January 12th, 2025 – The Baptism of the Lord
ENTRANCE ANTIPHON
When the Lord was baptised,
the heavens were opened
and he saw the Spirit of God
descending like a dove,
and alighting on him;
and behold, a voice from heaven, saying:
‘This is my beloved Son,
with whom I am well pleased.’
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
and the love of God,
and the communion of the Holy Spirit
be with you all.
And with your spirit.
Brothers and sisters, let us humbly beseech God our Father
that he bless these waters
with which we shall be sprinkled in remembrance of our Baptism.
May the Lord renew our life
and keep us ever faithful to this gift of the Holy Spirit.
Eternal and everliving God,
who, through the waters of Baptism desired to make holy your children
for eternal life,
bless + these waters
that they may become the sign of your protection
on this day, dedicated to you.
Renew in us, O Father,
the living fount of grace,
and keep us free from all evil,
that we may come to you with a clean heart.
Through Christ our Lord,
Amen.
All-powerful God, cleanse us from all sin
and by this celebration
make us worthy to sit with you
at table in your kingdom,
forever and ever,
Amen.
Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth peace to people of good will.
We praise you,
we bless you,
we adore you,
we glorify you,
we give you thanks for your great glory,
Lord God, heavenly King,
O God, almighty Father.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Begotten Son,
Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,
you take away the sins of the world,
have mercy on us;
you take away the sins of the world,
receive our prayer;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father,
have mercy on us.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father.
Amen.
COLLECT
Let us pray.
O God our Father, in the baptism in the Jordan you revealed to us the Lord Jesus as your only beloved Son through the authority of your voice and the descent of the Holy Spirit. May all who are brought to rebirth as your children by water and the Spirit cleave ever closer to you, according to your loving will. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
LITURGY OF THE WORD
FIRST READING
A reading from the Prophet Isaiah (55:4-7)
Thus says the Lord: ‘Behold, I made him a witness to the peoples, a leader and commander for the peoples. Behold, you shall call nations that know you not, and nations that knew you not shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for he has glorified you. Seek the Lord while he may be found, call upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he may have mercy on him, and to our God, for he will abundantly pardon.’
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
PSALM
Psalm 28 (29)
R. To your name be glory and praise, O Lord.
Give the Lord, O sons of God,
give the Lord glory and might.
Give the Lord the glory of his name;
worship the Lord in holy attire. R.
The voice of the Lord upon the waters;
the Lord, upon many waters.
The voice of the Lord is powerful,
the voice of the Lord is full of majesty. R.
The God of glory thunders.
In his temple, they all cry, ‘Glory!’
The Lord sits enthroned over the flood;
the Lord sits as king forever. R.
EPISTLE
A reading from the Letter of St Paul to the Ephesians (2:13-22)
My brothers, in Christ Jesus you who were once far off have been brought near in the blood of Christ. For he is our peace, who has made us both one, and has broken down the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law of commandments and ordinances, that he might create in himself one new man in place of the two, so making peace, and might reconcile us both to God in one body through the cross, thereby bringing the hostility to an end. And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near; for through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built into it for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.
The Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOSPEL ACCLAMATION
Alleluia.
The heavens were opened and the voice of God said:
This is my beloved Son: listen to him.
Alleluia.
GOSPEL
The Lord be with you
And with your spirit.
A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St Luke (3:15-16, 21-22)
Glory to you, O Lord.
At that time. As the people were in expectation, and all men questioned in their hearts concerning John, whether perhaps he were the Christ, John answered them all, ‘I baptise you with water, but he who is mightier than I is coming, the thong of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie; he will baptise you with the Holy Spirit and with fire.’ Now when all the people were baptised, and when Jesus also had been baptised and was praying, the heaven was opened, and the Holy Spirit descended upon him in bodily form, as a dove, and a voice came from heaven, ‘You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.’
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
AFTER THE GOSPEL
Thus said John:
‘I have seen and have borne witness
that this is the Son of God.’
PRAYERS OF THE FAITHFUL
Dear brothers and sisters, let us entrust our intentions to God.
Lord, in your mercy
Hear our prayer
CONCLUSION OF THE LITURGY OF THE WORD
Cover all the earth, O God, with your paternal blessing, descending from heaven. Confirm in faithfulness all who have been set free from sin and reborn of the Spirit. Renew in us every day the grace of our Baptism. Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Let us offer each other the sign of peace.
THE LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST
O merciful God, accept this bread, that it may become the body of Christ your Son.
Amen.
O merciful God, accept this wine, that it may become the blood of Christ your Son.
Amen.
PROFESSION OF FAITH
Dear brethren, through the Paschal Mystery we have been buried with Christ in Baptism, that we may walk with him in newness of life. And so, let us renew the promises of Holy Baptism, which we once renounced Satan and his works and promised to serve God in the holy Catholic Church.
