December 31
St Sylvester I
7ème jour dans l'octave de Noël — Year B
St Sylvester I served as Bishop of Rome in the early 4th century during a formative period for the Church. His pontificate coincided with the reign of Constantine the Great, a time marked by the end of persecution against Christians and the emergence of the Church into public life. Although not much is detailed with certainty about his daily activities, St Sylvester is traditionally associated with significant developments such as the building of major basilicas in Rome, including the original St Peter’s and the Lateran Basilica. It is during his tenure that the Christian community saw its legal status transformed in the Roman Empire. While some accounts attribute major roles in the Council of Nicaea to Sylvester, historical records suggest he did not attend in person, but was represented by delegates. His cult as a saint grew, especially in Western Christianity, reflecting gratitude for his role in guiding the Church through a new era of freedom. The Church remembers St Sylvester on December 31, marking both his legacy and the transition into the New Year in parts of the Christian world, inviting faithful to prayer and reflection as they look forward in hope. His feast at the close of the year offers an opportunity to give thanks for God’s providence in history and to entrust the coming days to Christ, the true Lord of time.
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The liturgical day
Mass readings
Reading1 Jn 2, 18-21
My children,
it is the last hour
and, as you have learned,
an anti-Christ, an adversary of Christ, is to come;
but even now there are many anti-Christs;
so we know that it is the last hour.
They went out from among us
but they were not of us;
if they had been of us,
they would have remained with us.
But none of them are of us,
and this needed to be revealed.
As for you,
it is from the Holy One that you have the anointing,
and you all have knowledge.
I have not written to you because you do not know the truth,
but because you know it,
and that no lie comes from the truth.
– The word of the Lord.
Psalm95 (96), 1-2a, 11-12a, 12b-13ab
Sing to the Lord a new song,
sing to the Lord, all the earth,
sing to the Lord and bless his name!
Joy in the heavens! Let the earth exult!
The roaring sea resounds,
the entire field is celebrating.
The trees of the forest dance for joy
before the face of the Lord, for he comes,
for he comes to judge the earth.
GospelJn 1, 1-18
In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
He was in the beginning with God.
Through him all things came into being,
and nothing that was made came to be without him.
In him was life,
and the life was the light of men;
the light shines in the darkness,
and the darkness has not overcome it.
There was a man sent by God;
his name was John.
He came as a witness,
to bear witness to the Light,
so that all might believe through him.
That man was not the Light,
but he was there to bear witness to the Light.
The Word was the true Light,
who enlightens everyone
coming into the world.
He was in the world,
and the world came into being through him,
but the world did not recognize him.
He came to his own,
and his own did not receive him.
But to all who did receive him,
he gave power to become children of God,
to those who believe in his name.
They were born not of blood,
nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man:
they were born of God.
And the Word became flesh,
he dwelt among us,
and we have seen his glory,
the glory he holds from his Father
as the only Son,
full of grace and truth.
John the Baptist bears witness to him by proclaiming:
"It is of him that I said:
He who comes after me
has passed before me,
because he was before me."
All of us have received from his fullness,
we have received grace upon grace;
because the Law was given through Moses,
grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
No one has ever seen God;
the only Son, he who is God,
he who is in the bosom of the Father,
he has made him known.
– Let us acclaim the Word of God.
Liturgical texts: © AELF — aelf.org