Gospel and Saint of the day: 21 December 2019
Song of Songs 2,8-14.
A voice! My beloved! Here he is, he comes jumping for the mountains, jumping for the hills.
My beloved resembles a roe deer or a fawn. Here he is, he is behind our wall; look through the window, spy through the railings.
Now my beloved speaks and says to me: “Get up, my friend, my beautiful, and come!
Because, behold, winter has passed, the rain has ceased, it is gone;
flowers have appeared in the fields, the time for singing has returned and the voice of the turtle dove can still be heard in our countryside.
The fig tree has put out the first fruits and the flowering vines spread fragrance. Get up, my friend, my beautiful, and come!
O my dove, who are in the crevices of the rock, in the hiding places of the cliffs, show me your face, make me hear your voice, because your voice is sweet, your face is graceful ".
Salmi 33(32),2-3.11-12.20-21.
Praise the Lord with the harp,
with the ten-string harp sung to him.
Sing a new song to the Lord,
play the zither with art and cheer.
The plan of the Lord exists forever,
the thoughts of his heart for all generations.
Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord,
the people who have chosen themselves as heirs.
Our soul awaits the Lord,
he is our help and our shield.
Our heart rejoices in him
and trust in his holy name.
From the Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Luke 1,39-45.
In those days, Mary set off for the mountain and hurriedly reached a city of Judah.
Entering the house of Zechariah, she greeted Elizabeth.
As soon as Elizabeth heard Maria's greeting, the baby jumped in her womb. Elizabeth was full of the Holy Spirit
and exclaimed in a loud voice: "Blessed are you among women and blessed is the fruit of your womb!
To what should the mother of my Lord come to me?
Behold, as soon as the voice of your greeting reached my ears, the child exulted with joy in my womb.
And blessed is she who believed in the fulfillment of the words of the Lord ».
21 December
SAINT PETER CANISIO
Priest and Doctor of the Church
Nijmegen, the Netherlands, 1521 - Freiburg, Switzerland, 21 December 1597
Pietro Kanijs (Canisio, in the Latinized form) was born in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, in 1521. He is the son of the burgomaster of the city, therefore has the opportunity to study canon law in Leuven and civil law in Cologne. In this city he loves to spend his free time in the Carthusian monastery and reading the short brochure of the Spiritual Exercises that St. Ignatius recently wrote determines the decisive turning point of his life: having completed the pious practice in Mainz under the direction of Father Faber, enters the Society of Jesus and is the eighth Jesuit to make solemn vows. He was responsible for the publication of the works of San Cirillo di Alessandria, San Leone Magno, San Girolamo and Osio di Cordova. He takes an active part in the Council of Trent, as theologian of Cardinal Truchsess and adviser to the pope. St. Ignatius calls him to Italy, sending him first to Sicily, then to Bologna, to then send him back to Germany, where he remains for thirty years, as provincial superior. Pius V offered him the cardinalate, but Pietro Canisio asked the pope to leave him in his humble community service. He died in Freiburg, Switzerland on December 21, 1597. (Avvenire)
PRAYER
O God, whom you raised up in the midst of your people, Saint Peter Canisius, a priest full of charity and wisdom, to confirm the faithful in Catholic doctrine, grant those who seek the truth, the joy of finding you and those who believe, perseverance in the faith .