2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year B - The Lord Is Calling and “Heritage Mass” Setting
As we begin our season of Ordinary Time for a few weeks, we are invited to reflect on our calling, our vocation. Is it easy to follow the Lord?
The Lord’s call makes us bearers of a promise and, at the same time, asks of us the courage to take a risk, with him and for him. The desire to follow Jesus sometimes makes us battle with temptations and waves of distractions. Each of us tries to realize his or her deepest desires; we engage in activities that we hope will prove enriching, ones that will satisfy our thirst for happiness.
God in fact desires that our lives not become banal and predictable, imprisoned by daily routine, or unresponsive before decisions that could give it meaning. The Lord does not want us to live from day to day, thinking that nothing is worth fighting for, slowly losing our desire to set out on new and exciting paths. He wants us to discover that each of us is called – in a variety of ways – to something grand, and that our lives should not grow entangled in the nets of an ennui that dulls the heart. Every vocation is a summons not to stand on the shore, nets in hand, but to follow Jesus on the path he has marked out for us, for our own happiness and for the good of those around us.
In today’s Gospel (Jn 1:35-42), what made these disciples follow Jesus? “Look, here is the Lamb of God!” could be one of the reasons for them to follow. Every time during the Holy Mass, we repeat these words “Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world” and it reminds us that Jesus came to give his life, so sinners could have eternal life. Why should we follow Jesus? The answer that Jesus gives in today’s Gospel is “Come and see,” which is a special call that the Lord addresses to each one of us. The response of Jesus opens us up to a personal encounter which requires sufficient time to welcome, to know and to acknowledge Jesus and each other.
In honour of the Lamb of God, and the Holy Mass, we would like to share our latest video of the "Heritage Mass" setting, a well known Catholic Mass setting composed by Owen Alstott. From humble beginnings to one of the most used Mass settings ever published, we are currently singing this Mass setting at the Sunday 7pm Mass time and invite you to learn these familiar melodies that have lifted congregations for generations.
Video can be watched by clicking here or on the picture below: