Pope baptizes 34 babies, says faith can't grow without love at home

Vatican City, Jan 7, 2018 / 02:52 am (CNA/EWTN News).

Keeping with papal tradition, Pope Francis marked the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord by celebrating Mass in the Sistine Chapel, during which he baptized 34 infants, telling parents that love at home is the first requirement of passing on the faith.

“If there is no love at home, if the language of love isn't spoken between mother and father at home, you can't do it,” the Pope said Jan. 7, telling parents to “transmit the faith, but do it with the love of the family, at home.”

He celebrated Mass in the Sistine Chapel, as he does each year on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, during which he baptizes several infants. This year he administered the Sacrament of Baptism on 34 babies, 16 boys and 18 girls.

In his brief, off-the-cuff homily, the Pope told parents that in baptizing their children, they are making the “first step” in the task of transmitting the faith.

“We need the Holy Spirit to transmit the faith, or else we can't do it,” he said, adding that to transmit the faith “is a grace of the Holy Spirit.”

However, even with the grace of the Holy Spirit, Francis stressed that truly transmitting the faith to one's children “can only be done in love; in the love of the family, of the father and mother, grandmother and grandfather.”

Catechists come later in life to help in transmitting the faith with “ideas and explanations,” he said, but told parents “don't forget this: have love.”

He also told parents to be childlike in their own prayer, saying children communicate in the only way they can, but “it's the language Jesus likes a lot.”

“Jesus advises us to be like them, to speak like them. May your prayers be simple like children,” he said, telling parents that in their own prayer, “say it in your heart like they do” when they cry, and “the Lord will teach you how to be like them, how to speak to them.”

Francis closed his homily telling mothers that if the babies cry and “start to have a concert” because they are uncomfortable or hungry, to breastfeed them without fear or hesitation if it is the latter, “because this is also a language of love.”

After celebrating Mass, the Pope will then make his way to the Apostolic Palace, where he will lead pilgrims in the traditional Angelus prayer, as he does every Sunday.

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Crux - Pope says to transmit the faith, parents must speak ‘language of love’

January 7th 2018 - Baptism of the Lord

On this weeks SS102fm programme, John and the team wish you a Happy New Year as we mark the close of the Christmas season on the feast of the Baptism of the Lord. We have a repeat of a reflection on New Years and new starts from Sr Dympna Clancy (RIP) as well as our regular reflection on the gospel of the day and other liturgical odds and ends.

You can listen to the podcast of this weeks programme HERE.



New Years Reflection - Sr Dympna Clancy

We repeat a reflection shared with us by Sr Dympna Clancy on New Years Day 2017 where she reflects on what New Year could mean for us as individuals, families and as the family of families in the diocese of Limerick. 

You can listen to our podcast excerpted from the main programme HERE.








Gospel - Baptism of the Lord

John the Baptist proclaimed, ‘The one who is more powerful than I is coming after me; I am not worthy to stoop down and untie the thong of his sandals. I have baptized you with water; but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.’

 In those days Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee and was baptized by John in the Jordan. And just as he was coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens torn apart and the Spirit descending like a dove on him. And a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my Son, the Beloved; with you I am well pleased.’

Reflections on this weeks gospel:

Word on Fire
English Dominicans
Receptivity to God’s Love

Liturgical odds & ends

Liturgy of the Hours - Psalter week 1, 1st week of ordinary time

Saints of the Week

January 8th - St Albert of Cashel
January 9th - St Marcellinus of Ancona
January 10th - St John of Jerusalem 
January 11th - St Eithne & Fedelemia
January 12th - St Aelred of Rievaulx
January 13th - St Hilary of Poitiers

Pope: Like the Magi, we must leave our comfort zone to find Jesus

Vatican News

Pope Francis on Saturday held out the Magi as models, urging Christians to dare and look up to the star and “set out”, shaking off their comforts, to “give freely” and “do good” to “the least” of the “brothers and sisters” of Jesus.  The Pope’s exhortation came in his homily at a morning Mass in Rome’s St. Peter’s Basilica on the solemn feast of the Epiphany.

The Jan. 6th feast of the Epiphany, a holiday in the Vatican and Italy, commemorates the visit of the ‎Three Magi, or Wise Men from the East, who followed a star to find the Baby Jesus ‎in Bethlehem, an ‎event that symbolizes the manifestation of God, made man, to the people of the world outside the ‎chosen ‎people of Israel. ‎ ‎

Delivering his homily in Italian, Pope Francis focused on three actions of the Magi -  they see the star, they set out and they bring gifts.

The star of Jesus gently invites

The Pope explained that for the Magi everything began by raising their eyes to heaven to see the star - the star of Jesus which the Pope said, “does not dazzle or overwhelm, but gently invites.”  There are other brighter stars such as success, money, career, honours and pleasures that do not point the way.  Like meteors they blaze momentarily and fade, but the Lord’s star, the Holy Father said, “does not ‎promise material reward, but ensures peace and grants… joy”.

Shake off worldly comforts

Just as the Magi set out on their journey after seeing the star, the Pope said, the star of Jesus demands that those who seek Him “leave behind the armchair of worldly comforts and the reassuring warmth of hearth and home.”  “In other words,” he said, “if we want to find Jesus, we have to overcome our fear of taking risks, our self-satisfaction and our indolent refusal to ask anything more of life.”  

The Pope acknowledged this is not easy, just as the Magi came across Herod and the priests and scribes who were all afraid of the new things that God was bringing about.  Christians too can fall into the temptation of the priests and scribes who talk much about faith but take no personal risk or pray, complain but do no good.  On the contrary, the Pope said, the Magi “talk little and journey much.”

Giving freely

Finally, the Magi do as Jesus does: they bring costly gifts of gold, incense and myrrh.  The Pope said the Gospel becomes real when the journey of life ends in giving. “To give freely, for the Lord’s sake, without expecting anything in return” is “the sure sign that we have found Jesus,” the Pope said.  Giving freely, the Pope further explained, means “to do good without counting the cost, even when unasked, even when you gain nothing thereby, even if it is unpleasant. 

The Pope said that Jesus “asks us to offer something for the least of His brothers and sisters,” who have nothing to give in return - the needy, the hungry, the stranger, the prisoner, the poor.  He said, “We give a gift pleasing to Jesus when we care for a sick person, spend time with a difficult person, help someone for the sake of helping, or forgive someone who has hurt us.” 

If we only love those who love us, we do as the pagans, the Pope said, and concluded urging Christians to “try to think of some free gift that we can give without expecting anything in return.” 

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Pope’s homily at Epiphany Mass: Full text‎
Vatican News - Pope’s Angelus for Epiphany: search for Jesus like the Magi

January 6th 2018 - Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord

Arise, shine out, Jerusalem; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. 

For darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will appear over you.  

Nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your dawn.

Lift up your eyes and look around; they all gather together, they come to you;

your sons shall come from far away, and your daughters shall be carried on their nurses' arms.  

Then you shall see and be radiant; your heart shall thrill and rejoice, because the abundance of the sea shall be brought to you, the wealth of the nations shall come to you.  

A multitude of camels shall cover you, the young camels of Midian and Ephah; all those from Sheba shall come. They shall bring gold and frankincense, and shall proclaim the praise of the LORD.

Isaiah 60:1-6

On January 6th in Ireland - after the 12 days of Christmas - we celebrate the Solemnity of Epiphany which is the feast day that celebrates the revelation of God the Son as a human being in Jesus Christ to the world. 

On this feast, Western Christians commemorate principally the visitation of the Biblical Magi to the Baby Jesus, i.e., his manifestation to the Gentiles; Eastern Christians commemorate the baptism of Jesus in the Jordan River, seen as his manifestation to the world as the Son of God. It is also called Theophany, especially by Eastern Christians.

St Matthew tells us (2:1-12) that Wise Men came from out of the east seeking the new born child as the Messiah of the whole world not just for the people of Israel. Their homage to him upon locating him in Bethlehem is representative of the whole world who adore the Holy Child and recognise his Divine Kingship, he who is the Light of the World.

"They set out; and there, ahead of them, went the star that they had seen at its rising, until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw that the star had stopped, they were overwhelmed with joy. On entering the house, they saw the child with Mary his mother; and they knelt down and paid him homage. Then, opening their treasure chests, they offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh."

The feast of the Epiphany in the latin tradition focuses on the manifestation or showing of the Child Jesus to the Magi or Wise men who have come to seek the new King of the Jews. The three wisdom seekers represent the gentiles; those outside the covenanted community of Israel to whom the Messiah will also come. Where the shepherds represented the Chosen People, the three magi represent all those who truly search and seek for God in our world even if from out side our community and experiences. 

