Saint Alphonsus Liguori
Bishop and Doctor of the Church, Memorial
Liturgical Cycle: A, B, C | Lectionary Cycle: I, II
Introduction
A brilliant lawyer at 17, St. Alphonsus decided to become a priest after losing a court case and to devote himself to the evangelisation of the poor. For this purpose, he founded the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer (Redemptorists) to preach “parish missions” to them. He is rightly famous for his balanced moral theology, which was the standard work for an entire era and helped attenuate the rigorism of Jansenism. His sanctity grew in the trials of his work and of his difficulties with his own congregation, which even expelled him. But nothing could separate him from the love of God.
Opening Prayer
Loving God,
St Alphonsus Liguori was a shepherd
who did all he could to lead God’s people to you,
especially the poor and the simple.
Give us shepherds like him
who show the human face of Christ
and who can therefore attract people
with gentleness and concern
to our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
First Reading
Life Through the Spirit
This contradiction no longer exists for those in Jesus Christ.
In Jesus Christ, the law of the Spirit of life has set me free from the law of sin and death.
The law was ineffective, weak as it was through the flesh. God, planning to destroy sin, sent his own Son in the likeness of those subject to the sinful human condition; by doing this he condemned the sin in this human condition.
Since then, the perfection intended by the law will be fulfilled by those who walk in the way of the spirit rather than in the way of the flesh.
Responsorial Psalm
Psalm 119:9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14
R. (12) Lord, teach me your statutes.
How shall a young man be faultless in his way?
By keeping to your words.
R. Lord, teach me your statutes.
With all my heart I seek you;
let me not stray from your commands.
R. Lord, teach me your statutes.
Within my heart I treasure your promise,
that I may not sin against you.
R. Lord, teach me your statutes.
Blessed are you, O LORD;
teach me your statutes.
R. Lord, teach me your statutes.
With my lips I declare
all the ordinances of your mouth.
R. Lord, teach me your statutes.
In the way of your decrees I rejoice,
as much as in all riches.
R. Lord, teach me your statutes.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Let your light shine before others,
that they may see your good deeds and glorify your heavenly Father.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Salt and Light. Image of the Disciples: Salt and Light
You are the salt of the earth. But if salt loses its saltiness, how can it be made salty again? It has become useless. It can only be thrown away, and people will trample on it.
You are the light of the world. A city built on a mountain cannot be hidden.
No one lights a lamp and then covers it; instead, it is placed on a lampstand where it provides light for everyone in the house.
In the same way, your light must shine before others so that they may see the good you do and praise your Father in heaven.
Jesus and the Law
Do not think that I have come to abolish the law and the prophets. I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them.
I tell you this: as long as heaven and earth last, not the smallest letter or dot in the law will change until everything is fulfilled.
So then, whoever breaks the least important of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys them and teaches others to do the same will be great in the kingdom of heaven.
Prayers of the Faithful
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God,
you give taste to our lives
with the bread and wine of your Son,
for they steep us in his love and faithfulness.
Do not allow us to lose our savor
but make us use it to preserve in this world
the goodness and dedicated love
which you have shown us in your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Prayer after Communion
God our Father,
the words spoken by your Son
have been a light on our path of life
and his body our source of renewal.
Do not allow us to hide the light
of his self-forgetting, faithful love,
but let it shine in us
that people may see in us
the reflection of his goodness
and give praise to you,
through Jesus Christ our Lord.