From the responsorial psalm: “Let the sea and what fills it resound, the world and those who dwell in it; Let the rivers clap their hands, the mountains shout with them for joy before the LORD. All the ends of the earth have seen the saving power of God.”
A reading from the holy Gospel according to John (John 1:35-42)
Andrew, the brother of Simon Peter, was one of the two who heard John and followed Jesus. He first found his own brother Simon and told him, “We have found the Messiah,” which is translated Christ. Then he brought him to Jesus. Jesus looked at him and said, “You are Simon the son of John; you will be called Cephas,” which is translated Peter.
Two disciples of John the Baptist stand with him as he calls their attention to Jesus. “Behold, the Lamb of God,” John tells them, and they follow him. Obedient to John and his mission, the two disciples believe him, recognizing Jesus’ authority and identity as the Messiah. Andrew, after spending time with Jesus, goes to find his brother Simon Peter and brings him to Jesus. By naming him Cephas, Jesus claims him as a disciple and gives him a new identity as one of the Twelve, and the rock on which he will build his church. In pointing to Jesus as the Son of God, John fulfills his mission. “He must increase,” says John. “I must decrease.”
God, help me today do as Andrew did for his brother by bringing others to Jesus. Where he is throughout the day will not always be clear to me. Among family members, how do I go beyond the ordinariness of a day—of my ordinary state—and bring them into the presence of your Son? Just as Jesus named Simon Peter, help me recognize how he claims me for his own and invites me to stay with him today and every day. Give me the grace to recognize in the present moment where Jesus is and to hear him speak to my heart, asking, “What are you looking for?” Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us!
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.