September 16 - MONDAY (24th Week in Ordinary Time)
Theme: THE TABLE OF UNITY
Readings:Cor 11:17-26, 33; Lk 7:1-10
Note. September 16 - Feast of STS. CORNELIUS, POPE and CYPRIAN, Bishop, Martyrs - see also Celebration of Saints
Opening
Prayer
Father, whose purpose it is
to unite everyone in Jesus your Son,
do not allow us to have separate tables
or exclusive reservations
neither for the eucharist
nor in our communities.
Whatever way we come, rich or poor,
saints or sinners, healthy or weak,
keep us united in mutual respect and love
in the one body of your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Scripture Readings
First
Reading Introduction:
Paul
makes a strong statement against the Corinthians for their division between
rich and poor at the eucharistic celebration. Underlying his reprimand
is that the Corinthians act against something basic to Christianity: the
eucharistic body of Christ builds up the Church as his ecclesial body.
If they eat the one body of Christ and share the same cup, they ought
to be one. They are to be the sign of the unity of all humankind in Christ.
To continue with my advice, I cannot praise you, for your gatherings are not for the better but for the worse.
First, as I have heard, when you gather together, there are divisions among you and I partly believe it. There may have to be different groups among you, so that it becomes clear who among you are genuine.
Your gatherings are no longer the Supper of the Lord, for each one eats at once his own food and while one is hungry, the other is getting drunk. Do you not have houses in which to eat and drink? Or perhaps you despise the Church of God and desire to humiliate those who have nothing? What shall I say? Shall I praise you? For this I cannot praise you.
This is the tradition of the Lord that I received and that in my turn I have handed on to you; the Lord Jesus, on the night that he was delivered up, took bread and, after giving thanks, broke it, saying, "This is my body which is broken for you; do this in memory of me." In the same manner, taking the cup after the supper, he said, "This cup is the new Covenant in my blood. Whenever you drink it, do it in memory of me." So, then, whenever you eat of this bread and drink from this cup, you are proclaiming the death of the Lord until he comes.
So then, brothers, when you gather for a meal, wait for one another and, if someone is hungry, let him eat in his own house. In this way you will not gather for your common condemnation. The other instructions I shall give when I go there.
Responsorial
Psalm: Psalms 40:7-10, 17
Then I said, "Here I am; in the scroll of the book it is written of me.
I delight to do your will, O my God; your law is within my heart."
I have told the glad news of deliverance in the great congregation; see, I have not restrained my lips, as you know, O LORD.
I have not hidden your saving help within my heart, I have spoken of your faithfulness and your salvation; I have not concealed your steadfast love and your faithfulness from the great congregation.
As for me, I am poor and needy, but the Lord takes thought for me. You are my help and my deliverer; do not delay, O my God.
Gospel Introduction:
In
today's gospel, Luke tries to tell us that the time of salvation has come,
for with Jesus, the blind begin to see, the deaf hear, the lame walk,
and yes, the dead come back to life. With him, a new era has begun - God's
era. It is the erain which we live. Do we make it an era of resurrection
and life, in which our hands that reach out raise up our neighbors above
their miseries? Do we make it an era in which we bring dead love back
to life in Christ?
When Jesus had finished teaching to the people, he went to Capernaum.
There was a captain whose servant was very sick and near to death, a man very dear to him. So when he heard about Jesus, he sent some elders of the Jews to persuade him to come and save his servant's life. The elders came to Jesus and begged him earnestly, saying, "He deserves this of you, for he loves our people and even built a synagogue for us."
Jesus went with them. He was not far from the house when the captain sent friends to give this message, "Sir, do not trouble yourself for I am not worthy to welcome you under my roof. You see I didn't approach you myself. Just give the order and my servant will be healed. For I myself, a junior officer, give orders to my soldiers and I say to this one: 'Go,' and he goes; and to the other: 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant: 'Do this,' and he does it."
On hearing these words, Jesus was filled with admiration. He turned and said to the people with him, "I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith." The people sent by the captain went back to his house; there they found that the servant was well.
