THE GOD OF SMALL THINGS
INTRODUCTORY RITES
Gather as a family/ community; create an environment appropriate for prayer (dress appropriately - switch off your phones...).
We are conscious that Christ is present not only in the Blessed Sacrament but also in the Scriptures and in our hearts. Even when we are on our own, we remain part of the Body of Christ.
Place lighted candles, a crucifix, and the Bible on a covered table. These remind us of the sacredness of our time of prayer and could help us feel connected with our local worshipping communities.
You may sing or play an appropriate hymn. For instance:
The Sign of the Cross
Greeting and Introductory Words
L: The Lord invites us to the table of his Word: let us bless him for his goodness.
A: Blessed be God forever.
L: Our God is a God of small things, who comes to us through small things. This is what we celebrate on the Fourth Sunday of Advent.
We thank God for coming to us in small ways. We pray that we allow God to work through our smallness for he is the God of small things.
Penitential Rite
L: We ask the Lord to pardon us for our failure to accept that he is the God of small things and for demanding that he manifest his power in our lives.
Pause
L: Lord Jesus, you came to restore our strength by coming in human weakness:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you made us rich in grace by your poverty and humility:
Christ, have mercy.
A: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you displayed your saving power in service and suffering:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.
A: Amen.
Opening Prayer
L: Lord God,
you have visited your people
and redeemed us in your Son.
As we prepare to celebrate his birth,
make our hearts leap for joy at the sound of your Word,
and move us by your Spirit to bless your wonderful work.
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.
A: Amen.
THE LITURGY OF THE WORD
Readings
The readings are those assigned for the day in the Lectionary.
Preferably use a Bible/ Lectionary for reading.
Reading 1 Micah 5:1-4a
Psalm Psalm 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19
Response Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.
Reading 2 Hebrews 10:5-10
Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia.
Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.
Gospel Luke 1:39-45
Reflection on the Readings
Use one of the following ways to reflect on the readings.
Lectio Divina
What are your thoughts and feelings when you read about Mary’s visit to Elizabeth?
Sunday Snippets
The news this week. Israel airstrikes in Gaza and Yemen. Uproar in Parliament and over social media over the “Ambedkar row”. Donald Trump threatens India with reciprocal tariffs.
To deal with issues, humans have recourse to strong means: power, authority, money.
How does God deal with issues? God’s standards and ways are different from ours. To save our world and us, he becomes human and joins us in our weakness. He is the God of small things.
In the first reading, Micah announces God’s intention to raise a king who would bring peace to God’s people. This ideal king would come not from the capital Jerusalem but from Bethlehem, a little obscure town. Bethlehem is small and obscure God will work through its littleness to raise a mighty shepherd king.
Little Bethlehem had within it a still littler life: a humble virgin who would give birth to the saviour of the world. The gospel tells us that Mary – humbly and despite inconvenience to herself – goes to serve her elderly cousin.
Our God is not a powerful king, but a fragile infant born in a lowly manger. Our God brings salvation not through power, authority, and money, but with humility, obedience and service, and by his death on a cross (see the second reading from the Letter to the Hebrews).
Our God is the God of small things; he comes among us in small ways.
Do I believe in the God of small things? How do I deal with the issues and problems of life: Do I use power and authority, or do I choose God’s little ways? Do I strive for influence and money, or do I allow God to work through my littleness and defects?
Questions to Ponder
Reflect on some (or all) of the following questions:
Reading 1: When I experience “poverty” and “smallness” in my life, do I accept it as a meeting place with God or do I run from it?
Reading 2: What matters for God is not the elaborate rituals and sacrifices in the Temple but simple obedience. To what do I give importance: external rituals/ prayers or acceptance of God’s will?
Gospel: The infant “leaped for joy” in Elizabeth’s womb at the recognition of the soon-to-be-born saviour. How close do I come to leaping for joy when I recognize God’s presence in my life?
The Creed
Prayer of the Faithful
L: We are eagerly awaiting the coming of God among us. That we may recognize and receive him when he comes in his own astonishing yet humble way: Lord, hear our prayer.
R: For the Church: that our hearts may leap for joy as we recognize God-with-us in the people and events of our lives, we pray…
R: For the leaders of all nations: that they may bring to our torn and divided world the peace and harmony which Jesus, the Prince of Peace, came to give us, we pray…
R: For all whose lives seem unimportant: that they may listen for God’s call and advance God’s saving plan through their lives and deeds
R: For the sick and their caregivers: that God may heal all who are suffering, give them hope, and renew the strength of all who are caring for them, we pray…
R: For the protection of earth’s resources: that God may give wisdom and understanding to all who are developing policies that affect earth's air, water, and natural resources, we pray…
R: For ourselves: that we, like Mary, may believe that God may do great things in and through our ordinariness, and allow him to work through us, we pray…
L: Lord God, loving Father, help us to welcome Jesus always with the attitude of Mary, his mother, ready for him when he is least expected, recognizing him in events and in people, and sharing him with those we meet in the joy of serving. Through Christ our Lord.
A: Amen.
SPIRITUAL COMMUNION
The Lord’s Prayer
Spiritual Communion
A: Jesus, I know and believe in your real presence in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist. It is you I desire to love and receive above all things. As I am unable to receive your sacramental presence now, come and be with me in heart and soul. Let my entire self be united with you as I welcome you again and know your loving embrace. Amen.
Post Spiritual Communion Reflection
The King and Saviour came from tiny and obscure Bethlehem.
His parents were ordinary and unheralded people.
He was born in a manger
and wrapped in swaddling clothes.
His first visitors were poor shepherds.
His offering was not holocausts and sin offerings,
but a perfect yes to God.
Lord,
help me realize that you are the God of small things
and manifest yourself in little ways.
Let me look for you
in weakness, not in strength;
in poverty, not in riches;
in littleness, not in grandeur.
Let me accept my weakness, poverty, and littleness,
and those of others,
believing that you work through these.
CONCLUDING RITE
Concluding Prayer
L: God of mercy,
you are so near to us
that Jesus, your Son, born of the Virgin Mary,
becomes one of us
as our Emmanuel, our God-with-us.
May we discover him in the poor,
in those in need,
and in ourselves and weakness.
He is Lord for ever and ever.
A: Amen.
Blessing
L: The Lord bless us, protect us from all evil, and lead us to everlasting life.
A: Amen.
L: Go in the peace of Christ.
A: Thanks be to God.
Conclude with a hymn. For instance:
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