But like the shepherds, the three magi did not stay in Bethlehem, they had to go back out into the world, back to their homes and families and daily lives; just like we have to. But they took the message of what they had seen and heard with them. 

Epiphany demands that like these kings we should return to our own countries a different way, carrying to all those we meet the light of Christ. "For behold, darkness shall cover the earth," says the Epistle of the Epiphany Mass, "and a mist the people: but the Lord shall arise upon Thee, and His glory shall be seen upon Thee. And the Gentiles shall walk in Thy light..." These words may be applied to us, upon whom the light of Christ has indeed risen, and who have the responsibility to radiate that light in the darkness of our own world. It is clear how much the feast of Epiphany must mean to all who are engaged in the apostolate and are striving to extend the kingdom of Christ.

Reflections and thoughts for the feast:

• Churchyear - Epiphany
• Catholic Culture - Epiphany
• Epiphany: What you seek is seeking you
• 10 Things You Might Not Have Known About the Feast of the Epiphany - How to celebrate Twelfth Night right this year
• Chalking the Door: Blessing Your Home for Epiphany
• Solemnity of the Epiphany: Home By Another Way - Salt + Light
• Patron Saints for Advent
• Vatican News - Reflections for the feast of Epiphany

Gospel - Matthew 2:1-12

Reading 1 - Isaiah 60:1-6

Psalm - Psalm 72:1-13

Reading 2 - Ephesians 3:2-6

Gospel - Matthew 2:1-12

Reflections on the gospel:

English Dominicans
Centre for Liturgy
Word on Fire
Monastery of Christ in the Desert

Noveritis - the Proclamation of the Date of Easter 2018 (Irish Liturgical calendar)

As traditional on SS102fm we post the the Noveritis or Proclamation of the Date of Easter on Epiphany each year with the dates as per the Irish liturgical calendar. 

The practice of the proclamation dates from a time when calendars were not too readily available. It was necessary to make known the date of Easter in advance, since many celebrations of the liturgical year depend on its date. The number of weeks that follow Epiphany, the date of Ash Wednesday and the number of Sundays that follow Pentecost are all computed in relation to Easter.

[If you would like some more detail of the history of the Proclamation head over to New Liturgical Movement.]

Although calendars now give the date of Easter and the other feasts in the liturgical year for many years in advance, the Epiphany Proclamation still has value. It is a reminder of the centrality of the resurrection of the Lord in the liturgical year and the importance of the great mysteries of faith which are celebrated each year. This beautiful proclamation puts everything into perspective. Every liturgical celebration of the Church finds its authentic meaning in the Paschal Mystery, even Christmas. The Paschal Mystery was precisely why the Eternal Son of the Father, the Eternal Word, deigned to leap down from heaven and become incarnate in the womb of the Blessed Virgin Mary. He was born in time so that He could give His flesh for the life of the world.

The season of Christmas ends with the celebration of the Baptism of the Lord. As the season draws to an end, the solemnity of Epiphany offers an opportunity to proclaim the centrality of Christ's paschal mystery: dying he destroyed our death and rising he restored our life.

The Easter Triduum of the Passion, Death and Resurrection of Christ is the culmination of the entire liturgical year and the solemn proclamation should be made after the homily or after the Prayer after Communion on the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord on January 6th.

Below is the Proclamation with the dates for 2018 as per the Irish Liturgical Calendar.

Know, dear brothers & sisters,
that, as we have rejoiced at the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ,
so by leave of God's mercy
we announce to you also the joy of his Resurrection,
who is our Saviour.

On the fourteenth day of February will fall Ash Wednesday, and the beginning of the fast of the most sacred Lenten season.

On the first day of April you will celebrate with joy Easter Day, the Paschal feast of our Lord Jesus Christ.

On the thirteenth day of May will be the Ascension of our Lord Jesus Christ.

On the twentieth day of June, the feast of Pentecost.

On the third day of June, the feast of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ.

On the second day of December, the First Sunday of the Advent of our Lord Jesus Christ,
to whom is honor and glory for ever and ever.

Amen.

Pope's homily: The Mother of God is starting point for New Year

Vatican News:

In his homily for New Year's Day - the Solemnity of Mary the Mother of God - Pope Francis said the motherhood of Mary reminds us that God is close to humanity


“The year opens in the name of the Mother.”

