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Saint Gertrude Parish - Lasne
November 30, 2025
On this page you will find:
The readings for Mass, the Mass leaflet with the choice of hymns
A sample universal prayer available for download, in PDF and editable Word formats.
A meditation on the Sunday Gospel, a spiritual text and commentary by Marie-Noëlle Thabut
First Sunday of Advent
Get ready:
it's at a time when you won't be thinking about it
that the Son of Man will come.
Matthew 24:44
Readings from the Mass
Mass leaflet
Universal Prayer
Consult the Lectio Divina page, which invites you to read the Gospel in a prayerful atmosphere so that you may be touched in your heart. It is important not to rush to read commentaries or homilies before having this personal experience of encountering Christ in Scripture.
Next, if you wish, you can read the meditations below which will enrich your personal reading and meditation.
Meditation by Pope Francis
In today's Gospel reading, we hear a beautiful promise that ushers us into the season of Advent: "Your Lord is coming" (Mt 24:42). This is the foundation of our hope, this is what sustains us even in the most difficult and painful moments of our lives: God is coming, God is near and is coming. Let us never forget this! The Lord always comes, the Lord visits us, the Lord draws near, and he will return at the end of time to welcome us into his embrace. Faced with this message, we ask ourselves: how does the Lord come? And how can we recognize and welcome him? Let us reflect briefly on these two questions.
The first question is: how does the Lord come? We have often heard that the Lord is present on our path, that he accompanies us and speaks to us. But perhaps, distracted as we are by so many things, this truth remains only theoretical for us; yes, we know that the Lord comes, but we do not live this truth, or we imagine that the Lord comes in a spectacular way, perhaps through some wondrous sign. On the contrary, Jesus says that it will happen “as it was in the days of Noah” (cf. v. 37). And what did people do in Noah’s time? Simply the normal, everyday things of life, as always: “they ate and drank, they married and were given in marriage” (v. 38). Let us consider this: God is hidden in our lives; he is always there; he is hidden in the most common and ordinary situations of our lives. He does not come in extraordinary events, but in everyday things; he manifests himself in everyday things. He is there, in our daily work, in a chance encounter, in the face of a person in need; even when we face days that seem gray and monotonous, the Lord is precisely there, calling us, speaking to us, and inspiring our actions.
However, there is a second question: how do we recognize and welcome the Lord? We must be awake, attentive, and vigilant. Jesus warns us: there is a danger of not realizing his coming and of not being prepared for his visit. I have recalled on other occasions what Saint Augustine said: “I fear the Lord who passes by” (Serm. 88.14.13), in other words, I fear that he will pass by and that I will not recognize him! In fact, of those people in the time of Noah, Jesus says that they ate and drank “and knew nothing about what was coming until the flood came and swept them all away” (v. 39). Let us pay attention to this: they knew nothing about what was coming! They were absorbed in their own affairs and did not realize the arrival of the flood. Indeed, Jesus says that when he comes, “two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left” (v. 40). What does this mean? What is the difference? Simply that one was vigilant, waited, and was able to discern God’s presence in daily life; the other, on the contrary, was distracted, “let life happen,” and noticed nothing.
Brothers and sisters, in this Advent season, let us be shaken from our torpor and awaken from our slumber! Let us ask ourselves: am I aware of what I am experiencing, am I vigilant, am I awake? Do I try to recognize God's presence in everyday situations, or am I distracted and somewhat overwhelmed by things? If we do not perceive his coming today, we will not be prepared when he comes at the end of time. Therefore, brothers and sisters, let us remain vigilant! While waiting for the Lord to come, while waiting for the Lord to draw near to us, because he is here, but in attentive expectation. And may the Blessed Virgin, Woman of Expectation, sustain us. She who knew how to perceive God's presence in the humble and hidden life of Nazareth and welcomed him into her womb, helps us on this path of being attentive to awaiting the Lord who is among us and who is passing by.
