{"id":330603,"date":"2016-12-03T22:36:45","date_gmt":"2016-12-04T04:36:45","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/?p=330603"},"modified":"2016-12-03T22:38:32","modified_gmt":"2016-12-04T04:38:32","slug":"sunday-says-podcast-december-4-2016-mass-readings-reflections","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/atxcatholic.com\/index.php\/2016\/12\/sunday-says-podcast-december-4-2016-mass-readings-reflections\/","title":{"rendered":"Sunday Says Podcast – December 4, 2016 Mass Readings and Reflections"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Sunday<\/a><\/p>\n

Second Sunday of Advent<\/h3>\n

Sunday December 4, 2016<\/a><\/p>\n

Lectionary: 4 (NAB Translation<\/b><\/a>)<\/p>\n

Reading 1<\/b><\/p>\n

Isaiah 11:1-10<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

This week\u2019s first reading from the book of Isaiah is a prophecy of the Messiah as the One who will descend as a branch from the root of Jesse in the lineage of King David.\u00a0 The Christ (Messiah) will have all the attributes of one filled with the Holy Spirit:\u00a0 “wisdom and insight”, “counsel and power”, a “spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord.”\u00a0\u00a0 As supreme ruler, He will govern with justice and eventually He will usher in a period of such incredible peace that even the lion will “lie down with a lamb.”\u00a0\u00a0 Ultimately the Messiah will make right all the evil that has resulted from original sin.\u00a0 All the nations, not just Israel, will look to Him for salvation.<\/p>\n

Responsorial Psalm<\/b><\/p>\n

Psalm 72:1-2,7-8,12-13,17<\/a><\/p>\n

The response for this week’s Psalm echoes the thoughts of the first reading:\u00a0 “Justice shall flourish in his time, and fullness of peace forever.”<\/p>\n

Reading 2<\/b><\/p>\n

Romans 15:4-9<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

In this week\u2019s second reading from Saint Paul’s letter to the Romans, we are reminded that Sacred Scripture has been given to us by God to teach us hope and to show us the example of how faithful servants of the Lord received His help as result of their perseverance and fortitude.\u00a0 Paul then calls all believers to unity, admonishing them (and us) to treat each other as Christ has treated us — with kindness and friendliness. Finally, St. Paul reminds us that God’s mercy extends beyond the Jews, and is indeed truly universal.\u00a0 The pagans will now learn of the true God, they too will give Him glory.<\/p>\n

Gospel<\/b><\/p>\n

Matthew 3:1-12<\/b><\/a><\/p>\n

This week’s gospel from St. Matthew introduces us to the person and preaching of St. John the Baptist.\u00a0 John was a fiery character in the tradition of the Old Testament prophets.\u00a0\u00a0 John the Baptist attracted many people with spiritual needs who would come to him to be baptized, confessing and repenting their sins.\u00a0 Much like Jesus, John the Baptist confronted the Jewish leaders of both leading factions (Sadducees and Pharisees) making it clear that repentance was the key to salvation.\u00a0 Any privilege they thought they could claim by merely being a descendant of Abraham meant nothing.\u00a0\u00a0 John even went so far as to insult them by calling them a “brood of vipers,” making it clear that they would be judged according to the fruit they produced.\u00a0 This warning should be a solemn warning to us also so that our\u00a0faith is proven by the fruit we bear.<\/p>\n

\n

Reflection question from Bishop V\u00e1squez<\/b><\/p>\n

Gospel meditation<\/b><\/p>\n

Today we hear that is it not enough to simply know Christ. Our lives are to bear good fruit. Discipleship requires ongoing conversion and formation through an intimate relationship with Christ. Do we bear good fruit? Where do we need to repent, and to turn away from sin and toward Christ as we prepare for His coming??<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Second Sunday of Advent Sunday December 4, 2016 Lectionary: 4 (NAB Translation) Reading 1 Isaiah 11:1-10 This week\u2019s first reading from the book of Isaiah is a prophecy of the Messiah as the One who will descend as a branch from the root of Jesse in the lineage of King David.\u00a0 The Christ (Messiah) will… [Read More]<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":60,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_wpcom_ai_launchpad_first_post":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"{title}\n\n{excerpt}\n\n{url}","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"_wpas_customize_per_network":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[3,4,27,258],"tags":[384,215,55,51,62,50,1732,330,266,131,491],"class_list":["post-330603","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","category-acnm","category-blog","category-podcast","category-sundaysays","tag-advent","tag-bible","tag-catholic-2","tag-catholicism","tag-evangelization","tag-faith","tag-homily","tag-jesus","tag-liturgy-of-the-word","tag-mass","tag-scripture","entry"],"aioseo_notices":[],"aioseo_head":"\n\t\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t\n\t\t