Masses of the BVM: 35 The Blessed Virgin Mary, Pillar of Faith
ENTRANCE ANTIPHON
Cf. Wisdom 18: 3; Exodus 13: 21-22
Mary, Virgin Mother, you are like the pillar of light that,
day and night, went before God’s people
to direct their footsteps through the wilderness.
Or:
Mother of Christ, queen of glory,
you conceived your Son in faith
and believed that after dying for us he would rise again;
you show yourself a loving mother to the Church
and a pillar of its faith.
COLLECT
Almighty and eternal God,
you gave the Blessed Virgin Mary,
glorious Mother of your Son,
as a pillar of strength
to all who call upon her aid;
grant through her intercession
that we may be strong in faith,
unwavering in hope, and steadfast in love.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
FIRST READING
Jdt 13:14, 17-20
You have brought to nothing the enemies of your people.
A reading from the Book of Judith
Judith urged them with a loud voice:
“Praise God, praise God!
Praise God who has not withdrawn his mercy
from the house of Israel,
but has shattered our enemies by my hand this very night.”
All the people were greatly astonished.
They bowed down and worshiped God, saying with one accord,
“Blessed are you, our God,
who today have brought to naught the enemies of your people.”
Then Uzziah said to her:
“Blessed are you, daughter, by the Most High God,
above all the women on earth;
and blessed be the LORD God,
the creator of heaven and earth,
who guided your blow at the head of the chief of our enemies.
Your deed of hope will never be forgotten
by those who tell of the might of God.
May God make this redound to your everlasting honor,
rewarding you with blessings,
because you risked your life
when your people were being oppressed,
and you averted our disaster,
walking uprightly before our God.”
And all the people answered, “Amen! Amen!”
The word of the Lord.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Ps 27:1, 3, 4, 5
℟. (See 9cd) You are my help, my saving God.
The LORD is my light and my salvation;
whom do I fear?
The LORD is my life’s refuge;
of whom am I afraid?
℟. You are my help, my saving God.
Though an army encamp against me,
my heart does not fear;
Though war be waged against me,
even then do I trust.
℟. You are my help, my saving God.
One thing I ask of the LORD;
this I seek:
To dwell in the LORD’S house
all the days of my life,
To gaze on the LORD’S beauty,
to visit the temple.
℟. You are my help, my saving God.
For God will hide me in this shelter
in time of trouble,
will conceal me in the cover of this tent;
and set me high upon a rock.
℟. You are my help, my saving God.
VERSE BEFORE THE GOSPEL
See Psalm 40:3-4
℟. Alleluia, alleluia.
God set my feet on rock
and put a new song in my mouth.
℟. Alleluia, alleluia.
GOSPEL
Lk 11:27-28
Blessed is the womb that bore you!
✠ A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
While Jesus was speaking,
a woman from the crowd called out and said to him,
“Blessed is the womb that carried you
and the breasts at which you nursed.”
He replied,
“Rather, blessed are those
who hear the word of God and observe it.”
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.
PRAYER OVER THE OFFERINGS
Lord, all-holy Father,
you have enlightened our minds
with the light of faith;
grant that, through the intercession
of the loving Mother of the Redeemer,
our offerings and prayers
may keep us steadfast in faith
and untiring in love.
Through Christ our Lord.
PREFACE: Mary, Pillar of Faith
Our Lady Is the Hope of the Faithful, a Pillar of Faith.
℣. 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 truly right and just.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, for the many wonders of love and grace
poured out upon the Blessed Virgin Mary
by your loving kindness.
You kept her untouched
by the stain of original sin
and the corruption of the grave.
Spotless in her virginity,
she became the fitting shrine
from which Christ was born
to be revealed as the light of the nations
and the Bridegroom of the Church.
Bathed in the glory of her Son,
she shines upon his people
as a star of hope and a pillar of faith.
In our unending joy we echo on earth
the song of the Angels in heaven
as they praise your glory for ever:
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.
COMMUNION ANTIPHON
Luke 1: 48
From this day all generations will call me blessed:
the Almighty has done great things for me.
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
Lord our God,
present in your Church in many ways,
we thank you for the Sacrament we have received
and pray that, with the support of the Blessed Virgin Mary,
we may be true to the faith on earth
and so enjoy the vision of your glory in heaven.
Through Christ our Lord.
SOLEMN BLESSING
The following Solemn Blessing may be used:
The Lord be with you.
The people reply:
And with your spirit.
The Deacon or, in his absence, the Priest himself, says the invitation:
Bow down for the blessing.
Then the Priest, with hands outstretched over the people, says
Ordinary Time I
May the Father of all mercy,
through the love with which he cherished
the Mother of his Son,
bless you with health of mind and body.
℟. Amen.
May Jesus Christ, the blessed fruit of Mary’s womb,
adorn you with the virtues
that will make you more pleasing to him.
℟. Amen.
May the Holy Spirit,
whose power overshadowed the Blessed Virgin,
give you serenity and peace,
that you may live as one in mind and heart
in the household of the Church.
℟. Amen.
And may the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, and the Son, + and the Holy Spirit,
come down on you and remain with you for ever.
℟. Amen.
Ordinary Time II
May God, who through the childbearing of the Blessed Virgin Mary
willed in his great kindness to redeem the human race,
be pleased to enrich you with his blessing.
℟. Amen.
May you know always and everywhere the protection of her,
through whom you have been found worthy to receive the author of life.
℟. Amen.
May you, who have devoutly gathered to celebrate this memorial of our Lady,
carry away with you the gifts of spiritual joys and heavenly rewards.
℟. Amen.
And may the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, and the Son, + and the Holy Spirit,
come down on you and remain with you for ever.
℟. Amen.
Ordinary Time III
May the Father of mercies bless you
through the intercession of Blessed Mary ever-Virgin
through whom he chose to remedy the fall of our first parents.
℟. Amen.
May Jesus Christ, who in the womb of the Blessed Virgin
became our brother and our Savior,
free your hearts from every trace of sin.
℟. Amen.
May the Holy Spirit
increase in you the grace of true faith and of hope for heaven,
that you may walk in the ways of the Gospel
and so reach your eternal home.
℟. Amen.
And may the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, and the Son, + and the Holy Spirit,
come down on you and remain with you for ever.
℟. Amen.
Then the Deacon, or the Priest himself, with hands joined and facing the people, says:
Go forth, the Mass is ended.
Or:
Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord.
Or:
Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life.
Or:
Go in peace.
The people reply:
Thanks be to God.