Catholic Missal of the day: Sunday, January 8 2017
Epiphany of the Lord
Epiphany of the Lord
1. ReadingBook of Isaiah
60,1-6.]Rise up in splendor, Jerusalem! Your light has come, the glory of the Lord shines upon you.
]See, darkness covers the earth, and thick clouds cover the peoples; But upon you the LORD shines, and over you appears his glory.
]Nations shall walk by your light, and kings by your shining radiance.
]Raise your eyes and look about; they all gather and come to you: Your sons come from afar, and your daughters in the arms of their nurses.
]Then you shall be radiant at what you see, your heart shall throb and overflow, For the riches of the sea shall be emptied out before you, the wealth of nations shall be brought to you.
]Caravans of camels shall fill you, dromedaries from Midian and Ephah; All from Sheba shall come bearing gold and frankincense, and proclaiming the praises of the LORD.
Psalms
72(71),1-2.7-8.10-11.12-13.]O God, with your judgment endow the king,
and with your justice, the king's son;
]He shall govern your people with justice
and your afflicted ones with judgment.
]Justice shall flower in his days,
and profound peace, till the moon be no more.
]May he rule from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
]The kings of Tarshish and the Isles shall offer gifts;
the kings of Arabia and Seba shall bring tribute.
]All kings shall pay him homage,
all nations shall serve him.
]For he shall rescue the poor when he cries out,
And the afflicted when he has no one to help him.
]He shall have pity for the lowly and the poor;
The lives of the poor he shall save.
Letter to the Ephesians
3,2-3a.5-6.]Brothers and sisters: You have heard of the stewardship of God's grace that was given to me for your benefit,
](namely, that) the mystery was made known to me by revelation, as I have written briefly earlier.
]which was not made known to human beings in other generations as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit,
]that the Gentiles are coheirs, members of the same body, and copartners in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.
Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew
2,1-12.]When Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea, in the days of King Herod, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem,
]saying, "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star at its rising and have come to do him homage."
]When King Herod heard this, he was greatly troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.
]Assembling all the chief priests and the scribes of the people, he inquired of them where the Messiah was to be born.
]They said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for thus it has been written through the prophet:
]'And you, Bethlehem, land of Judah, are by no means least among the rulers of Judah; since from you shall come a ruler, who is to shepherd my people Israel.'"
]Then Herod called the magi secretly and ascertained from them the time of the star's appearance.
]He sent them to Bethlehem and said, "Go and search diligently for the child. When you have found him, bring me word, that I too may go and do him homage."
]After their audience with the king they set out. And behold, the star that they had seen at its rising preceded them, until it came and stopped over the place where the child was.
]They were overjoyed at seeing the star,
]and on entering the house they saw the child with Mary his mother. They prostrated themselves and did him homage. Then they opened their treasures and offered him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.
]And having been warned in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their country by another way.
St. Apollinaris(The Apologist, Bishop (2nd century))
SAINT APOLLINARIS, THE APOLOGIST Bishop(2nd century) Claudius Apollinaris was the bishop of Hierapolis, in the kingdom of Phrygia, modern Turkey. He was an apologist and civil rights activist. Besides encomiums from Eusebius, St. Jerome, Theodoret and others, little is known about Apollinaris. His writings, which were then held in great esteem, seem now to be lost. Apollinaris wrote many able treatises against heresies. He pointed out, as St. Jerome testifies, from what philosophical sect each heresy derived its errors. He also addressed an apologetic letter to Emperor Marcus Aurelius circa 175 A.D. Therein, he links the miraculous victory over the Quadi to the prayers of Christians. Apollinaris implored the emperor to protect Christians from persecution by pagans. Thus, Marcus Aurelius published an edict forbidding anyone, under pain of death, to accuse Christians for their religion. By a strange inconsistency, he lacked the courage to abolish the laws then in force. As a consequence, many Christians suffered martyrdom, though their accusers were also put to death. The date of Apollinaris' death is unknown. The Roman Martyrology mentions him on January 8. He lives now in the company of saints and beholds God forever.
St. Severin(Abbot (410-482))
St. SeverinAbbot(410-482) While the Roman Empire was collapsing, St. Severin travelled to the most stricken, war-torn area to serve and minister to its people. He carried nothing more than the clothes on his back; but built refugee centers, schools and monasteries. He was like a prototype of St. Francis of Assisi. Austria honors St. Severin as its apostle. Germanic tribes were invading Noricum, modern Austria, and Bavaria. The Roman Empire was collapsing and those on its fringes were acutely affected. St. Severin made the conscious decision to work among the inhabitants of that area, amidst Germanic tribes who invaded Rome. He only bore the weight of the enormous risks through faith and likely a strong devotion to Saints Mary and Joseph. He walked by faith and not by sight (2 Cor 5:7). In Noricum, St. Severin organized refugee centers and procured food. Germanic warlords like Odoacer permitted his activities on account of his absolute poverty and clear lack of political agenda. He arrived in Noricum not wearing shoes and sleeping in the open. He had no claim to wealth or status; hence the power of his faith was great. He worked without any material gain and at the expense of his own life. The sheer vulnerability and radical lifestyle must have caused others to think he was harmless or a lunatic. The immunity he gained allowed him to eventually establish schools and monasteries with Germanic consent. When St. Severin's monastery was razed by invading Huns, his body was carried to Lucullano, near Naples. His body was then transferred to a monastery dedicated to him. The lasting impact he had on Austria and Bavaria have led those countries to venerate him as an apostle and father.
St. Thorfinn(Bishop († 1285))
Category: Mass by Year / Catholic Missal 2017 / Catholic Missal of january 2017
Published: 2026-07-14T18:16:14Z | Modified: 2026-07-14T18:16:14Z