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November
16, 2003 - 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time
A.
Hope in a New World
B. My Plans for You Are Peace
Readings:
Dn 12:1-3; Ps 16:5,
8, 9-10, 11; Heb 10:11-14, 18; Mk 13:24-32
Commentaries
/ Gospel Reflections from:
Sunday's
Into Silence • Diario
Biblico • Daily Gospel
Greeting
(see the Entrance Antiphon)
The
Lord reassures us today:
My plans for you are peace and not disaster.
When you call to me, I will listen to you
and I will bring you home.
May the Lord of peace and hope be with you. R/ And also with you.
Introduction
by the Celebrant
A.
Hope in a New World
Some
parts of Scripture, like today's readings, speak of calamities and disasters
as signs of an old world decaying and Jesus coming in judgment. Today's
television and other media bring into our homes the disasters and violence
and suffering of the whole world; and people ask: where all this is
leading us. These are signs for us today that the world in which we
live is decaying, but we should not overlook the signs of hope too in
a fairer and more unified world, the crumbling of tyrannies on the right
and the left. These are, like budding branches on a tree, signs of hope
in a new world that is growing, and in the coming of God among us, his
people. Let us celebrate this hope in this eucharist.
B.
My Plans for You Are Peace
Today
the liturgy speaks to us of God's judgment and the end of time. When
and how the very end will come is known to God alone. But this we know
for sure: the end time has begun with Christ, when he became one of
us in his humanity, died and rose from the dead. With him among us now
we live our faith even in the trials of life, not in fear but in the
firm hope that God's love and justice will triumph and that Christ will
complete in us in God's good time what we try to build up as we trust
in him. For we are people of hope in a loving and saving God. Let us
express this hope in this eucharist.
Penitential
Act
If
we are afraid, our love is still weak.
Let us ask forgiveness from the Lord
that we have not kept alive our hope and vigilance.
(PAUSE)
Lord Jesus, you will come
with great power and glory.
Keep us from fear.
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus
Christ, you will gather
your chosen ones from the ends of the earth:
Keep us faithful and vigilant.
Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord
Jesus, you are near,
standing at the door to make us enter.
Keep us in your love.
Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Have
mercy on us, Lord,
forgive us our sins,
and make us see how close you are to us.
Lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
Opening
Prayer
Let
us pray for trust
in God and in his future.
(PAUSE)
God our Father,
through your Son you told us
not to worry about the day or the hour
when the old world will be gone,
for you alone know when it will happen.
Open our eyes to the sign of Jesus' coming
and make us see him
already walking by our side.
Keep us faithful in hope
and vigilant in our love for you
and our concern for one another.
We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord. R/ Amen.
Scripture
Readings
First
Reading Introduction: God Will Raise His Faithful
To the faithful Jews, upset
on account of persecutions, the prophet speaks a message of hope: God
will save you. Even if you lose your life, God will give you eternal life.
First
Reading: Dn
12:1-3
At
that time, Michael will rise, the Great Commander who defends your people.
It shall be a time of anguish as never before since the nations first
existed until this very day.
Then
all those whose names are written in the Book will be saved. Many of
those who sleep in the Region of the Dust will awake, some to everlasting
life but others to eternal horror and shame. Those who acquired knowledge
will shine like the brilliance of the firmament; those who taught people
to be just will shine like the stars for all eternity.
Responsorial
Psalm: Ps
16:5, 8, 9-10, 11
R.
You are my inheritance, O Lord!
O
Lord, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot.
I set the Lord ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R.
You are my inheritance, O Lord!
Therefore
my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence;
because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,
nor will you suffer your faithful once to undergo corruption.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord!
You
will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord!
Second
Reading Introduction: We Are Saved by Christ's One
Sacrifice
Offering his sacrifice once and for all,
Jesus has overcome sin and given us the power to live God's life.
Second
Reading:
Heb 10:11-14, 18
So,
whereas every priest stands daily by the altar offering repeatedly the
same sacrifices that can never take away sins, Christ has offered for
all times a single sacrifice for sins and has taken his seat at the
right hand of God, waiting until God puts his enemies as a footstool
under his feet. By a single sacrifice he has brought those who are sanctified
to what is perfect forever. So, if sins are forgiven, there is no longer
need of any sacrifice for sin.
Gospel
Introduction: See the Signs of the Lord's Coming
In mysterious terms, Jesus speaks
of the difficult coming of his full kingdom in this world. Jesus
will bring it to completion in us.
Gospel
Reading:
Mk 13:24-32
 Jesus
said to his disciples, "Later on, in those days after that disastrous
time, the sun will grow dark, the moon will not give its light, the
stars will fall out of the sky and the whole universe will be shaken.
Then people will see the Son of Man coming in the clouds with great
power and glory. And he will send the angels to gather his chosen people
from the four winds, from the ends of the earth to the ends of the sky.