General
Intercessions
- That the day may come when all who believe in Christ may sit at the same table to break the bread of the Lord, we pray:
- That the eucharist may build us up more as Church, uniting us more as the body of Christ in prayer, thanksgiving to God, and concern for the weak, we pray:
- That the eucharist may unite the whole community in mutual forgiveness, acceptance and sharing, we pray:
Prayer
over the Gifts
Lord God, Father of all,
let this holy feast meal
be to us indeed the Lord's supper,
where we put aside our squabbles and differences
not only for a moment
but where we can forget them.
Let your Son here in our midst
make us one of heart and mind
as the people you love
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Prayer
after Communion
Our one Father of all,
we have been one for a little while
around the table of your Son.
We thank you for having made us
different from each other,
each with one's own identity and character,
one's talents, and even one's faults.
Thank you for saving us
from the monotony of sameness.
May we thus sing to you
a living symphony of many voices,
and nourish us with the same bread
united by the one mentality
of Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessing
It is a real shame that people who meet in the Lord, listen to his word, and eat the eucharist from his table are divided and discriminate against one another. May in his goodness God bless you all, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Our Catholic liturgy has immortalized this centurion by adopting his saying in our communion rites. He must have been a God-fearer, a non-Jew who was sympathetic to the Jewish faith but unwilling, for example, to undergo certain practices like circumcision, which was considered then by the pagan Greeks and Romans to be a mutilation. Evidently he was highly esteemed by the leaders of the Jewish community of Capernaum to warrant a delegation on his behalf. Word must have reached him about all Jesus was teaching and doing. Realizing that Jesus would, indeed, grace him with a visit, he professed his faith in Jesus' power to heal even from a distance. His word was truly effecting what was uttered. Do we believe in the power of God's word to heal us?
September 17 - TUESDAY (24th Week in Ordinary Time)
(Click here to see another alternative liturgy for this day)
Theme:
ONE BODY, AN INFINITE VARIETY
Readings:
Cor 12:12-14, 27-31; Lk 7:11-17
Opening
Prayer
Our living God,
in you there is no contradiction
between unity and diversity,
for three divine persons are needed
to express you in full.
You enrich each of us with different gifts
and different personalities
by one and the same Holy Spirit.
Give each and all of us the mentality
of our one head and Lord Jesus Christ,
that together we may contribute
the riches and diversity of the talents given us
to build up the one body of your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Scripture Readings
First
Reading Introduction:
What
makes the body beautiful - and functional at the same time - is the variety
of its members. Variety does not mean factions (cf. yesterday), but a
diversity of talents, charismas and functions to be coordinated for the
good of the whole. But there lies its greatness and danger. Diversity
is destructive or constructive, depending on the mentality of the owners
of the different gifts. The point is that, in God's plan, we are not owners
but stewards of God's gifts. What kind of stewards are we?
1st Reading: Cor 12:12-14, 27-31
As the body is one, having many members, and all the members, while being many, form one body, so it is with Christ. All of us, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, have been baptized in one Spirit to form one body and all of us have been given to drink from the one Spirit.
The body has not just one member, but many. Now, you are the body of Christ and each of you individually is a member of it. So God has appointed us in the Church. First apostles, second prophets, third teachers. Then come miracles, then the gift of healing, material help, administration in the Church and the gift of tongues.
Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Can all perform miracles, or cure the sick, or speak in tongues, or explain what was said in tongues? Be that as it may, set your hearts on the most precious gifts, and I will show you a much better way.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 100:1-5
Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.
Worship the LORD with gladness; come into his presence with singing.
Know that the LORD is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his name.
For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
Gospel Introduction:
In
today's gospel, Luke tries to tell us that the time of salvation has come,
for with Jesus, the blind begin to see, the deaf hear, the lame walk,
and yes, the dead come back to life. With him, a new era has begun - God's
era. It is the erain which we live. Do we make it an era of resurrection
and life, in which our hands that reach out raise up our neighbors above
their miseries? Do we make it an era in which we bring dead love back
to life in Christ?