Pope Francis focused on Mary, the Mother of God, in his homily for the Mass of her Solemnity, the first of the secular New Year. Calling Mary “the Mother of God” he said, reminds us “there is no longer God without man; the flesh Jesus took from His Mother is our own, now and for all eternity.”

The great miracle of Christmas, the Pope continued, is that “man is no longer alone; no more an orphan but forever a child.” This is the novelty presented to us by the liturgy at the beginning of the new year. Knowing that we are children of God helps us to realize that “humanity is precious and sacred to the Lord. Henceforth, to serve human life is to serve God.”

Turning explicitly to the Gospel, Pope Francis reflected on the fact that Bible says of Mary only that she “kept all these things, pondering them in her heart.” She remained silent in the face of the great miracles and wonders of Christmas. In this, Mary follows in the footsteps of her Son, the Eternal Word of God, Who chose to become an infant, Who did not speak.

“This silence tells us that, if we would ‘keep’ ourselves, we need silence,” the Pope said. “As we look” on the crib “in silence, we let Jesus speak to our heart… To set aside a moment of silence each day to be with God is to ‘keep’ our soul.”

The Holy Father noted that Mary pondered both the joys and sorrows of life, dwelling on them, “with God,” in her heart. She pondered them by always turning them over to God. When we do that, the Pope said, “God, Who keeps us in His heart, then comes to dwell in our lives.”

At the beginning of the new year, the Pope continued, “we too, as Christians on our pilgrim way, feel the need to set out anew from the centre, to leave behind the burdens of the past and to start over from the things that really matter.” The point of departure, he said, is the Mother of God. “Devotion to Mary is not spiritual etiquette, it is a requirement of the Christian life.” Pope Francis said, “If our faith is not to be reduced merely to an idea or a doctrine, all of us need a mother’s heart.”

He concluded his homily with the prayer: “May the Mother, God’s finest human creation, guard and keep this year, and bring the peace of her Son to our hearts, and to the world.”

How Christmas puts in front of us the need to say yes to life

On our Christmas Day programme, Mary Keating joined with the team on SS102fm and gave us a very simple but profound reflection on the choices for life which people make in their lives. 

2018 is going to be a year where Ireland very much has to reflect on family and life with two particular foci as we head into the World Meeting of Families in 2018 and the political maelstrom to repeal the 8th Amendment to the Irish Constitution.

It seems fitting somewhat that this reflection is re-posted by request of a number of our listeners on 28th December, which is the feast of the Holy Innocents, the commemoration of the massacre of all male children under the age of two on the orders of Herod the Tyrant and the flight of the Holy Family to Egypt as refugees.

The question we face in 2018 will be are we an economy or a society?  How do we value the most vulnerable members of our communities? Do we hold a consistent ethic of life from conception to natural death or do we discard those who are deemed to be non-productive for society? Will we uphold the seamless garment of life? The seamless garment of life is a metaphor for the reality that all of us share one life in God. It is not a tenet but an understanding that all of life is sacred, from womb to tomb, in the unborn and the dying, in the murderer on death row and the mother in a coma, in the soldier in Afghanistan and the family in Iraq, in the undernourished child and the pensioner who can't afford a doctor. "When human life is considered 'cheap' or easily expendable in one area," Cardinal Joseph Bernardin said, "eventually nothing is held as sacred and all lives are in jeopardy."

You can listen to Mary's reflection excerpted from our main Christmas Day programme HERE.

"Urbi et Orbi" Christmas 2017

Vatican City, Dec 25, 2017 / 09:16 am (CNA/EWTN News)

Pope Francis on Christmas Day said the commemoration of Christ's birth is an occasion to remember and pray for every child who suffers due to war, poverty and inequality, each of whom bears the face of Jesus.

“Today, as the winds of war are blowing in our world and an outdated model of development continues to produce human, societal and environmental decline, Christmas invites us to focus on the sign of the Child and to recognize him in the faces of little children, especially those for whom, like Jesus, there is no place in the inn,” the Pope said Dec. 25.

Jesus, he said, was not born as a result of man's will, “but by the gift of the love of God our Father.”

“The faith of the Christian people relives in the Christmas liturgy the mystery of the God who comes, who assumes our mortal human flesh, and who becomes lowly and poor in order to save us,” he said, adding that “this moves us deeply, for great is the tenderness of our Father.”