AR — DE — EN — ES — FR — HR — IT — PL — PT
POPE FRANCIS
ANGELUS
Saint Peter's Square
Sunday, November 27, 2022
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Homily
Draw from the source
Today we enter the season of Advent (the coming). It is the beginning of a new liturgical year. The first three Sundays will guide us toward the expectation of the second coming of Christ, which will conclude the history of the world and humanity. This coming of Christ concerns ALL the living, including those who are unaware of it. We, as believers, have the mission of bearing witness to this expectation throughout the weeks that prepare us for Christmas. It is not about preparing a celebration that forgets what is essential, but about remaining vigilant.
The three biblical readings for this Sunday invite us to change our perspective on the times we are living in. They remind us of the ultimate goal of believers. The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, who revealed himself to Moses, is the God of all peoples. In the name of this faith, the prophet Isaiah announces that a day will come when all nations will turn toward Jerusalem. This city will become the sign of universal salvation. Peace will have replaced war. All nations will come to celebrate peace and happiness. We prepare ourselves for this by walking each day “in the light of the Lord.”
This is also the message that Saint Paul addresses to the Christians of Rome and to each of us. He invites us all to a deepening of our Christian life. In his time, people awaited the imminent return of the Lord in glory. Years passed, and nothing came; no glorious manifestation of the risen Christ. So the apostle urges everyone to be actively vigilant in preparing to meet the Lord. For “salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. The night is almost over. The day is at hand.” In the meantime, we are invited to put on Christ Jesus and to be constantly ready.
While listening to the Gospel, we may have thought of all the Noah's Arks in our stores. From plush toys to electronic gadgets, a veritable deluge of kindness, gentleness, and dreams is being prepared. But the Gospel speaks of another deluge, the one that has remained in our memories as THE catastrophe. The Bible tells us how Noah witnessed the inexorable rise of the waters. He had taken precautions. But the people who had suspected nothing were all swallowed up.
All of this brings us back to what happens in our cities, flooded with light in the dead of night, overrun by the greenery of fir trees and commercial music; many suspect nothing: it's the holiday season. But one day, there's an accident, a catastrophe, terrorist violence: "Therefore keep watch," Jesus tells us; "be ready." We all know that we mustn't fall asleep at the wheel of our car, otherwise it's a disaster. Let's not risk falling asleep at the wheel of our lives.
Jesus insists: “Be ready, you too.” Don’t let yourselves be distracted. Don’t miss your chance. We have a new Noah’s Ark: it is the community of the baptized, and it is still accessible. All the families of the earth are invited to walk in the light of the Lord. We train ourselves in this in our assemblies through our songs, our hymns, our prayers. It is there that the required vigilance is exercised. It is there that we prepare ourselves for the battle of the light.
To be watchful is to act on everything that needs to change in our lives; it is to reject all forms of selfishness and indifference; it is to renounce behaviors that turn us away from God and from others. But most importantly, it is to put on Christ and allow ourselves to be filled with the love and Light that are in him. Christmas is Jesus who came; he continues to come into our daily lives and he will return in glory. It is more necessary than ever to place him firmly at the center of our lives and our prayers. In fact, he is indeed here, but it is we who are often elsewhere. We are always out and about, bustling about and running in all directions. This first Sunday of Advent is here to remind us that we are sons and daughters of God. This changes everything in our daily lives.
The Eucharist that gathers us together is still and always Christ who comes. He wants to remain with us until the end of time. The more we participate in the Eucharist, the more we will be clothed in Christ. He wants us to be with him to join him in his eternity. “Grant to your faithful, Almighty God, to go with courage on the paths of righteousness to meet the Lord.” Amen
Sources: Feu Nouveau magazines, Sunday bulletins – Let's celebrate Sunday (Sunday Assemblies) – It's Sunday (Emmanuel Oré)
Understanding the readings
with Marie-Noëlle THABUT
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