Jesus went to a town called Naim and many of his disciples went with him - a great number of people. As he reached the gate of the town, a dead man was being carried out. He was the only son of his mother and she was a widow; there followed a large crowd of townspeople.
On seeing her, the Lord had pity on her and said, "Don't cry." Then he came up and touched the stretcher and the men who carried it stopped. Jesus then said, "Young man, awake, I tell you." And the dead man got up and began to speak, and Jesus gave him to his mother. A holy fear came over them all and they praised God saying, "A great prophet has appeared among us; God has visited his people." This news spread out in the Jewish country and the surrounding places.
General Intercessions
- That in all our variety, as different as we come, we may all be one in the one body of Christ, we pray:
- That the eucharist may be the bond that binds us together, rich and poor, masters and servants, whatever social class or country we belong to, we pray:
- That the Holy Spirit may teach us to journey and to grow together as one community, we pray:
Prayer
over the Gifts
God our Father,
with bread and wine we celebrate
that we are one body in Christ.
Give us here a share in his one bread
and let us drink of the same Spirit.
Accept the one offering we bring you,
though we are many and diverse,
for we join the one sacrifice
offered once and for all
by our only Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Prayer
after Communion
God our Father,
we are painfully aware
that your Church is often torn and divided,
with too many of us trying
to go their own tortuous ways
rather than the way of your Son.
By the strength of the bread of life of Jesus,
make us forget our grudges
and seek all what binds us together
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessing
What a shame that real unity keeps escaping us! Different though we are from one another, we are one in Christ. Let the Spirit bind us together, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
In the olden times orphans and widows stood low in the rung of society. They were easy preys of exploitation and deprivation. That is why, to do justice meant among other things, to defend them and to see to their sustenance. Before the funeral cortege, Luke depicts Jesus to be a great prophet who manifests the justice of God. His entrails (Greek, splangchna = womb) were moved, as a mother who cannot stand being unaffected by a pathetic situation of her children. As church people, we can act more prophetically when the poor people's state of injustice deeply affects us. How many of us have become calloused because of our distance from the actual lives of our people?
September 17 - TUESDAY (24th Week in Ordinary Time)
(Click here to see another alternative liturgy for this day)Theme: YOUNG MAN, GET UP
Readings: 1 Cor 12:12, 14, 27-31; Lk 7:11-17
Opening
Prayer
Loving Father,
your Son Jesus Christ spoke a human language
and filled it with new meaning.
He put his fingers on people's ears and lips
and they could hear and speak
words of life and goodness.
Continue in us the work of your Son.
Allow us to change with him
darkness into light, sadness into joy
and death into life,
that with him we may also enter
your life and joy that last for ever.
Scripture Readings
First
Reading Introduction:
What
makes the body beautiful - and functional at the same time - is the variety
of its members. Variety does not mean factions (cf. yesterday), but a
diversity of talents, charismas and functions to be coordinated for the
good of the whole. But there lies its greatness and danger. Diversity
is destructive or constructive, depending on the mentality of the owners
of the different gifts. The point is that, in God's plan, we are not owners
but stewards of God's gifts. What kind of stewards are we?
1st Reading: Cor 12:12-14, 27-31
As the body is one, having many members, and all the members, while being many, form one body, so it is with Christ. All of us, whether Jews or Greeks, slaves or free, have been baptized in one Spirit to form one body and all of us have been given to drink from the one Spirit.
The body has not just one member, but many. Now, you are the body of Christ and each of you individually is a member of it. So God has appointed us in the Church. First apostles, second prophets, third teachers. Then come miracles, then the gift of healing, material help, administration in the Church and the gift of tongues.
Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Can all perform miracles, or cure the sick, or speak in tongues, or explain what was said in tongues? Be that as it may, set your hearts on the most precious gifts, and I will show you a much better way.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 100:1-5
Make a joyful noise to the LORD, all the earth.
Worship the LORD with gladness; come into his presence with singing.
Know that the LORD is God. It is he that made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise. Give thanks to him, bless his name.
For the LORD is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations.
