2025
Memorial of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, Religious
Reading 1 :
1 John 3:7-10
Alleluia :
Hebrews 1:1-2
Gospel :
John 1:35-42
Liturgical vestments: White
Saturday, January 4, 2025: Readings & Responsorial Psalm & Gospel
Each day, the Mass readings invite us into a deeper encounter with God. Through Scripture, we hear His voice speaking to our hearts, guiding us, comforting us, and calling us to a life of holiness. The Word of God is not just a story from the past; it is alive, relevant, and transformative.
Every reading is an opportunity for grace. Some days, the words challenge us to grow; other days, they console us in our struggles. But always, they nourish our souls, strengthening our faith and drawing us closer to Christ.
Let us open our hearts to the Word of God daily. May we not just hear it but live it, allowing it to shape our actions and deepen our love for Him. Lord, speak to us today, and help us to follow You more faithfully. Amen.
Children, let no one deceive you.
The person who acts in righteousness is righteous,
just as he is righteous.
Whoever sins belongs to the Devil,
because the Devil has sinned from the beginning.
Indeed, the Son of God was revealed to destroy the works of the Devil.
No one who is begotten by God commits sin,
because God’s seed remains in him;
he cannot sin because he is begotten by God.
In this way,
the children of God and the children of the Devil are made plain;
no one who fails to act in righteousness belongs to God,
nor anyone who does not love his brother.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
In the past God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets:
in these last days, he has spoken to us through the Son.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
John was standing with two of his disciples,
and as he watched Jesus walk by, he said,
“Behold, the Lamb of God.”
The two disciples heard what he said and followed Jesus.
Jesus turned and saw them following him and said to them,
“What are you looking for?”
They said to him, “Rabbi” (which translated means Teacher),
“where are you staying?”
He said to them, “Come, and you will see.”
So they went and saw where he was staying,
and they stayed with him that day.
It was about four in the afternoon.
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter,
was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus.
He first found his own brother Simon and told him,
“We have found the Messiah,” which is translated Christ.
Then he brought him to Jesus.
Jesus looked at him and said,
“You are Simon the son of John;
you will be called Cephas,” which is translated Peter.
Reflection
“What a blessed day they spent, what a blessed night! Let us also build in our heart, and make a house into which He may come and teach us.” (Saint Augustine)
“Three vocations in a man: prepare, discern, diminish ourselves so that the Lord can grow. A Christian doesn’t proclaim himself, he proclaims another, he prepares the path to another: to the Lord. A Christian must be a person who knows how to humble himself so the Lord may increase in the hearts and souls of others.” (Francis)
“The theme of Christ as Bridegroom of the Church was prepared for by the prophets and announced by John the Baptist. The Lord referred to himself as the ‘bridegroom’ (Mk 2:19). The Apostle speaks of the whole Church and of each of the faithful, members of his Body, as a bride ‘betrothed’ to Christ the Lord so as to become but one spirit with him (…).” (Catechism Of The Catholic Church, Nº 796)
The Gospel for the Second Sunday in Ordinary Time (cf. Jn 1:35-42) presents the meeting between Jesus and his first disciples. The scene unfolds along the River Jordan the day after Jesus’ baptism. It is John the Baptist himself who points out the Messiah to the two of them with these words: “Behold, the Lamb of God!” (v. 36). And those two, trusting the Baptist’s testimony, follow Jesus. He realizes this and asks: “What do you seek?”, and they ask Him: “Rabbi, where are you staying?” (v. 38).
Jesus does not respond: “I live in Capernaum, or in Nazareth”, but says: “Come and see” (v. 39). Not a calling card, but an invitation to an encounter. The two follow him and remain with him that afternoon. (…) And many years later, those two even remembered the time. They were unable to forget this encounter that had changed their lives and was so happy and so complete. Then, when they leave from that encounter and return to their brothers, that joy, that light overflows from their hearts like a raging river. One of the two, Andrew, says to his brother, Simon — whom Jesus will call Peter when He meets him — “We have found the Messiah” (v. 41). They left sure that Jesus was the Messiah, certain. Let us pause for a moment on this experience of the encounter with Christ who calls us to remain with him. Each one of God’s calls is an initiative of his love. He is the one who always takes the initiative. He calls you. God calls to life, he calls to faith, and he calls to a particular state in life: “I want you here”. God’s first call is to life, through which he makes us persons; it is an individual call because God does not make things in series. (Angelus, 17 January 2021)
Saint of the Day
She is one of the greatest mystics in the history of the Church whose spirituality inspired giants of faith such as Teresa of Avila and Elizabeth of the Trinity. Saint Angela of Foligno, whose memory recurs on January 4, was canonized by Pope Francis in 2013.
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View all...A Protestant New York socialite and mother of five who became a Catholic religious sister, she founded the first community of women religious in the United States. Her feast day is celebrated on January 4.
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