"Learn
a lesson from the fig tree. As soon as its branches become tender and
it begins to sprout leaves, you know that summer is near. In the same
way, when you see these things happening, know that the time is near,
even at the door. Truly, I say to you, this generation will not pass
away until all this has happened. Heaven and earth will pass away, but
my words will not pass away.
"But,
regarding that Day and that Hour, no one knows when it will come, not
even the angels, not even the Son, but only the Father."
Commentary
"Heaven
and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away." In
this text Jesus describes the coming destruction of Jerusalem temple.
For the Jews, this will be catastrophic, it is comparable to the end
of the world and the natural reaction is one of panic and confusion.
But Jesus assures his disciples though heaven and earth will pass
away, his words will not pass away. A priest reflecting upon the tragic
destruction of the World Trade Center on Sept. 11, 2001, said the
following words: "In the end what is important is not what glitters,
but what is invisible to the eye. What is important is not the tall
skyscraper but the understanding of the human heart. What is important
are not the high tech gadgets but the fellowship of human race. What
is important are not tough security measures but the sense of brotherhood
among all peoples under one God who loves all as his children."
General
Intercessions
Let
us pray with the fullest trust to the God of peace and hope who waits
for us at the end of life's road, and let us say: R/ Lord, we place
all our trust in you.
- For
the Church, that the people of God may proclaim with trust and joy their
unshakable faith in eternal life and the eternal dimension of all we
do, let us pray: R/ Lord, we place all our trust in you.
- For
Christians everywhere, that by their commitment to justice and peace
they may bring all people together in one community of hope and faith,
and that by their commitment to one another they may prepare the way
for the full coming of Christ, let us pray: R/ Lord, we place all
our trust in you.
- For
those who are afraid of death, old age, or life's trials, for all people
without courage or hope, that they may learn to trust in God and that
we may stand by their side, let us pray: R/ Lord, we place all our
trust in you.
- For
this community here and now, that we may inspire one another by our
living faith and indestructible hope, and that by our love and service
the Lord may live among us, let us pray: R/ Lord, we place all our
trust in you.
Lord
God of life and death, we do not know the hour of your coming, but we
are certain that your love will never fail us. Keep us vigilant in hope
and help us to welcome you now in one another, that you may welcome
us in your eternal home for good and for ever. R/ Amen.
Prayer
over the Gifts
Lord
our God,
in this bread and this wine
we make ourselves available to you.
We do not ask for a life
without risks and problems
but for the courage to commit ourselves
to your project for the world.
When we are downhearted
because this task surpasses our forces,
remind us that your Son stays with us
to bring your kingdom to completion.
For he is our Lord for ever. R/ Amen.
Introduction
to the Eucharistic Prayer
The
eucharistic prayer speaks of our resurrection to everlasting life and
our entrance into Christ's glory when he comes to meet us. After the
consecration we acclaim him as the Lord whom we expect in hope.
Invitation
to the Lord's Prayer
God
is our saving Father.
To him we pray with the fullest trust
in the words of Jesus himself: R/ Our Father...
Deliver
Us
Deliver
us, Lord, from every evil
and grant us full trust in your future.
Do not allow us to delay your plans.
Do not let us grow bitter or skeptical
when your promise of harmony and justice
take time to become a reality,
but keep alive in us the dream
that weak people can carry out your project,
as we wait in joyful hope
for the coming in glory
of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom...
Invitation
to Communion
This
is Jesus, the Lamb of God,
who sacrificed himself once and for all
to gather us together as God's people.
Happy are we to be invited
to share in the supper
that prepares us for the everlasting feast
in the kingdom of God. R/ Lord, I am not worthy...
Prayer
"Stay with Us"
This paraphrase of a text in the
night prayer of the Liturgy of the Hours could be prayed by all if it
is in the people's leaflet, or the leader says it slowly and meditatively.
The priest concludes with the Prayer after Communion.
Stay
with us, Lord,
when evening comes
and the sun is setting.
Stay with us and with all people.
Stay
with us in the evening of our day,
in the evening of life,
in the evening of the world.
Stay
with us with your love and kindness,
with your word and your sacraments,
with your consolation and blessing.
Stay
with us when to us comes
the night of affliction and fear,
the night of doubt and temptation,
the night of painful death.
Stay
with us and all who are yours
in time and in eternity. R/ Amen.
Prayer
after Communion
Lord,
God of hope,
you have saved us in the past,
you give us your Son in the present
and our future lies in your hands,
yet you entrusted it also to us.
As the fruit of this eucharist,
help us to seek this future
as a challenge to be creative
and to build up a new world
by the power of Jesus Christ,
who will complete your work in us
and who lives with you and with us for ever. R/ Amen.
Blessing
We
should not wait for the full coming of Christ
in fear and trembling but in hope.
God is not out to catch us in a weak moment,
for he is a saving and loving God.
Neither should we expect him passively
for he has given us a new world to build,
to bring it his justice, friendship and peace.
It is a task that is above our strength,
but which we can carry out
if we live the gospel as a community,
with the blessing of almighty God,
the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Let
us go as people of hope
who trust in the Lord. R/ Thanks be to God.
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