And so I ask you:
V. Do you renounce sin,
so as to live in the freedom of the children of God?
R. I do.
V. Do you renounce the lure of evil,
so that sin may have no mastery over you?
R. I do.
V. Do you renounce Satan,
the author and prince of sin?
R. I do.
V. Do you believe in God, the Father Almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth?
R. I do.
V. Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered death and was buried,
rose again from the dead
and is seated at the right hand of the Father?
R. I do.
V. Do you believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Catholic church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting?
R. I do.
PRAYER OVER THE GIFTS
Accept, O Lord, the gifts we offer as we celebrate the revelation of Jesus as your only-begotten Son. Transform them into the perfect sacrifice which has washed the world of every stain of sin. Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
PREFACE
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them up to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right and just.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
Always here and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God,
Who on the banks of the river Jordan made manifest the Saviour of mankind
And revealed yourself Father of Light.
You opened the heavens, you consecrated the waters,
You conquered the powers of evil
And showed forth your Only-Begotten Son,
upon whom the Holy Spirit rested in the form of a dove.
Today the waters of the baptismal font, receiving your blessing,
Wash away the disobedience of Original Sin,
Offer to the faithful the remission of every sin
And bring us to birth as sons of God, destined for eternal life:
Born according to the flesh,
Bound by sin to the gates of death,
Now welcomed into your divine life and brought to heavenly glory.
And we, renewed by your grace,
Join the angels and saints
In this, their hymn of eternal praise:
Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
EUCHARISTIC PRAYER
You are indeed Holy, O Lord,
The fount of all holiness.
Make holy, therefore, these gifts, we pray,
by sending down your Spirit upon them like the dewfall,
so that they may become for us
the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ.
At the time he was betrayed
And entered willingly into his Passion,
he took bread and, giving thanks, broke it,
and gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take this, all of you, and eat of it,
For this is my Body,
Which will be given up for you.
In a similar way, when supper was ended,
he took the chalice
and, once more giving thanks,
he gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take this, all of you, and drink from it,
for this is the chalice of my Blood,
the Blood of the new and eternal covenant,
Which will be poured out for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins.
Do this in memory of me.
The mystery of faith.
We proclaim your Death, O Lord,
and profess your Resurrection
until you come again.
Therefore, as we celebrate
the memorial of his Death and Resurrection,
we offer you, Lord,
the Bread of life and the Chalice of salvation,
giving thanks that you have held us worthy
to be in your presence and minister to you.
Humbly we pray
that, partaking of the Body and Blood of Christ,
we may be gathered into one by the Holy Spirit.
Remember, Lord, your Church,
spread throughout the world,
and bring her to the fullness of charity,
together with Francis our Pope
and Mario our Bishop,
and all the clergy.
Remember also our brothers and sisters
who have fallen asleep in the hope of the resurrection,
and all who have died in your mercy:
welcome them into the light of your face.
Have mercy on us all, we pray,
that with the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God,
with blessed Joseph, her Spouse
with the blessed Apostles,
and all the Saints who have pleased you throughout the ages,
we may merit to be coheirs to eternal life,
and may praise and glorify you
through your Son, Jesus Christ.
Through him, and with him, and in him,
O God, almighty Father,
In the unity of the Holy Spirit,
all glory and honour is yours,
Forever and ever
Amen.
THE COMMUNION RITE
BREAKING OF THE BREAD
Behold my servant whom I have chosen,
my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased.
In his name will the peoples hope.
I will put my Spirit upon him,
and he shall proclaim my justice.
At the Saviour’s command
and formed by divine teaching,
we dare to say:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy Name,
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil,
graciously grant peace in our days,
that, by the help of your mercy,
we may be always free from sin
and safe from all distress,
as we await the blessed hope
and the coming of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.
For the kingdom,
the power and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Lord Jesus Christ,
who said to your Apostles:
Peace I leave you, my peace I give you,
look not on our sins,
but on the faith of Your Church,
and graciously grant her peace and unity
in accordance with your will.
Who live and reign for ever and ever.
Amen.
The peace and communion of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you always.
And with your spirit.
Behold the Lamb of God,
behold him who takes away the sins of the world.
Blessed are those called to the supper of the Lamb.
Lord, I am not worthy
that you should enter under my roof,
but only say the word
and my soul shall be healed.
AT HOLY COMMUNION
The whole world is sanctified
through Christ’s Baptism,
and we are washed clean of our defilement.
Let us all come to be cleansed
by water and the Spirit.
The Body of Christ.
Amen.
AFTER HOLY COMMUNION
Let us pray.
Most merciful God, who have fed us at your table, grant that we may be faithful disciples of your Only-Begotten Son, that we may truly claim to be your children. Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Lord be with you.
And with your spirit.
Kyrie, eleison. Kyrie, eleison. Kyrie, eleison.
May almighty God bless you,
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Amen
Go in peace.
In the name of Christ.