Gospel Introduction:
In
today's gospel, Luke tries to tell us that the time of salvation has come,
for with Jesus, the blind begin to see, the deaf hear, the lame walk,
and yes, the dead come back to life. With him, a new era has begun - God's
era. It is the erain which we live. Do we make it an era of resurrection
and life, in which our hands that reach out raise up our neighbors above
their miseries? Do we make it an era in which we bring dead love back
to life in Christ?
Jesus went to a town called Naim and many of his disciples went with him - a great number of people. As he reached the gate of the town, a dead man was being carried out. He was the only son of his mother and she was a widow; there followed a large crowd of townspeople.
General Intercessions
- God of mercy and compassion, keep your Church forgiving and patient with its members who err or rebel, we pray:
- God of the sad and the sorrowing, fill us with Christian empathy for those who suffer and make us bold enough to tell them: "Do not weep. The Lord loves you," we pray:
- God of those who are sick in any way, bring your healing power to them through people who visit them and cheer them up, we pray:
Prayer
over the Gifts
God, your gifts to us of bread and wine
enable us to live and to enjoy life.
We bring them before you to fill them
with the higher life and the deeper joy
of your Son Jesus Christ.
Let them be a life and a joy
which, even in the uncertainties
and the trials of life,
can never be taken away from us.
Let him lead us to your everlasting life and joy.
We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.
Prayer
after Communion
Faithful God,
you promise us life and joy
if we have the courage
to listen to Jesus' words
and put them into practice.
Let your Son fill us here
with a love that is stronger than death,
that we may speak words that uplift
and that we can break for one another
bread that gives life.
Grant us this in the name of Jesus the Lord.
Blessing
Young man, young woman, I tell you, get up. Let us speak these words also to people who are suffering and discouraged, for they are words of life and resurrection. May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
In the olden times orphans and widows stood low in the rung of society. They were easy preys of exploitation and deprivation. That is why, to do justice meant among other things, to defend them and to see to their sustenance. Before the funeral cortege, Luke depicts Jesus to be a great prophet who manifests the justice of God. His entrails (Greek, splangchna = womb) were moved, as a mother who cannot stand being unaffected by a pathetic situation of her children. As church people, we can act more prophetically when the poor people's state of injustice deeply affects us. How many of us have become calloused because of our distance from the actual lives of our people?
September 18 - WEDNESDAY (24th Week in Ordinary Time)
Theme: HYMN TO CHARITY
Readings: 1
Cor 12:31-13:13; Lk 7:31-35
Opening
Prayer
God, your name is love.
You are the source of all love.
Let love become so characteristic
of the disciples of your Son
that it is part of our identity
and that it prompts people to say:
"See how they love one another."
Make us recognize more
that it is a precious gift
that comes from your generosity.
We offer you our thanks
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Scripture Readings
First
Reading Introduction:
St
Paul gives us today his famous hymn to Christian love. It is greater than
any charism, for charisms are vain if not rooted in love. Look at all
the great things that love produces. Love will never pass, for all the
rest is vowed to disappear.
1st Reading: 1 Cor 12:31-13:13
Be that as it may, set your hearts on the most precious gifts, and I will show you a much better way.
If I could speak all the human and angelic tongues, but had no love, I would only be sounding brass or a clanging cymbal. If I had the gift of prophecy, knowing secret things with all kinds of knowledge, and had faith great enough to remove mountains, but had no love, I would be nothing. If I gave everything I had to the poor, and even give up my body to be burned, if I am without love, it would be of no value to me.
Love is patient, kind, without envy. It is not boastful or arrogant. It is not ill-mannered nor does it seek its own interest. Love overcomes anger and forgets offenses. It does not take delight in wrong, but rejoices in truth. Love excuses everything, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
Love will never end. Prophecies may cease, tongues be silent and knowledge disappear. For knowledge grasps something of the truth and prophecy as well. And when what is perfect comes, everything imperfect will pass away. When I was a child I thought and reasoned like a child, but when I grew up, I gave up childish ways. Likewise, at present we see dimly as in a mirror, but then it shall be face to face. Now we know in part, but then I will know as I am known. Now we have faith, hope and love, these three, but the greatest of these is love.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 33:2-5,
12, 22
Praise the LORD with the lyre; make melody to him with the harp of ten strings.
