Responsorial Psalm

℟. (12) Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.

Blessed the nation whose God is the LORD,
   the people he has chosen for his own inheritance.
From heaven the LORD looks down;
   he sees all mankind.

℟. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.

But see, the eyes of the LORD are upon those who fear him,
   upon those who hope for his kindness,
To deliver them from death
   and preserve them in spite of famine.

℟. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.

Our soul waits for the LORD,
   who is our help and our shield,
For in him our hearts rejoice;
   in his holy name we trust.

℟. Blessed the people the Lord has chosen to be his own.

Alleluia, Alleluia.

I give you a new commandment:
love one another as I have loved you.

Alleluia, Alleluia.

Gospel

Mt 25:14-30

✠ A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew

Jesus told his disciples this parable:
“A man going on a journey
   called in his servants and entrusted his possessions to them.
To one he gave five talents; to another, two; to a third, one—
   to each according to his ability.
Then he went away.
Immediately the one who received five talents went and traded with them,
   and made another five.
Likewise, the one who received two made another two.
But the man who received one went off and dug a hole in the ground
   and buried his master’s money.
After a long time
   the master of those servants came back and settled accounts with them.
The one who had received five talents
   came forward bringing the additional five.
He said, ‘Master, you gave me five talents.
See, I have made five more.’
His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
   I will give you great responsibilities.
Come, share your master’s joy.’
Then the one who had received two talents also came forward and said,
   ‘Master, you gave me two talents.
See, I have made two more.’
His master said to him, ‘Well done, my good and faithful servant.
Since you were faithful in small matters,
   I will give you great responsibilities.
Come, share your master’s joy.’
Then the one who had received the one talent came forward and said,
   ‘Master, I knew you were a demanding person,
   harvesting where you did not plant
   and gathering where you did not scatter;
   so out of fear I went off and buried your talent in the ground.
Here it is back.’
His master said to him in reply, ‘You wicked, lazy servant!
So you knew that I harvest where I did not plant
   and gather where I did not scatter?
Should you not then have put my money in the bank
   so that I could have got it back with interest on my return?
Now then! Take the talent from him and give it to the one with ten.
For to everyone who has,
   more will be given and he will grow rich;
   but from the one who has not,
   even what he has will be taken away.
And throw this useless servant into the darkness outside,
   where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.’”

At the end of the Gospel, the Deacon, or the Priest, acclaims:

The Gospel of the Lord.

All reply:

Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

Then he kisses the book, saying quietly:

Through the words of the Gospel
may our sins be wiped away.

The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to You, Lord Jesus Christ.

Nicene Creed

I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.

I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.

God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made,
consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.

For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of
the Virgin Mary, and became man.

For our sake he was crucified
under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.

He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right
hand of the Father.

He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the
Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son
is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.

I believe in One, Holy,
Catholic and Apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism
for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to
the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come.

Amen.

Gospel Canticle

Ant. You answered her prayer, O Lord, you did not disregard her tears which fell upon the earth wherever she prayed.

Canticle of Zechariah
Luke 1:68-79
The Messiah and his forerunner

Blessed + be the Lord, the God of Israel; *
he has come to his people and set them free.

He has raised up for us a mighty savior, *
born of the house of his servant David.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old †
  that he would save us from our enemies, *
  from the hands of all who hate us.

He promised to show mercy to our fathers *
and to remember his holy covenant.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham: *
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship him without fear, *
holy and righteous in his sight
   all the days of our life.

You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High; *
for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,
to give his people knowledge of salvation *
by the forgiveness of their sins.

In the tender compassion of our God *
the dawn from on high shall break upon us,
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death, *
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father, and to the Son, *
and to the Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now, *
and will be for ever. Amen.


Ant. You answered her prayer, O Lord, you did not disregard her tears which fell upon the earth wherever she prayed.