September 8th 2018

Feast of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

LECTIONARY
636

FIRST READING
MI 5:1-4A

The LORD says:
You, Bethlehem-Ephrathah,
too small to be among the clans of Judah,
From you shall come forth for me
one who is to be ruler in Israel;
Whose origin is from of old,
from ancient times.
(Therefore the Lord will give them up, until the time
when she who is to give birth has borne,
And the rest of his brethren shall return
to the children of Israel.)
He shall stand firm and shepherd his flock
by the strength of the LORD,
in the majestic name of the LORD, his God;
And they shall remain, for now his greatness
shall reach to the ends of the earth;
he shall be peace.

PSALM
PS 13:6AB, 6C

Response: With delight I rejoice in the Lord.

Though I trusted in your mercy,
let my heart rejoice in your salvation.

Let me sing of the LORD, "He has been good to me."

GOSPEL
MT 1:18-23

This is how the birth of Jesus Christ came about.
When his mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph,
but before they lived together,
she was found with child through the Holy Spirit.
Joseph her husband, since he was a righteous man,
yet unwilling to expose her to shame,
decided to divorce her quietly.
Such was his intention when, behold,
the angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said,
“Joseph, son of David,
do not be afraid to take Mary your wife into your home.
For it is through the Holy Spirit
that this child has been conceived in her.
She will bear a son and you are to name him Jesus,
because he will save his people from their sins.”
All this took place to fulfill
what the Lord had said through the prophet:

Behold, the virgin shall be with child and bear a son,
and they shall name him Emmanuel,

which means “God is with us.”

Daily Reflection

8th September 2018

Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary

It seems odd that as we celebrate the birth of our Blessed Mother, the Church gives us readings that speak about the birth of Jesus. But a closer look reveals why. The Gospel gives us the genealogy of Jesus and points to Mary as an integral part of God’s plan of salvation. The genealogy pans out in 3 sections from Abraham to David, David to the Exile and from the return of the Exiles to the birth of Jesus, showing us that God’s plan has meticulously unfolded to culminate in Jesus... and Mary has an important part to play for she is found with child through the Holy Spirit.

St. Paul explains this mysterious plan in a very simple statement, “All things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” And that is precisely why in celebrating Mary, we recall Jesus – Jesus was that purpose for which Mary was called.

As we celebrate her birthday today, perhaps the best gift we can give her is to “Magnify the Lord” as she did.