Sing to him a new song; play skillfully on the strings, with loud shouts.
For the word of the LORD is upright, and all his work is done in faithfulness.
He loves righteousness and justice; the earth is full of the steadfast love of the LORD.
Happy is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people whom he has chosen as his heritage.
Let your steadfast love, O LORD, be upon us, even as we hope in you.
Gospel Introduction:
Luke
compares those who reject Christ and God's prophets to spoiled children.
Jews, and later the pagans for whom Luke writes, see John the Baptist
and Jesus and the things they say and do, but they do not recognize these
signs.
Gospel
Reading: Lk 7:31-35Jesus said, "What comparison can I use for this people? What are they like? They are like children sitting in the marketplace, about whom their companions complain: 'We piped you a tune and you wouldn't dance; we sang funeral songs and you wouldn't cry.'
Remember John: he didn't eat bread or drink wine, and you said: 'He has an evil spirit.' Next came the Son of Man, eating and drinking, and you say: 'Look, a glutton for food and wine, a friend of tax collectors and sinners.' But the children of Wisdom always recognize her work."
General Intercessions
- That our anemic and dried-up love may become rich and spontaneous, like a fresh breath of life and joy brightening the lives of those around us and a wordless song of praise to God, we pray:
- That we may be reliable friends to those marked by suffering in any form; that we may let them feel God's presence by the warmth of our presence, we pray:
- That people may not lose their heart in today's economic system of profit, production and competition but seek human relationships of respect, love and friendship, we pray:
Prayer
over the Gifts
Our loving Father,
we bring this bread and wine before you
to share in the meal of your Son.
Dispose us also to share in his love,
which made him lay down his life for us
and let the eucharist become for us
the source that keeps nourishing our love
in everyday life.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Prayer
after Communion
Lord our God,
in this eucharistic celebration
you have let Christ pour out his love in us.
Let it be a love that expresses itself
not so much in words as in deeds
of forgiveness and patience,
of compassion and generosity,
and of endless service.
Let that love never end.
This we ask you through Christ our Lord.
Blessing
May love not be just something we are supposed to do, but something we do naturally and with great joy. May that love never end, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Nothing can move cynical people unless they remove the blindness which prevents them from seeing reality. One will always find a reason to disbelieve what one experiences. Jesus was showing the sign of the coming of God's reign, which John himself proclaimed. Nonetheless, they always had the reasons not to believe. The Gospel today challenges us to be mindful of our blindness, through which prism we might have a biased perception of people and events. Only through such mindfulness and acceptance of such a mind-state will we be able to transcend biases.
September 19 - THURSDAY (24th Week in Ordinary Time)
Theme: FORGIVING ENCOUNTER
Readings: 1 Cor 15:1-11;
Lk 7:36-50
Opening
Prayer
Patient and loving Father,
you sent Jesus your Son among us
to heal what is broken and wounded.
He touched us with his goodness
and did not break the crushed reed.
Forgive us our sins,
let your Spirit continue in us
the work of conversion
and make us patient and understanding
with those who love us and those who fail us.
We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.
Scripture Readings
First
Reading Introduction:
The
core of the good news that Paul brings to the Corinthians is the resurrection
of Jesus. Paul insists, because Greeks do not easily accept this truth.
For Christians the resurrection means life more than a dogma; it means
hope and a great future.
Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, of the Good News that I preached to you and which you received and on which you stand firm. By that Gospel you are saved, provided that you hold to it as I preached it. Otherwise, you will have believed in vain.
In the first place, I have passed on to you what I myself received: that Christ died for our sins, as Scripture says; that he was buried; that he was raised on the third day, according to the Scriptures; that he appeared to Cephas and then to the Twelve. Afterwards he appeared to more than five hundred brothers and sisters together; most of them are still alive, although some have already gone to rest. Then he appeared to James and after that to all the apostles. And last of all, he appeared to the most despicable of them, this is to me. For I am the last of the apostles, and I do not even deserve to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the Church of God. Nevertheless, by the grace of God, I am what I am, and his grace towards me has not been without fruit. Far from it, I have toiled more than all of them, although not I, rather the grace of God in me.
