Saint Athanasius
Bishop and Doctor of the Church, Memorial
Other Celebrations for this Day:
Liturgical Cycle: A, B, C | Lectionary Cycle: I, II
Introduction
St. Athanasius (295-273), patriarch of Alexandria, was a bishop living in a time of great crisis for the Church just after the Roman persecutions. He defended the divinity of Christ against Arianism, which said that Christ was no more than a man. He suffered much for his faith. “The future of the Church will depend entirely on those who live with deep convictions, the pure fullness of their faith. The future does not come from those who accommodate themselves to the circumstances of the moment. It does not come from those who criticise others but promote themselves as the infallible norm. The future of the Church will also be determined this time by the saints. By people who can see more than others can because there is a greater dimension to their lives… To the extent a person lives and has suffered, to that extent he also can see.”
(Ratzinger, The Future of Faith)
Opening Prayer
God of truth and wisdom,
you entrusted St. Athanasius with the task
of defending the divinity of Christ.
Help us to see in Jesus, one of us,
more than a man, as your own Son.
And give your Church leaders
of great faith, insight and wisdom
who will never deny Christ
even in the face of persistent persecution
and who help their people to remain faithful to him.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
First Reading
Conclusion
Everyone who believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God; and everyone who loves the parent loves the child.
How can we know that we love God’s children? If we love God and obey his commandments,
because God’s love requires us to keep his commandments. In fact, his commandments are not burdensome
because everyone born of God overcomes the world. And our victory that overcomes the world is our faith.
Who conquers the world? The one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.
Responsorial Psalm
R. (30a) The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.
Trust in the LORD and do good
that you may dwell in the land and be fed in security.
Take delight in the LORD,
and he will grant you your heart's requests.
R. The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.
Commit to the LORD your way;
trust in him, and he will act.
He will make justice dawn for you like the light;
bright as the noonday shall be your vindication.
R. The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.
The mouth of the just man tells of wisdom
and his tongue utters what is right.
The law of his God is in his heart,
and his steps do not falter.
R. The mouth of the just murmurs wisdom.
Alleluia Verse
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,
for theirs is the Kingdom of heaven.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Everyone will hate you because of me, but anyone who stays firm until the end will be saved.
When they persecute you in one town, escape to the next. I assure you, you won’t have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes.
A student is not above his teacher, nor a slave above his master.
A student should be content to become like his teacher and the slave like his master. If the head of the household has been called Beelzebul, how much more those of his household!
Prayers of the Faithful
Prayer over the Gifts
Our living and loving God,
that you let us sit at the table of your Son
is for us an act of faith
that though he is one of us,
he is much more than we all.
Give us a deep faith in him
that he is our Savior and Lord
who saved us by his death and resurrection.
In him we believe,
and through him we entrust ourselves to you,
our God for ever and ever.
Prayer after Communion
God,
what deeper profession of faith can we make
that we believe in your Son Jesus Christ,
both God and man,
than celebrating his eucharist with him?
Let him steep us
in the new and everlasting covenant
and unite us more deeply with him,
with you and with your Spirit.
Do all this through Jesus Christ our Lord.