Speaking to the 50,000 pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square for his traditional “Urbi et Orbi” blessing, the Pope noted that this tenderness is expressed in a special way to children who suffer from all the various conflicts in the world.

From the Holy Land to Venezuela, from the Middle East to Africa and Ukraine, he pointed to various conflicts happening around the world and offered prayers for peace in each region marred by war, violence and poverty.

He prayed that peaceful dialogue would be taken up again in Israel and Palestine so that the two parties can negotiate a solution to their conflict “that would allow the peaceful coexistence of two States within mutually agreed and internationally recognized borders.”

Francis also prayed for children with unemployed parents and for those forced to migrate alone to other countries, leaving them vulnerable to traffickers.

“Through their eyes we see the drama of all those forced to emigrate and risk their lives to face exhausting journeys that end at times in tragedy,” he said, adding that “Jesus knows well the pain of not being welcomed and how hard it is not to have a place to lay one’s head. May our hearts not be closed as they were in the homes of Bethlehem.”

Pope Francis closed his address praying that like Mary, Joseph and the Shepherds, we would also “welcome in the Baby Jesus the love of God made man for us. And may we commit ourselves, with the help of his grace, to making our world more human and more worthy for the children of today and of the future.”

Full text of the Pope's message below:

2017 Christmas Eve Homily - Pope Francis

‘Let us enter into the real Nativity … Then, in Jesus we will enjoy the flavor of the true spirit of Christmas: the beauty of being loved by God’

Here is a Vatican translation of the text of the homily Pope Francis gave this evening when he celebrated Christmas Eve Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica.

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Mary “gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn” (Lk 2:7).
In these plain and clear words, Luke brings us to the heart of that holy night: Mary gave birth; she gave us Jesus, the Light of the world. A simple story that plunges us into the event that changes our history forever. Everything, that night, became a source of hope.

Let us go back a few verses. By decree of the Emperor, Mary and Joseph found themselves forced to set out. They had to leave their people, their home, and their land, and to undertake a journey in order to be registered in the census. This was no comfortable or easy journey for a young couple about to have a child: they had to leave their land. At heart, they were full of hope and expectation because of the child about to be born; yet their steps were weighed down by the uncertainties and dangers that attend those who have to leave their home behind. Then they found themselves having to face perhaps the most difficult thing of all. They arrived in Bethlehem and experienced that it was a land that was not expecting them. A land where there was no place for them.

And there, where everything was a challenge, Mary gave us Emmanuel. The Son of God had to be born in a stable because his own had no room for him. “He came to what was his own and his own people did not accept him” (Jn 1:11). And there, amid the gloom of a city that had no room or place for the stranger from afar, amid the darkness of a bustling city which in this case seemed to want to build itself up by turning its back on others… it was precisely there that the revolutionary spark of God’s love was kindled. In Bethlehem, a small chink opens up for those who have lost their land, their country, their dreams; even for those overcome by the asphyxia produced by a life of isolation.

So many other footsteps are hidden in the footsteps of Joseph and Mary. We see the tracks of entire families forced to set out in our own day. We see the tracks of millions of persons who do not choose to go away but, driven from their land, leave behind their dear ones. In many cases, this departure is filled with hope, hope for the future; yet for many others, this departure can only have one name: survival. Surviving the Herod's of today, who, to impose their power and increase their wealth, see no problem in shedding innocent blood.

Mary and Joseph, for whom there was no room, are the first to embrace the One who comes to give all of us our document of citizenship. The One who in his poverty and humility proclaims and shows that true power and authentic freedom are shown in honoring and assisting the weak and the frail.

That night, the One who had no place to be born is proclaimed to those who had no place at the table or in the streets of the city. The shepherds are the first to hear this Good News. By reason of their work, they were men and women forced to live on the edges of society. Their state of life, and the places they had to stay prevented them from observing all the ritual prescriptions of religious purification; as a result, they were considered unclean. Their skin, their clothing, their smell, their way of speaking, their origin, all betrayed them. Everything about them generated mistrust. They were men and women to be kept at a distance, to be feared. They were considered pagans among the believers, sinners among the just, foreigners among the citizens. Yet to them – pagans, sinners and foreigners – the angel says: “Do not be afraid; for see – I am bringing you good news of great joy for the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord” (Lk 2:10-11).This is the joy that we tonight are called to share, to celebrate and to proclaim. The joy with which God, in his infinite mercy, has embraced us pagans, sinners and foreigners, and demands that we do the same.

