Readings
for the Feast of
St. Brigid
Abbess, Secondary Patroness of Ireland
Feast
February 1
MASS
The following are the Catholic Mass Readings used by the Irish Episcopal Conference and approved by the Holy See. Thanks to Brian Fitzpatrick for providing them.
ENTRANCE ANTIPHON Cf. Job 30:25
Did I not feel for those whose day was hard?
Was not my soul grieved for the poor?
COLLECT
Merciful God,
origin and reward of all charity,
you called Saint Brigid to teach the new commandment of love
through her life of hospitality and her care of the needy;
give to your people, by her intercession,
a generous spirit,
so that, with hearts made pure,
we may show your love to all.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
FIRST READING Job 31:16-20, 24-25, 31-32
Have I been insensible to poor men’s needs,
or let a widow’s eyes grow dim?
Or taken my share of bread alone,
not giving a share to the orphan?
I, whom God has fostered father-like, from childhood,
and guided since I left my mother’s womb.
Have I ever seen a wretch in need of clothing,
or a beggar going naked,
without his having cause to bless me from his heart,
as he felt the warmth of the fleece from my lambs?
Have I put all my trust in gold,
from finest gold sought my security?
Have I ever gloated over my great wealth,
or the riches that my hands have won?
The people of my tent, did they not say,
‘Is there a man he has not filled with meat?’
No stranger ever had to sleep outside,
my door was always open to the traveller.
Or: Ephesians 3:14-21
This is what I pray, kneeling before the Father, from whom every family, whether spiritual or natural, takes its name:
Out of his infinite glory, may he give you the power through his Spirit for your hidden self to grow strong, so that Christ may live in your hearts through faith, and then, planted in love and built on love, you will with all the saints have strength to grasp the breadth and the length, the height and the depth; until, knowing the love of Christ, which is beyond all knowledge, you are filled with the utter fullness of God.
Glory be to him whose power, working in us, can do infinitely more than we can ask or imagine;
glory be to him from generation to generation in the Church and in Christ Jesus for ever and ever.
Amen.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM Ps 106 (107):35-38, 41-42.
R/. (v.1) Give thanks to the Lord for he is good;
for his love has no end.
He changes desert into streams,
thirsty ground into springs of water.
There he settles the hungry
and they build a city to dwell in.
R/. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good;
for his love has no end.
They sow fields and plants their vines;
these yield crops for the harvest.
He blesses them; they grow in numbers.
He does not let their herds decrease.
R/. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good;
for his love has no end.
He raises the needy from distress;
makes families numerous as a flock.
The upright see it and rejoice
but all who do wrong are silenced.
R/. Give thanks to the Lord for he is good;
for his love has no end.
ALLELUIA 1 John 4:12
As long as we love one another,
God will live in us
and his love will be complete in us.
GOSPEL Luke 6:32-38
Jesus said to his disciples: ‘If you love those who love you, what thanks can you expect? Even
sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what thanks can
you expect? For even sinners do that much. And if you lend to those from whom you hope to receive,
what thanks can you expect? Even sinners lend to sinners to get back the same amount. Instead, love
your enemies and do good, and lend without any hope of return. You will have a great reward, and
you will be sons of the Most High, for he himself is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked.’
‘Be compassionate as your Father is compassionate. Do not judge, and you will not be judged
yourselves; do not condemn and you will not be condemned yourselves; grant pardon, and you will
be pardoned. Give, and there will be gifts for you: a full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and
running over, will be poured into your lap; because the amount you measure out is the amount you
will be given back.’
PRAYER OVER THE OFFERINGS
As we present these gifts, O Lord,
on the feast of Saint Brigid,
may we come to know you as the source of all true love.
Through Christ our Lord.
PREFACE
V/. The Lord be with you.
R/. And with your spirit.
V/. Lift up your hearts.
R/. We lift them up to the Lord.
V/. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
R/. It is right and just.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God,
through Christ our Lord.
For your wonderful love is seen in Saint Brigid:
you taught her to open her heart and hands to the poor
and to seek the image of your Son in every welcomed guest.
Through her you showed a people
the way of Mary, the Mother of your Son,
in dedicated service and holiness of life.
On this feast you fill our hearts with joy
for you continue to bless the Church
that you planted by her labours.
And so, with the Angels and Archangels,
and with the great multitude of the Saints,
we sing the hymn of your praise, as without end we acclaim:
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts …
COMMUNION ANTIPHON Cf. Mt 25:34, 36, 40
Come, you whom my Father has blessed, says the Lord.
I was sick and you visited me.
In truth I tell you,
in so far as you did this to one of the least of these,
you did it to me.
PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION
You give us food from heaven, Lord,
to strengthen us in love;
grant, we pray, through the intercession of Saint Brigid,
that works of charity continue to flourish
and the light of true faith not fail.
Through Christ our Lord.
SOLEMN BLESSING
May God, who in Saint Brigid has provided
an outstanding example of generosity:
make your ears be ever open to the cry of the poor.
R/. Amen.
May you who greet Saint Brigid as Mary of the Gael
receive from Jesus, Son of Mary,
the reward promised to the pure of heart.
R/. Amen.
May God fill you with his love,
as you honour Saint Brigid,
whose heart and mind became
a throne of rest for the Holy Spirit.
R/. 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.
R/. Amen.
The English translation of Psalm Responses, Alleluia Verses, Gospel Verses from Lectionary for Mass © 1969, 1981, 1997, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation (ICEL); the English translation of Antiphons, Invitatories, Responsories, Intercessions, Psalm 95, the Canticle of the Lamb, Psalm Prayers, Non-Biblical Readings from The Liturgy of the Hours © 1973, 1974, 1975, ICEL; excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 2010, ICEL. All rights reserved. Used with permission.