Now, whether it was I or they, this we preach and this you have believed.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 118:1-2, 16-17, 28
O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever!
Let Israel say, "His steadfast love endures forever."
the right hand of the LORD is exalted; the right hand of the LORD does valiantly."
I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the LORD.
You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God, I will extol you.
Gospel Introduction:
A woman with a bad reputation, which she apparently deserved, comes to
Jesus and shows in a rather extravagant way that something in her cries
out for a purer kind of love than she had experienced in life. Her encounter
with Jesus in faith and love led to forgiveness, to the scandal of the
good practicing people. For us too, Jesus' encounter with us is always
forgiving.
One of the Pharisees asked Jesus to share his meal, so he went to the Pharisee's home and as usual reclined on the sofa to eat. And it happened that a woman of this town, who was known as a sinner, heard that he was in the Pharisee's house. She brought a precious jar of perfume and stood behind him at his feet, weeping. She wet his feet with tears, she dried them with her hair and kissed his feet and poured the perfume on them.
The Pharisee who had invited Jesus was watching and thought, "If this man were a prophet, he would know what sort of person is touching him; isn't this woman a sinner?"
Then Jesus spoke to the Pharisee and said, "Simon, I have something to ask you." He answered, "Speak, master." And Jesus said, "Two people were in debt to the same creditor. One owed him five hundred silver coins, and the other fifty. As they were unable to pay him back, he graciously canceled the debts of both. Now, which of them will love him more?"
Simon answered, "The one, I suppose, who was forgiven more." And Jesus said, "You are right."And turning toward the woman, he said to Simon, "Do you see this woman? You gave me no water for my feet when I entered your house, but she has washed my feet with her tears and dried them with her hair. You didn't welcome me with a kiss, but she has not stopped kissing my feet since she came in. You provided no oil for my head, but she has poured perfume on my feet. This is why, I tell you, her sins, her many sins, are forgiven, because of her great love. But the one who is forgiven little, has little love."
Then Jesus said to the woman, "Your sins are forgiven." The others sitting with him at the table began to wonder, "Now this man claims to forgive sins!" But Jesus again spoke to the woman, "Your faith has saved you; go in peace."
General
Intercessions
- That the community of God's people may be a source of peace, of forgiveness and reconciliation, of new opportunities for tomorrow, we pray:
- That we may be gentle in our judgment of others, aware that every day anew we too are we in need of forgiveness, we pray:
- That in our families and communities we may be attentive to the good that is done and not be discouraged by each other's shortcomings, we pray:
Prayer
over the Gifts
Our God and Father,
you have invited us to encounter your Son
and to offer with him the sacrifice
that forgives our sins.
Dispose us to forgive others
as you forgive us
and to share at the table of your Son
the bread of unity and reconciliation.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Prayer
after Communion
Merciful Father
in this eucharist your Son Jesus said to us too:
your sins are forgiven
and he ate with us the meal
that brings reconciliation.
May all this deepen our love for you
and dispose us to extend a hand of peace
to all those who have hurt us
and to those we have wounded.
We ask this in the name of Jesus the Lord.
Blessing
The words of Jesus have been spoken to us too, "Your sins are forgiven." May it be said of us too that we show great love, both of God and of people. May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
What one receives, that is what one gives. This is a basic principle in Christian living. The Gospel episode today demonstrates this. The woman sinner was very generous, having experienced Jesus' generosity in reinstating her in the human company. Simon the Pharisee could not be generous to Jesus because he could not read Jesus' generosity in accepting his invitation. Jesus consorted himself especially with the marginalized but clearly he had an open heart to all - manifest in letting himself become a guest of Simon the Pharisee. Though Luke does not mention Simon's intentions, it must have been to watch Jesus' actuations and find ways of having a case against him. See God's generosity in your life, so that you can be consequently generous to others.
