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Date:         Wed, 23 Dec 1992 19:50:45 -0500
From:         Bill J Good <billgood@WORLD.STD.COM>
Subject:      Catholic Calendar, Dec. 24

         +   Catholic Calendar for Thursday, December 24, 1992   +
                         Fourth Week of Advent



 - Scripture readings from the Liturgy of the Word:

               2 Samuel 7:1-5, 8-11, 16
               Psalm 89:2-5, 20-29
               Luke 1:67-79



Reflections on Thursday's Liturgy of the Word:

"Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel, for He has visited and ransomed His
 people!"

Indeed, blessed be the Lord, for He has rescued us, and will continue to
rescue us from sin!

"He has raised a horn of saving strength for us in the house of David His
 servant, as he promised through the mouth of His holy ones, the prophets of
 ancient times: Salvation from our enemies and the hands of all our foes.

Nothing, nothing at all can overcome us, for His love for us is great, and His
faithfulness knows no bounds.

He has dealt mercifully with our fathers and remembered the holy covenant He
made, the oath He swore to Abraham our father He would grant us: that, rid of
fear and delivered from the enemy, we should serve Him devoutly, and through
all our days be holy in His sight.

His perfect love casts out all fear, and cleanses and purifies us to love and
serve Him, and enables us to seek holiness and perfection, confident that they
are not beyond our grasp.

"And you, O child, shall be called prophet of the Most High; for you shall
 go before the Lord to prepare straight paths for Him, giving His people a
 knowledge of Salvation in freedom from their sins.

We are His prophets now, we are to bring Him to others, to not only tell of,
but also to demonstrate His love, thus preparing the hearts of others to
receive Him with joy, and to rejoice in being freed from bondage to sin.

All this is the work of the kindness of our God; He, the dayspring, shall
visit us in His mercy to shine on those who sit in darkness and in the shadow
of death, to guide our feet into the way of peace.

The Dayspring is taking an active part in our lives, leading us to Himself,
out of darkness into light, out of hate into love, out of gloom into joy, out
of despair into hope, out of unrest into peace.

Father, we yield to You our lives and our hearts, do with us as You will, for
your plans for us are for good and not evil, for life and not death.  Praise
You, Father, for the gift of Your Son, whom we certainly do not deserve.
Praise You for your faithfulness to Your people, collectively and
individually.  Praise You for your never-ending love.   Jubilate Deo!

    - Rose Atiyeh   @>-->--


   Reprinted with permission from:
      "The Way, The Truth, The Life" - a Catholic BBS at 315-392-2368



Let us pray...

  ...Let us all see the wonderful Messiah that John saw.  Come, Lord
     Jesus. We have waited long to see your glory, Come, Lord Jesus.

  ...O Father, that your infinite power may heal our grievous illnesses,
     and that we may turn to You, repentant of our sins.

  ...for those of us who will die today, O Father, may we be shown your
     mercy, and may our grieving families be comforted in their sorrow.

  ...that we may reaffirm the lives of our relatives, friends, associates,
     and forgive those persons for whom our love is lacking.

  ...that the loving hand of God may be shown to the suffering people in the
     former Yugoslavian states, Somalia, Chile, Peru and many other troubled
     areas of the world.

  ...that all people and governments will respect every unborn life and the
     elderly.

  ...for those who live alone or feel that they are alone in the world,
     that God might enlighten them and give them comfort through His
     servants and through His Grace.



A Special Marian Prayer,


Lord,

     Thank you for the wonderful blessing of your Holy Mother, spiritual
     mother to the Church.  She prays for us unceasingly, with a gentle
     mother's heart.  Thank you for the gift that she gave us for all
     eternity, with her resounding "Yes," to you.  Thank you for our
     Mother, the Gentle One whose heart is full of your love for all of
     us.  We share with her now her time of pain, and her time of joy.
     Thank you for the Son she bore and the blessing she bestowed upon
     all of us through her gentle obedience to your Word.  Bless us Lord
     with hearts as loving, giving, and caring as hers.  Let our
     Christmas be a celebration of Her Love for you, and of your Love for
     us.  Let our families all be a sign to one another of the love and
     caring that you have for each of us.

     Hail Mary...

     Amen.

               +JuandelaCruz+



Rosary Mysteries for Thursday: Joyful

 1. The Annunciation (Humility)
 2. The Visitation (Charity)
 3. The Nativity (Poverty)
 4. The Presentation (Obedience)
 5. The Finding in the Temple (Piety)