The faith we proclaim tonight makes us see God present in all those situations where we think he is absent. He is present in the unwelcomed visitor, often unrecognizable, who walks through our cities and our neighborhoods, who travels on our buses and knocks on our doors. This same faith impels us to make space for a new social imagination, and not to be afraid of experiencing new forms of relationship, in which none have to feel that there is no room for them on this earth. Christmas is a time for turning the power of fear into the power of charity, into power for a new imagination of charity. The charity that does not grow accustomed to injustice, as if it were something natural, but that has the courage, amid tensions and conflicts, to make itself a “house of bread”, a land of hospitality. That is what Saint John Paul II told us: “Do not be afraid!

Open wide the doors for Christ” (Homily for the Inauguration of the Pontificate, 22 October 1978). In the Child of Bethlehem, God comes to meet us and make us active sharers in the life around us. He offers himself to us so that we can take him into our arms, lift him and embrace him. So that in him we will not be afraid to take into our arms, raise up and embrace the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, the imprisoned (cf. Mt 25:35-36). “Do not be afraid! Open wide the doors for Christ”. In this Child, God invites us to be messengers of hope. He invites us to become sentinels for all those bowed down by the despair born of encountering so many closed doors. In this child, God makes us agents of his hospitality.

Moved by the joy of the gift, little Child of Bethlehem, we ask that your crying may shake us from our indifference and open our eyes to those who are suffering. May your tenderness awaken our sensitivity and recognize our call to see you in all those who arrive in our cities, in our histories, in our lives. May your revolutionary tenderness persuade us to feel our call to be agents of the hope and tenderness of our people.

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Pope Francis on Christmas Eve: Bethlehem trek of Holy Family is like today’s migrations 
Pope Francis pleads for refugees at Christmas Eve mass 
Pope Francis pleads for migrants at Christmas Eve Mass 
Pope Francis Puts Focus on Refugees in Christmas Eve Mass

A SacredSpace102fm Christmas Day Programme - 2017

From all the Sacred Space102fm team, wishing you and yours every best wish and blessing of this Holy & Festive Season and into the New Year 2018
.

May the Peace of the Babe of Bethlehem be the gift you receive this Christmastide.

From

John, Ann, Shane, & Lorraine

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You can listen to the podcast of the full two hour special Christmas Day programme HERE.

Our Christmas Day programme goes out on WL102fm from 9am to 11 am and is repeated from 11pm to 1am Christmas night.

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On this special two hour programme we celebrate this special day with reflections, favourite Christmas carols and hymns, readings, poetry and our regular reflection on the Gospel of the day. We are joined on the programme with a reflection by Bishop Brendan Leahy and other special guests.

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"In those days a decree went out from Emperor Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration and was taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. All went to their own towns to be registered. Joseph also went from the town of Nazareth in Galilee to Judea, to the city of David called Bethlehem, because he was descended from the house and family of David. He went to be registered with Mary, to whom he was engaged and who was expecting a child. While they were there, the time came for her to deliver her child. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in bands of cloth, and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

In that region there were shepherds living in the fields, keeping watch over their flock by night. Then an angel of the Lord stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.

But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; for see—I am bringing you good news of great joy for all the people: to you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is the Messiah, the Lord. This will be a sign for you: you will find a child wrapped in bands of cloth and lying in a manger.’ And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host, praising God and saying,

‘Glory to God in the highest heaven,
and on earth peace among those whom he favours!’

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, ‘Let us go now to Bethlehem and see this thing that has taken place, which the Lord has made known to us.’So they went with haste and found Mary and Joseph, and the child lying in the manger.When they saw this, they made known what had been told them about this child;and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds told them.But Mary treasured all these words and pondered them in her heart.The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them."  

- (Luke 2: 1-20)

Reflections on the gospel of the day:

• Word on Fire
• English Dominicans
• Centre for Liturgy
• Sunday Reflections

Limerick Diocesan Times 2017

Each year Limerick Diocese produces a newspaper supplement with some information about Christmas ceremonies and diocesan news. This years supplement is in this weeks Limerick Leader, Observer and Valestar. 

You can download it from the diocesan website HERE.