September
20 - FRIDAY (24th
Week in Ordinary Time)
Theme: COMPANIONS ALL
Readings: 1 Cor 15:12-20; Lk 8:1-3
Note.
September 20 - THE
MARTYRS OF KOREA: STS. ANDREW KIM TAEGON, Priest,
PAUL CHONG HASANG, AND COMPANIONS
- see
also Celebration of Saints
Opening
Prayer
Lord our God,
men and women are responsible together
for the life of faith of our Christian communities.
As they were disciples of Jesus
and his companions on the road,
may they also accompany us today,
with their identity and potentials,
that the Church may grow
and its faith be alive and imbued with love.
We ask you this through Christ our Lord.
Scripture Readings
First
Reading Introduction:
Indeed, Christ is alive.
He is risen. And if he is risen, we too will rise. The two go together.
Without the resurrection of Christ and ours, we believe in vain.
Well, then, if Christ is preached as risen from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is empty and our belief comes to nothing. And we become false witnesses of God, attesting that he raised Christ, whereas he could not raise him if indeed the dead are not raised. If the dead are not raised, neither has Christ been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith gives you nothing, and you are still in sin. Also those who fall asleep in Christ are lost. If it is only for this life that we hope in Christ, we are the most unfortunate of all people.
But no, Christ has been raised from the dead and he comes before all those who have fallen asleep.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 118:1-2,
16-17, 28
O give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his steadfast love endures forever!
Let Israel say, "His steadfast love endures forever."
the right hand of the LORD is exalted; the right hand of the LORD does valiantly."
I shall not die, but I shall live, and recount the deeds of the LORD.
You are my God, and I will give thanks to you; you are my God, I will extol you.
Gospel
Introduction:
Luke
is the evangelist who describes the contribution of women in the apostolate
of Jesus. Christ has liberated them from the alienations of Jewish society.
They accompanied Jesus since the beginning of his ministry and had a status
not far remote from that of the Twelve; after the resurrection they were
the first to proclaim that Christ was risen. Together with the Twelve,
they are companions of Jesus as he goes from town to town to bring the
good news. Companions are people who share the same table.
Jesus walked through towns and countryside, preaching and giving the good news of the kingdom of God. The Twelve followed him, and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and diseases: Mary called Magdalene, who had been freed of seven demons; Joanna, wife of Chuza, Herod's steward; Suzanna and others who provided for them out of their own funds.
General
Intercessions
- That the contribution of women to the building up of the community of the Church may be appreciated more, and as well as that of men, we pray:
- That women in the Church may continue to enrich us with the warmth of their gentleness, we pray:
- That women in the Church may inspire us by their sense of welcome, faith and fidelity, we pray:
Prayer
over the Gifts
Lord our God,
let us be companions of your Son
who share his table.
and become with him
one in mind and heart.
Let fathers and mothers in our families
make their gifts of mind and heart available
and nourish their children
with the food of faith
and the warmth of love and compassion.
Let them make their children
close to Jesus Christ our Lord.
Prayer
after Communion
Lord our God,
we have been companions of your Son
as we have eaten from his table.
Make us also his companions
on the journey of life
that we may we bring to the people we encounter
the good news of forgiveness and life
that make our communities
signs of the kingdom of God.
We ask this through Christ our Lord.
Blessing
The women who accompanied Jesus "served him," says the gospel. Jesus was among us as the one who serves, and we, men and women, serve with him. May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
Women disciples were part and parcel of Jesus' immediate company. From their possessions the apostolic community obtained support for their needs. This indicates that some of these women were well placed. Male chauvinists in the Church need to see what is wrong with their attitudes. As the recent extraordinary Asian synod noted, "the presence of women in the Church's mission of love and service contributes greatly to bringing the compassionate Jesus, the healer and reconciler, to Asian people, especially the poor and marginalized." Do we see women as equal partners of church men in exercising such mission of love and service?
