Our Lady of St. Olympias

Monday of the Third week of Advent

Commentary of the day
Vatican Council II : "Mary, from whom was born Jesus"

Reading

Gn 49,2.8-10.
"Assemble and listen, sons of Jacob, listen to Israel, your father. "You, Judah, shall your brothers praise --your hand on the neck of your enemies; the sons of your father shall bow down to you. Judah, like a lion's whelp, you have grown up on prey, my son. He crouches like a lion recumbent, the king of beasts--who would dare rouse him? The scepter shall never depart from Judah, or the mace from between his legs, While tribute is brought to him, and he receives the people's homage.



Ps 72(71),3-4.7-8.17.
That the mountains may yield their bounty for the people, and the hills great abundance,
That he may defend the oppressed among the people, save the poor and crush the oppressor.
That abundance may flourish in his days, great bounty, till the moon be no more.
May he rule from sea to sea, from the river to the ends of the earth.
May his name be blessed forever; as long as the sun, may his name endure.
May the tribes of the earth give blessings with his name; may all the nations regard him as favored.


Mt 1,1-17.
The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham. Abraham became the father of Isaac, Isaac the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Judah and his brothers. Judah became the father of Perez and Zerah, whose mother was Tamar. Perez became the father of Hezron, Hezron the father of Ram, Ram the father of Amminadab. Amminadab became the father of Nahshon, Nahshon the father of Salmon, Salmon the father of Boaz, whose mother was Rahab. Boaz became the father of Obed, whose mother was Ruth. Obed became the father of Jesse, Jesse the father of David the king. David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, Rehoboam the father of Abijah, Abijah the father of Asaph. Asaph became the father of Jehoshaphat, Jehoshaphat the father of Joram, Joram the father of Uzziah. Uzziah became the father of Jotham, Jotham the father of Ahaz, Ahaz the father of Hezekiah. Hezekiah became the father of Manasseh, Manasseh the father of Amos, Amos the father of Josiah. Josiah became the father of Jechoniah and his brothers at the time of the Babylonian exile. After the Babylonian exile, Jechoniah became the father of Shealtiel, Shealtiel the father of Zerubbabel, Zerubbabel the father of Abiud. Abiud became the father of Eliakim, Eliakim the father of Azor, Azor the father of Zadok. Zadok became the father of Achim, Achim the father of Eliud, Eliud the father of Eleazar. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Messiah. Thus the total number of generations from Abraham to David is fourteen generations; from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations; from the Babylonian exile to the Messiah, fourteen generations.


Copyright © Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, USCCB



Commentary of the day

Vatican Council II
Dogmatic Constitution on the Church, “Lumen Gentium”, §55 (©Libreria editrice Vaticana)

"Mary, from whom was born Jesus"

The Sacred Scriptures of both the Old and the New Testaments, as well as ancient Tradition, show the role of the Mother of the Saviour in the economy of salvation in an ever clearer light and draw attention to it. The books of the Old Testament describe the history of salvation, by which the coming of Christ into the world was slowly prepared. These earliest documents, as they are read in the Church and are understood in the light of a further and full revelation, bring the figure of the woman, Mother of the Redeemer, into a gradually clearer light. When it is looked at in this way, she is already prophetically foreshadowed in the promise of victory over the serpent which was given to our first parents after their fall into sin, (Gn 3,15). Likewise she is the Virgin who shall conceive and bear a son, whose name will be called Emmanuel, (Is 7,14; Mi 5,2). She stands out among the poor and humble of the Lord, who confidently hope for and receive salvation from Him. With her, the exalted Daughter of Sion, and after a long expectation of the promise, the times are fulfilled and the new Economy established when the Son of God took a human nature from her, that He might, in the mysteries of His flesh, free man from sin.