Daily Catholic Mass Readings for January 4, 2026
First Reading: Isaiah 60.1-6
1Rise up to be illuminated, O Jerusalem! For your light has arrived, and the glory of the Lord has risen over you2For behold, darkness will cover the earth, and thick darkness will cover the peoples. Then the Lord will rise above you, and his glory will be seen in you3And the nations will walk in your light, and the kings will walk by the splendor of your rising4Lift up your eyes all around and see! All these have been gathered together; they have arrived before you. Your sons will arrive from far away, and your daughters will rise up from your side5Then you will see, and you will overflow, and your heart will be amazed and expanded. When the multitude of the sea will have been converted to you, the strength of the nations will approach you6A multitude of camels will inundate you: the dromedaries from Midian and Ephah. All those from Sheba will arrive, carrying gold and frankincense, and announcing praise to the Lord
Psalm 72
1A Psalm according to Solomon2Give your judgment, O God, to the king, and your justice to the king’s son, to judge your people with justice and your poor with judgment3Let the mountains take up peace for the people, and the hills, justice4He will judge the poor of the people, and he will bring salvation to the sons of the poor. And he will humble the false accuser5And he will remain, with the sun and before the moon, from generation to generation6He will descend like rain upon fleece, and like showers showering upon the earth7In his days, justice will rise like the sun, with abundance of peace, until the moon is taken away8And he will rule from sea to sea and from the river to the limits of the whole world9In his sight, the Ethiopians will fall prostrate, and his enemies will lick the ground10The kings of Tarshish and the islands will offer gifts. The kings of Arabia and of Seba will bring gifts11And all the kings of the earth shall adore him. All nations will serve him12For he will free the poor from the powerful, and the poor one who has no helper13He will spare the poor and the indigent, and he will bring salvation to the souls of the poor14He will redeem their souls from usuries and from iniquity, and their names shall be honorable in his sight15And he will live, and to him will be given from the gold of Arabia, and by him they will always adore. They will bless him all day long16And there will be a firmament on earth, at the summits of mountains: its fruits will be extolled above Lebanon, and those of the city will flourish like the grass of the earth17May his name be blessed forever; may his name remain before the sun. And all the tribes of the earth will be blessed in him. All nations will magnify him18Blessed is the Lord, God of Israel, who alone does wondrous things19And blessed is the name of his majesty in eternity. And all the earth will be filled with his majesty. Amen. Amen20The praises of David, the son of Jesse, have reached an end
Second Reading: Ephesians 3.2-3a, 5-6
2Now certainly, you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God, which has been given to me among you3that, by means of revelation, the mystery was made known to me, just as I have written above in a few words5In other generations, this was unknown to the sons of men, even as it has now been revealed to his holy Apostles and Prophets in the Spirit6so that the Gentiles would be co-heirs, and of the same body, and partners together, by his promise in Christ Jesus, through the Gospel
Gospel: Matthew 2.1-12
1And so, when Jesus had been born in Bethlehem of Judah, in the days of king Herod, behold, Magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem2saying: "Where is he who was born king of the Jews? For we have seen his star in the east, and we have come to adore him.3Now king Herod, hearing this, was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him4And gathering together all the leaders of the priests, and the scribes of the people, he consulted with them as to where the Christ would be born5And they said to him: "In Bethlehem of Judea. For so it has been written by the prophet6‘And you, Bethlehem, the land of Judah, are by no means least among the leaders of Judah. For from you shall go forth the ruler who shall guide my people Israel.’ 7Then Herod, quietly calling the Magi, diligently learned from them the time when the star appeared to them8And sending them into Bethlehem, he said: "Go and diligently ask questions about the boy. And when you have found him, report back to me, so that I, too, may come and adore him.9And when they had heard the king, they went away. And behold, the star that they had seen in the east went before them, even until, arriving, it stood still above the place where the child was10Then, seeing the star, they were gladdened by a very great joy11And entering the home, they found the boy with his mother Mary. And so, falling prostrate, they adored him. And opening their treasures, they offered him gifts: gold, frankincense, and myrrh12And having received a response in sleep that they should not return to Herod, they went back by another way to their own region
Sermon
Today's readings beautifully illuminate the profound truth of God's universal love and His plan for salvation, revealing how His light breaks through all darkness and draws all peoples to Himself. In the Gospel, we witness the Magi, wise men from the East, Gentile seekers, drawn by a mysterious star to worship the newborn King of the Jews, offering Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh. This journey strikingly fulfills the prophecy of Isaiah, who spoke of Jerusalem's light drawing nations and kings, bringing tribute and seeking God's glory. Saint Paul, in his letter to the Ephesians, articulates the divine "mystery" behind this unfolding, explaining that what was once hidden is now made manifest: the Gentiles are no longer outsiders but are "co-heirs, and of the same body, and partners together" in Christ Jesus through the Gospel.
This magnificent revelation of Christ to the nations shows us that God's light is truly meant for everyone, transcending all boundaries of nation or lineage. Just as the Magi sought the star, we too are called to follow the guiding light of Christ in our own lives, journeying through the darkness of our world to find Him. Their gifts – gold for kingship, frankincense for divinity, and myrrh for suffering and death – symbolize the complete offering of our lives and resources to Christ. We are invited to bring our own unique talents, our struggles, and our very selves, to the manger, recognizing Christ as our sovereign Lord, our divine presence, and the one who embraces our humanity in its fullness.
The profound encounter of the Magi with the Christ Child challenges us to live as true members of His universal body. We are called not only to receive His light but to become bearers of it, allowing His glory to shine through our lives, drawing others out of their own forms of darkness and into His marvelous light. Let us, like the Magi, be transformed by our encounter with Christ, resolved to live out the mystery of universal salvation, and ever ready to announce His praise to the world, making known the grace that has been given to us for the benefit of all.