September
21 - SATURDAY (24th
Week in Ordinary Time)
Feast: ST. MATTHEW, Apostle, Evangelist
Readings: Eph 4:1-7, 11-13; Mt 9:9-13
Introduction
From a despised tax-collector, appraised no higher than a public sinner or a pagan, Matthew becomes an apostle. He is living proof that Jesus came to call sinners. And among the apostles he is one of the two who witnessed to Christ not only with their life and work but also their writing. He is with us today to strengthen our faith. He shows how Jesus is the fulfillment of the scriptures and how our communities today, like his long ago, have to put the Good News of Jesus into practice.
Opening
Prayer
Lord God of mercy,
you show us today
in your apostle and evangelist Matthew
how you put the self-righteous to shame
and call sinners to the task
of bringing your Son's good news to the world.
Forgive us our pride and reassure us
that we can count on you and your love
because we are weak and sinful people.
Let us share in your message and life
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Scripture Readings
First Reading: Eph 4:1-7, 11-13
Therefore I, the prisoner of Christ, invite you to live the vocation you have received. Be humble, kind, patient, and bear with one another in love.
Make every effort to keep among you the unity of Spirit through bonds of peace. Let there be one body and one spirit, for God, in calling you, gave the same Spirit to all. One Lord, one faith, one baptism. One God, the Father of all, who is above all and works through all and is in all.
But to each of us divine grace is given according to the measure of Christ's gift.
As for his gifts, to some he gave to be apostles, to others prophets, or even evangelists, or pastors and teachers. So he prepared those who belong to him for the ministry, in order to build up the Body of Christ, until we are all united in the same faith and knowledge of the Son of God. Thus we shall become the perfect Man, upon reaching maturity and sharing the fullness of Christ.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalms 19:2-5
Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge.
There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard; yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world.
In the heavens he has set a tent for the sun, which comes out like abridegroom from his wedding canopy, and like a strong man runs its course with joy.
As Jesus moved on, he saw a man named Matthew at his seat in the custom-house, and he said to him, "Follow me." And Matthew got up and followed him. Now it happened, while Jesus was at table in Matthew's house, many tax collectors and other sinners joined Jesus and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this they said to his disciples, "Why is it that your master eats with those sinners and tax collectors?"
When Jesus heard this he said, "Healthy people do not need a doctor, but sick people do. Go and find out what this means: What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. I did not come to call the righteous but sinners."
General Intercessions
- For the Church, a community of saints and sinners, that we, the People of God and our leaders, may not condemn those who have failed, but with God give them new chances in life, we pray:
- For people who have failed and no longer believe in themselves, in God or in the community, that they may draw new hope from our compassion and understanding, we pray:
- For priests and religious, that they may keep trusting in the Lord who called them notwithstanding their human frailty; that with Christ they may care especially for the poor and the weak, we pray:
Prayer
over the Gifts
Lord God, merciful Father,
your Son Jesus Christ was eating
with tax collectors and sinners
because they needed him.
We bring this bread and this wine before you,
that he may sit at table with us
because we too need him.
Accept his sacrifice and ours
so that sins may be forgiven
and that we may live in your love
now and for ever.
Prayer
after Communion
Lord our God, merciful Father,
through your Son in our midst
help us to be mild and compassionate
without condemning anyone,
for you have been gentle to us.
And do not let us boast
of our human achievements,
for we owe everything
to your grace and your call
in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Blessing
"I desire mercy, not sacrifice. I have come to call not the righteous but sinners." Let these words change our attitude toward people, also toward ourselves, and make us mild and understanding to everyone, with the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
It was truly shocking for Jesus' contemporaries, especially for the religious leaders, to find Jesus including a Publican, a double renegade, among his disciples. He was a renegade to the country for collaborating with the Roman oppressors, and more seriously a renegade to religion for consorting himself with unclean Gentiles. But Jesus' message of God's reign cuts across all boundaries. In his acceptance of people's inherent human dignity, he gave them the courage to change their lives, after they had seen an alternative way of looking at themselves and at things. Jesus' acceptance of them enabled sinners to go beyond themselves and change their heart and their lives. Let Jesus touch your life. It will surely make a difference.
Taken
from Liturgy
Alive for Weekdays
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