Christmas Day
25 December (Year C)
First Reading - Isaiah 52.7-10
A reading from the book of the prophet Isaiah.
Those who keep watch
are shouting out
with joy.
For they see, on the mountains,
the messenger
approaching,
bringing good news
of salvation, and peace;
good news
of the triumph
of our God.
Join in their song,
O ruins of Jerusalem!
For all the world
will see the Lord
returning to Zion,
with mercy and strength,
declaring
that your freedom
has been won.
This is the word of the Lord.
Second Reading - Hebrews 1.1-4
A reading from the letter to the Hebrews.
Long ago,
God spoke to our ancestors,
in many and various ways,
by the prophets,
but in these last days,
God has spoken to us
by a Son,
appointed by God
as inheritor
of all things,
the reflection
of God’s glory,
the exact imprint
of God’s very being.
Present with God
at the creation of the universe,
and sustaining
all creation
by his powerful word,
he has
reconciled us to God,
and is seated now,
higher even than the angels,
at the right hand
of God’s Majesty
on high.
This is the word of the Lord.
Gospel - John 1.1-12,14
Hear the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ
according to John.
In the beginning
was the Word,
and the Word
was with God,
and the Word
was God.
The Word
was in the beginning
with God.
Through the Word,
all things
came into being.
And in the Word
was life -
the life
that was the light
of all people.
That light
now shines
in the darkness,
and the darkness
has not
overcome it.
There was a man sent from God,
whose name was John.
John himself was not
the light,
but came
to bear witness to the light.
The true light,
bringing light to all,
was coming
into the world.
He was in the world -
the world that came into being through him -
and yet the world
did not
know him.
He came to his own,
and his own
did not
receive him.
But all who
did
receive him -
all who believed in his name -
he called
to become
children of God.
And the Word
became flesh,
and dwelt amongst us.
And we have seen his glory -
the glory
of the Father’s only Son,
full of grace
and truth.
This is the Gospel of the Lord.