SAINT Maelruain
In 769 he founded the monastery at Tallaght, in County Dublin, Ireland. Together with St Aengus he wrote a detailed Rule for the community, which is an important document in the history of early monasticism.
Entrance Antiphon: Ps 46: 2
All peoples, clap your hands. Cry to God with shouts of joy!
Collect
O God, who through the grace of adoption, chose us to be children of light; grant, we pray, that we may not be wrapped in the darkness of error but always be seen to stand in the bright light of truth. 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: Genesis 23:1-4,19,24:1-8,62-67
The length of Sarah’s life was a hundred and twenty-seven years. She died at Kiriath-arba, or Hebron, in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn and grieve for her. Then leaving his dead, Abraham spoke to the sons of Heth: “I am a stranger and a settler among you,” he said. “Let me own a burial-plot among you, so that I may take my dead wife and bury her.” After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field of Machpelah opposite Mamre, in the country of Canaan. By now Abraham was an old man well on in years, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. Abraham said to the eldest servant of his household, the steward of all his property, “Place your hand under my thigh, I would have you swear by the Lord, God of heaven and God of earth, that you will not choose a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I live. Instead, go to my own land and my own kinsfolk to choose a wife for my son Isaac.” The servant asked him, “What if the woman does not want to come with me to this country? Must I take your son back to the country from which you came?” Abraham answered, “On no account take my son back there. The Lord, God of heaven and God of earth, took me from my father’s home, and from the land of my kinsfolk, and he swore to me that he would give this country to my descendants. He will now send his angel ahead of you, so that you may choose a wife for my son there. And if the woman does not want to come with you, you will be free from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.” Isaac, who lived in the Negeb, had meanwhile come into the wilderness of the well of Lahai Roi. Now Isaac went walking in the fields as evening fell, and looking up saw camels approaching. And Rebekah looked up and saw Isaac. She jumped down from her camel, and asked the servant, “Who is that man walking through the fields to meet us?” The servant replied, “That is my master”; then she took her veil and hid her face. The servant told Isaac the whole story, and Isaac led Rebekah into his tent and made her his wife; and he loved her. And so Isaac was consoled for the loss of his mother.
Psalm 105(106):1-5
R/ O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
O give thanks to the Lord for he is good; for his love endures for ever. Who can tell the Lord’s mighty deeds? Who can recount all his praise?
They are happy who do what is right, who at all times do what is just. O Lord, remember me out of the love you have for your people.
Come to me, Lord, with your help that I may see the joy of your chosen ones and may rejoice in the gladness of your nation and share the glory of your people.
Gospel Acclamation: Ps24:4,5
Alleluia, alleluia! Teach me your paths, my God, make me walk in your truth. Alleluia!
Gospel: Matthew 9:9-13
As Jesus was walking on, he saw a man named Matthew sitting by the customs house, and he said to him, “Follow me.” And he got up and followed him. While he was at dinner in the house it happened that a number of tax collectors and sinners came to sit at the table with Jesus and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, “Why does your master eat with tax collectors and sinners?” When he heard this he replied, “It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick. Go and learn the meaning of the words: What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. And indeed I did not come to call the virtuous, but sinners.”
Prayer over the Offerings
O God, who graciously accomplish the effects of your mysteries, grant, we pray, that the deeds by which we serve you may be worthy of these sacred gifts. Through Christ our Lord.
Communion Antiphon: Cf. Ps 102: 1
Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all within me, his holy name.
Prayer after Communion
May this divine sacrifice we have offered and received fill us with life, O Lord, we pray, so that, bound to you in lasting charity, we may bear fruit that lasts for ever. Through Christ our Lord.
Meditation
Jesus calls Matthew, the tax collector. He calls all of us, each sitting in his own sinful comfort. Further on, he eats with the tax collectors to the great indignation of the Pharisees: “Why does your master eat with tax collectors and sinners?” And Jesus replies: “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners”. Indeed, in our darkness, let us not feel unworthy of divine mercy. Like Matthew, let us respond promptly. Let us rest our heavy burden of sin on Jesus; He has come to relieve us of them. Let us pray for our personal conversion and that of our brothers and sisters.