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MARY, MOTHER OF GOD
New Year’s Day
ENTRANCE ANTIPHON
Hail, holy Mother! The child to whom you gave birth is the King of heaven and earth for ever.
PENITENTIAL RITE
Dear brothers and sisters, welcome to the very first Eucharistic celebration in the year of the Lord 2004. Today on the first day of the year we commemorate Mary the Mother of God, the mother of all good beginnings. We thank God for the gift of Mary our Mother and ask her help to spend the New Year for the glory of God and for the good of our neighbour. Let us ask ourselves: how did we spend the last year? (Pause.)
I confess to almighty God, and to you my brothers and sisters, that I have sinned through my own fault (all strike their breast) in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do; and I ask blessed Mary, ever virgin, all the angels and saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God.
Glory to God in the highest,/and peace to his people on earth./Lord God, heavenly King,/almighty God and Father,/we worship you,/we give you thanks,/we praise you for your glory./Lord Jesus Christ,/only Son of the Father,/Lord God, Lamb of God,/you take away the sin of the world:/have mercy on us;/you are seated at the right hand of the Father,/receive our prayer./For you alone are the Holy One,/you alone are the Lord,/you alone are the Most High,/Jesus Christ,/with the Holy Spirit,/in the glory of God the Father./Amen.
OPENING PRAYER
Let us pray. God our Father, may we always profit by the prayers of the Virgin Mother Mary, for you bring us life and salvation through Jesus Christ her Son who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
FIRST READING
(God assures Israel his blessings along with peace and prosperity.)
A reading from the book of Numbers
(6:22-27)
The Lord said to Moses, "Say to Aaron and his sons, Thus you shall bless the people of Israel: you shall say to them, The Lord bless you and keep you: The Lord make his face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you: The Lord lift up his countenance upon you, and give you peace. "So shall they put my name upon the people of Israel, and I will bless them."
This is the Word of the Lord
PSALM (66)
Response: O God, be gracious and bless us.
God, be gracious and bless us and let your face shed its light upon us. So will your ways be known upon earth and all nations learn your saving help.
R.
Let the nations be glad and exult, for you rule the world with justice. With fairness you rule the peoples, you guide the nations on earth. R.
Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. May God still give us his blessing, till the ends of the earth revere him. R.
SECOND READING
(God in Christ has freed us and in the power of the Spirit has made us his children.)
A reading from the letter of St Paul to the Galatians (4: 4-7)
When the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying "Abba! Father!" So through God you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son then an heir.
This is the Word of the Lord
ACCLAMATION (Heb 1:1-2)
Alleluia, alleluia! In many and various ways God spoke of old to our fathers by the prophets; but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son. Alleluia!
GOSPEL
(The news of the humble but miraculous birth of Jesus elicits amazement and praise of God from people. Mary silently ponders over it all.)
A reading from the holy Gospel according to St Luke (2:16-21)
The shepherds went with haste to Bethlehem and they found Mary and Joseph, and the babe lying in a manger. And when they saw it they made known the saying which had been told them concerning this child; and all who heard it wondered at what the shepherds told them. But Mary kept all these things, pondering them in her heart. And the shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen, as it had been told them. And at the end of eight days, when he was circumcised, he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb.
This is the Gospel of the Lord
I believe in God,/the Father Almighty,/ Creator of heaven and earth./I believe in Jesus Christ,/his only Son, our Lord./ He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit/and born of the Virgin Mary./He suffered under Pontius Pilate,/was crucified, died, and was buried./He descended to the dead./On the third day he rose again./He ascended into Heaven,/and is seated at the right hand of the Father./He will come again to judge the living and the dead./I believe in the Holy Spirit,/the Holy Catholic Church,/the communion of saints,/the forgiveness of sins,/the resurrection of the body,/and the life everlasting./Amen.
PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL
Cel: Dear friends in Jesus Christ, on this first day of the New Year, let us pray for all our brothers and sisters, and ask our heavenly Father to bless them all according to their needs through the intercession of Mary, Mother of God. Our response: Mother of God pray for us.
1. Let us pray for Pope John Paul II, bishops, priests, religious and catechists that they may animate and nourish the Church of God. R.
2. That during this year we may nourish ourselves more frequently with the word of God and the sacraments of mother Church. R.
3. We pray for the motherless, those who are deprived of a mother’s care and tender love. R.
4. Let us plead for the grace to spend the New Year well, saying, like Mary, yes to God’s word and plans in our lives. R.
(Pause to pray for other intentions.)
Cel: Heavenly Father, we thank you for the gift of another year. Help us to spend it well in love and service. We ask this…
PRAYER OVER THE GIFTS
God our Father, we celebrate at this season the beginning of our salvation. On this feast of Mary, the Mother of God, we ask that our salvation will be brought to its fulfilment. We ask this…
PREFACE (P 56)
Father, all-powerful and ever-living God, we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks as we celebrate the Motherhood of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, she became the Mother of your only Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who is for ever the light of the world. Through Him the choirs of angels and all the powers of heaven praise and worship your glory. May our voices blend with theirs as we join in their unending hymn.
COMMUNION ANTIPHON
Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and for ever.
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Father, as we proclaim the Virgin Mary to be the true mother of Christ and the mother of the Church, may our communion with her Son bring us to salvation. We ask this through Christ our Lord.
LITURGY AND LIFE
During the Second Word War, some American soldiers were patrolling the island of Guam. Suddenly one of the American marines spied three fleeing Japanese soldiers. A volley of gunfire followed and the three Japanese soldiers fell dead.
The marine made a routine check of the soldiers for grenades and intelligent papers. From the blood-soaked pocket of one of the soldiers he pulled out a picture of Mary, the Mother of Jesus. On the picture were written the words: "Mary, Mother of my Lord, be with me." The marine’s eyes became moist. He kissed the picture and kept it close to his heart. He prayed for the Japanese soldiers. Yes, this man was not an enemy of the Americans or of anyone. The marine and the Japanese soldier had the same mother, Mary. God chose Mary to be the mother of his Son, our Saviour. And Mary gave her consent. The Child Mary gave birth to is both human and divine, man and God. Mary is therefore called mother of God.
Mary is not only the mother of God but our mother too. Jesus’ parting gift from the cross was Mary as our mother. In most Greek Byzantine Churches, Mary is depicted in fresco or mosaic in the apse behind the altar. She is shown stretching out her arms in a protective posture of a loving mother, a protective hen, a temple containing the uncontainable. Such mother-symbols of nourishment and protection are part of Christian devotion to Mary as mother of Christ and our mother. An ancient Byzantine hymn sings of Mary as: "Hail! Tabernacle of God and the Word! Hail! Ark gilded by the Holy Spirit".
On the first and every day of the year we shall pray with filial devotion and love: "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
* * *
Mary is the point of humanity where there converges through grace of God the holiness of human perfection that consists in a continued hunger and thirst for greater union with God. This is what ultimately her motherhood means. It is not merely relegated to the one static moment when she brought forth, as mother, Jesus Christ, the Son of God. She is progressively always becoming the mother of God just as the Church and we members of the Church are called out to become also like Mary, the begetter of the Son of God through our continued desire for union through loving submission to God’s holy will.
– George Maloney
We all at THE SUNDAY LITURGY
Wish all our dear PATRONS AND BENEFACTORS
A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR.
May God through the intercession of Mary protect
you and your dear ones all through the New Year!
