FEAST OF THE NATIVITY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY - Gospel (Mt 1:1-16. 18-23)

“She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins.” (Mt 1:21)

FIRST READING - Mic 5:1-4a

"The Lord will give them up, until the time when she who is to give birth has borne."

A reading from the Book of Micah

¹ Đức Chúa phán thế này :

“Phần ngươi, hỡi Bê-lem Ép-ra-tha, ngươi nhỏ bé nhất trong các thị tộc Giu-đa, từ nơi ngươi, Ta sẽ cho xuất hiện một vị có sứ mạng thống lãnh Ít-ra-en. Nguồn gốc của Người có từ thời trước, từ thuở xa xưa. ² Vì thế, Đức Chúa sẽ bỏ mặc Ít-ra-en cho đến thời người sản phụ sinh con. Bấy giờ những anh em sống sót của người con đósẽ trở về với con cái Ít-ra-en. ³ Người sẽ dựa vào quyền lực Đức Chúa, vào uy danh Đức Chúa, Thiên Chúa của Người mà đứng lên chăn dắt họ. Họ sẽ được an cư lạc nghiệp, vì bấy giờ quyền lực Người sẽ trải rộng ra đến tận cùng cõi đất. ^4a Chính Người sẽ đem lại hoà bình.”

GOSPEL OF THE DAY - Mt 1:1-16, 18-23

"For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her."

✠From the Gospel according to Matthew

¹ The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.^[b]

² Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. ³ Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, ⁴ Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, ⁵ Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse, ⁶ Jesse the father of David the king.

David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. ^7 [c]Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. ⁸ Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. ⁹ Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. ¹⁰ Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos,^[d] Amos the father of Josiah. ¹¹ Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile.

¹² After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, ¹³ Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, ¹⁴ Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, ¹⁵ Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, ¹⁶ Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Messiah. ¹⁸ Now this is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about. When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,^[a] but before they lived together, she was found with child through the holy Spirit. ¹⁹ Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,^[b] yet unwilling to expose her to shame, decided to divorce her quietly. ²⁰ Such was his intention when, behold, the angel of the Lord^[c] appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home. For it is through the holy Spirit that this child has been conceived in her. ²¹ She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,^[d] because he will save his people from their sins.” ²² All this took place to fulfill what the Lord had said through the prophet:

^23 [e]“Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son,    and they shall name him Emmanuel,”

which means “God is with us.”

FEAST OF THE NATIVITY OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY - Gospel (Mt 1:1-16. 18-23)

Dear People of God,

Today, the entire Church celebrates the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, is the Mother of God. God desires that humanity gives thanks to Him and praises her, for it is through her that God's plan of salvation was fulfilled and continues to this day. And through her, humanity has a genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of God who came to earth and became man.

The Word of God today wishes to recall the journey of the life of Mary.

• She was born into a family with an ordinary lineage like many others, but she was chosen by God to be the Mother of the Son of God who came to earth and to be the Mother of all humanity.

• She cooperated in God's plan of salvation in a marvelous and perfect way.

• She was granted by God a noble privilege, which is the privilege of the Immaculate Conception from the very moment of her existence in the womb.

• She was a person with a humble, self-effacing, poor in spirit and always obedient to God above all things.

• She always walked and lived in the grace of God.

• She always knew how to listen, meditate upon, and practice the Word of God’s commandments.

• Through this, she fulfilled the mission entrusted to her by God: to bear the Son of God Who came to earth and to cooperate in God’s plan of salvation.

• It was through Mother Mary’s birth that the Son of God was also born as a human being; she is the one who brought the Savior to all of mankind.

Today, God desires that all humanity to praise her and give thanks to her for allowing us to cooperate with God in His plan of salvation. Give thanks to her for bringing God to all humanity through her obedience to the holy will of God in bearing the Son of God under the action of the Holy Spirit.

Today, God wants to say to all mankind:

• Offer to her the most beautiful prayers that she taught mankind at Fatima: “Pray the Rosary unceasingly.” These are simple and sincere prayers to praise God and the Blessed Virgin Mary. Nothing is more beautiful and noble than for mankind to always love God above all things and obey His holy will.

• Imitate the virtues and obedience of the Blessed Virgin Mary to please God in all places and at all times. To obey God, she also had to endure much suffering, hardship, and trial during her earthly life.

Today, God calls on those who are living in grace and walking in His ways to look to the example of the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary and follow her in order to remain steadfast on the path of following God. Whoever walks on this path must also endure many difficulties and trials; but do not worry, do not be afraid—just trust in the providence of God. He will take care of everything, just as He provided for and guided Mother Mary and Saint Joseph through all hardships to complete the journey of God's plan of salvation on earth, which is to bring God to humanity.

Today, God calls everyone to cooperate with Him and with the Blessed Virgin Mary to bring God's salvation to humanity—that is, to go forth and proclaim the Good News throughout the world, bringing the peace and love of God and of Mother Mary to all people. When people receive graces from God and from her, they must also know how to share those graces with others, just as she once bore the Savior and brought the Son of God to all humanity, so that mankind might receive the grace of God through her and through her intercession.

The Word of God today also invites all people, especially those in the Army of Light to:

• Be united with the Blessed Virgin Mary in the plan of God's salvation in this world.

• Always pray to her: “O Mother, please come to be with us, accompany us, and help us to fulfill the holy commandments of God.”

Thanks be to God. Amen