In the beginning was the Word:

and the Word was with God

and the Word was God.

He was with God in the beginning.

Through him all things came to be,

not one thing had its being but through him.

All that came to be had life in him

and that life was the light of men,

a light that shines in the dark,

a light that darkness could not overpower.

This Sunday between Christmas and Epiphany reminds us of the root of our celebration. That God sent his own Son into the world to bring light to the darkened world.

The word WORD as used by the gospel writer was the Greek word LOGOS, which has an Hebrew equivalent DABAR. It doesn’t simply mean word in the common sense of that which is spoken or written. Rather it implies a creative, doing, making WORD. As the Greeks understood it, the WORD is the source of reason and wisdom in God and, when uttered, is the creative expression of the vision, the purpose, of God.

It is through our words that people can know our inner selves, it is in coming to know the WORD of God, in and through Jesus, that we can know the very person of God himself, Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Jesus, the Word, is the Way, the Truth and the Life, our way, our truth, our life.

The first reading (Ecclesiasticus 24:1-2,8-12) reminds us that “The creator of all things instructed me, and he who created me fixed a place for my tent.

He said, “Pitch your tent in Jacob, make Israel your inheritance.”

The second reading (Ephesians 1:3-6,15-18) reaffirms this truth: “Before the world was made, God chose us, chose us in Christ…determining that we should become his adopted sons”

All three of today’s readings focus on the revelation which we celebrate at Christmas. That is that Jesus, Son of God, not only became a human being, but he entered fully into our human situation subject to all its weaknesses. Again and again he was criticised for mixing with sinners, outsiders, the scumbags, the flotsam and jetsam of life. He accepted our human condition in its fullness to bring us back into the unity with God which was intended since the beginning of creation.

We rejoice that God’s Word became flesh, for now our flesh can become fully immersed into the mystery of the Godhead if we but turn to him and take his Word, his life, to our heart and lives.

Mass at St. Teilo’s

Mass next weekend will be on Saturday at 6pm and Sunday at 10am and 6pm. While we are Alert Level 2 in Wales, you must book in advance if you wish to attend Sunday Mass at St. Teilo’s. Bookings for the next few Sundays are now open here.

In addition, you are requested to:

• Continue to wear a face covering when attending Mass
• Keep a two-metre distance from other households/groups within the Church and on entry and exit from Church
• Do a lateral flow test before seeing others who you do not see regularly (e.g. before Sunday Mass) and only attend Mass if the result is negative
• If you have symptoms or suspect you have symptoms, please attend Mass online rather than take the risk of infecting others by attending in person.
• If you have a positive lateral flow test or symptoms of Covid, please do not attend Mass until you have a negative result of a PCR test from the NHS or have quarantined for at least 7 full days after a positive test and have two subsequent negative lateral flow tests.

Please wait before entering the Church so that you can be directed to your allocated seat. Please do not go forward for Holy Communion until you are directed to do so.

Weekday Mass

Mass on Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday will be at 10am and at 9.30am on Friday.

We will record attendance at Weekday Masses during the period of Alert Level 2, but otherwise the arrangements at weekday Mass will remain as previously.

The Celebration of the Epiphany of the Lord

Thursday is the Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord. Masses on Thursday will be at 10am and 7pm.

We will record attendance at the Holyday Mass, but no pre-booking is necessary.

Full details are available in the Parish Newsletter

Today is the feast day of the Holy Family, and also every family’s feast day, since the Holy Family is the patron and model of all Christian families.

Today can be a huge family feast, devoted to the Holy Family as a model for the Christian family life.

As the US priest Fr. Edward Sutfin said about today:

The children must learn to see in their father the foster-father St. Joseph, and the Blessed Mother as the perfect model for their own mother. The lesson to be learned is both practical and theoretical, in that the children must learn how to obey and to love their parents in thought, word and action, just as Christ was obedient to Mary and Joseph. Helping mother in the kitchen and in the house work, and helping father in his odd jobs about the home thus take on a new significance by being performed in a Christ-like spirit.

A happy Holy Family Day to all the families of our Parish and beyond.

Masses today at St. Teilo’s are at 8.30am and 10am – they are live streamed on the Parish Website.

NB: there is no evening Mass today.

Full details are available in the Parish Newsletter.

Please note that due to the new COVID Alert level 2, which begins today, from next Sunday you must book in advance if you wish to attend Mass – Bookings are now open here.