Sunday, December 4, 2022
Liturgical Season: 
VII The Season of Sleebo
Special Significance: 
Birth of John the Baptist
St. John Damascene

Lk 1:67-80

The Canticle of Zechariah. 67Then Zechariah his father, filled with the holy Spirit, prophesied, saying:

68* “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel,

for he has visited and brought redemption to his people.k

69* He has raised up a horn for our salvation

within the house of David his servant,l

70even as he promised through the mouth of his holy prophets from of old:

71salvation from our enemies and from the hand of all who hate us,m

72to show mercy to our fathersn

and to be mindful of his holy covenanto

73and of the oath he swore to Abraham our father,p

and to grant us that, 74rescued from the hand of enemies,

without fear we might worship him 75in holiness and righteousness

before him all our days.q

76And you, child, will be called prophet of the Most High,

for you will go before the Lord* to prepare his ways,r

77to give his people knowledge of salvation

through the forgiveness of their sins,

78because of the tender mercy of our Gods

by which the daybreak from on high* will visit ust

79to shine on those who sit in darkness and death’s shadow,

to guide our feet into the path of peace.”

80The child grew and became strong in spirit, and he was in the desert until the day of his manifestation to Israel.u

Ex 2:1-10

Birth and Adoption of Moses. 1Now a man* of the house of Levi married a Levite woman,a 2and the woman conceived and bore a son. Seeing what a fine child he was, she hid him for three months.b 3But when she could no longer hide him, she took a papyrus basket,* daubed it with bitumen and pitch, and putting the child in it, placed it among the reeds on the bank of the Nile. 4His sister stationed herself at a distance to find out what would happen to him.

5Then Pharaoh’s daughter came down to bathe at the Nile, while her attendants walked along the bank of the Nile. Noticing the basket among the reeds, she sent her handmaid to fetch it. 6On opening it, she looked, and there was a baby boy crying! She was moved with pity for him and said, “It is one of the Hebrews’ children.” 7Then his sister asked Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I go and summon a Hebrew woman to nurse the child for you?” 8Pharaoh’s daughter answered her, “Go.” So the young woman went and called the child’s own mother. 9Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Take this child and nurse him for me, and I will pay your wages.”* So the woman took the child and nursed him. 10When the child grew,* she brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son.c She named him Moses; for she said, “I drew him out of the water.”

Ps 127:1-5

1A song of ascents. Of Solomon.

Unless the LORD build the house,

they labor in vain who build.

Unless the LORD guard the city,

in vain does the guard keep watch.

2It is vain for you to rise early

and put off your rest at night,

To eat bread earned by hard toil—

all this God gives to his beloved in sleep.a

3Certainly sons are a gift from the LORD,

the fruit of the womb, a reward.b

4Like arrows in the hand of a warrior

are the sons born in one’s youth.

5Blessed is the man who has filled his quiver with them.

He will never be shamed

for he will destroy his foes at the gate.*

1 Jn 4:1-6

Testing the Spirits.* 1Beloved, do not trust every spirit but test the spirits to see whether they belong to God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.a 2This is how you can know the Spirit of God: every spirit that acknowledges Jesus Christ come in the flesh belongs to God,b 3and every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus* does not belong to God. This is the spirit of the antichrist that, as you heard, is to come, but in fact is already in the world.c 4You belong to God, children, and you have conquered them, for the one who is in you is greater than the one who is in the world. 5They belong to the world; accordingly, their teaching belongs to the world, and the world listens to them.d 6We belong to God, and anyone who knows God listens to us, while anyone who does not belong to God refuses to hear us. This is how we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of deceit.e

Gal 4:21-31

An Allegory on Christian Freedom.* 21Tell me, you who want to be under the law, do you not listen to the law? 22For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the freeborn woman.l 23The son of the slave woman was born naturally, the son of the freeborn through a promise.m 24Now this is an allegory. These women represent two covenants. One was from Mount Sinai, bearing children for slavery; this is Hagar.n 25Hagar represents Sinai,* a mountain in Arabia; it corresponds to the present Jerusalem, for she is in slavery along with her children. 26But the Jerusalem above is freeborn, and she is our mother.o 27For it is written:

“Rejoice, you barren one who bore no children;p

break forth and shout, you who were not in labor;

for more numerous are the children of the deserted one

than of her who has a husband.”*

28Now you, brothers, like Isaac, are children of the promise.q 29But just as then the child of the flesh persecuted the child of the spirit, it is the same now. 30But what does the scripture say?

“Drive out the slave woman and her son!

For the son of the slave woman shall not share the inheritance with the son”r

of the freeborn. 31Therefore, brothers, we are children not of the slave woman but of the freeborn woman.s

Lk 1:57-66

The Birth of John.* 57When the time arrived for Elizabeth to have her child she gave birth to a son. 58Her neighbors and relatives heard that the Lord had shown his great mercy toward her, and they rejoiced with her.g 59* When they came on the eighth day to circumciseh the child, they were going to call him Zechariah after his father, 60but his mother said in reply, “No. He will be called John.”i 61But they answered her, “There is no one among your relatives who has this name.” 62So they made signs, asking his father what he wished him to be called. 63He asked for a tablet and wrote, “John is his name,” and all were amazed. 64Immediately his mouth was opened, his tongue freed, and he spoke blessing God.j 65Then fear came upon all their neighbors, and all these matters were discussed throughout the hill country of Judea. 66All who heard these things took them to heart, saying, “What, then, will this child be?” For surely the hand of the Lord was with him.