Thursday 01 October 2020
Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus (1873 – 1897)
She was born in France on January 2, 1873 and entered the Carmel of Lisieux in 1888. Though her faith was seriously tested by sickness she grew in sanctity. She died at the age of 24 in 1897 with the following words: “I am not dying, I am entering life”. Her example of holiness has been received with great enthusiasm by all the faithful and even outside Christianity.
White
Entrance Antiphon: Cf. Deut 32: 10-12
The Lord led her and taught her, and kept her as the apple of his eye. Like an eagle spreading its wings he took her up and bore her on his shoulders. The Lord alone was her guide.
Collect
O God, who open your Kingdom to those who are humble and to little ones, lead us to follow trustingly in the little way of Saint Thérèse, so that through her intercession, we may see your eternal glory revealed. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
First reading: Job 19:21-27
Job said: Pity me, pity me, you, my friends, for the hand of God has struck me. Why do you hound me down like God, will you never have enough of my flesh? Ah, would that these words of mine were written down, inscribed on some monument with iron chisel and engraving tool, cut into the rock for ever. This I know: that my Avenger lives, and he, the Last, will take his stand on earth. After my awaking, he will set me close to him, and from my flesh I shall look on God. He whom I shall see will take my part: these eyes will gaze on him and find him not aloof.
Psalm 26(27):7-9,13-14
R/ I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living.
- O Lord, hear my voice when I call; have mercy and answer. Of you my heart has spoken: ‘Seek his face.’
- It is your face, O Lord, that I seek; hide not your face. Dismiss not your servant in anger; you have been my help.
- I am sure I shall see the Lord’s goodness in the land of the living. Hope in him, hold firm and take heart. Hope in the Lord!
Gospel Acclamation : Mt4:4
Alleluia, alleluia! Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God. Alleluia!
Gospel: Luke 10:1-12
The Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them out ahead of him, in pairs, to all the towns and places he himself was to visit. He said to them, ‘The harvest is rich but the labourers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send labourers to his harvest. Start off now, but remember, I am sending you out like lambs among wolves. Carry no purse, no haversack, no sandals. Salute no one on the road. Whatever house you go into, let your first words be, “Peace to this house!” And if a man of peace lives there, your peace will go and rest on him; if not, it will come back to you. Stay in the same house, taking what food and drink they have to offer, for the labourer deserves his wages; do not move from house to house. Whenever you go into a town where they make you welcome, eat what is set before you. Cure those in it who are sick, and say, “The kingdom of God is very near to you.” But whenever you enter a town and they do not make you welcome, go out into its streets and say, “We wipe off the very dust of your town that clings to our feet, and leave it with you. Yet be sure of this: the kingdom of God is very near.” I tell you, on that day it will not go as hard with Sodom as with that town.’
Prayer over the Offerings
As we proclaim your wonders in Saint Thérèse, O Lord, we humbly implore your majesty, that, as her merits were pleasing to you, so, too, our dutiful service may find favour in your sight. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon: Mt 18: 3
Thus says the Lord: Unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the Kingdom of Heaven.
Prayer after Communion
May the Sacrament we have received, O Lord, kindle in us the force of that love with which Saint Thérèse dedicated herself to you and longed to obtain your mercy for all. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
In the Gospel today Jesus calls us to discipleship so that we can work in his harvest. In order to achieve this, we have to be courageous in our bid to call people to live a new life, to be a new creation. The call to discipleship is not easy at all. Disciples need endurance and they must be passionate in announcing the faith. Job’s suffering serves as a model for us, not just in his endurance and its rewards, but in the quality of his passion for the presence of God in his life. Job longed to see God, not just for an end to his suffering. He had a passionate faith that consumed him. The Psalmist also calls the people of God to passionate and courageous faith. God is always there to strengthen us. What is most needed to carry out mission is not carrying purses, haversack or sandals. Christ sends us forth not without aid but with the strength of humility and poverty.