Liturgy Alive Weekday in Ordinary Time

Friday, 11th Week in Ordinary Time

A COMPASSIONATE HEART

Opening Prayer

    Lord God, our Father,
    your Son, Jesus Christ, revealed to us
    your compassionate, healing love.
    Let his presence here in our midst
    fill us with his power of sharing
    in the miseries of our neighbor.
    Let our words be like balm
    on open wounds in their hearts
    and let our deeds bring healing
    to all those around us.
    We ask this through Christ, our Lord.

Liturgy of the Word

First Reading Introduction
      God renews his promises to Abraham.

Gospel Reading Introduction
     "Not those who say, 'Lord, Lord,' will enter the kingdom, but one who does the will of my Father." We are familiar with Jesus' words, but do we follow them? Do we build on rock, that is, follow Jesus, or do we follow ourselves and our whims and so build on sand?

General Intercessions

    – With all who seek pardon and reconciliation, we cry out to you Lord, and with all who have found and given forgiveness, we thank you Lord:
    – With all who are rejected by their communities, we cry out to you Lord, and with all who accept people and restore their dignity, we praise you Lord:
    – With all who hide their suffering, we cry out to you Lord, and with all who share with others and uplift them, we praise you Lord:

Prayer over the Gifts

    God our Father,
    you are good to us.
    With these gifts of bread and wine
    we offer you the sacrifice of Jesus
    that brought us your forgiveness.
    Reconcile us with you and each other
    and keep cleansing us from the leprosy
    of pride and hard-heartedness
    that mar in us the face
    of Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Prayer after Communion

    God our Father,
    your Son Jesus, has spoken among us
    his words and deeds of healing.
    He has answered our plea
    for forgiveness and fresh hope in life
    with the gift of himself.
    Make us too, capable
    of stretching out our hands
    to those in sorrows and pain
    and of touching them with our love.
    And may our compassionate help
    reach out most of all
    to the outcasts of this cold world.
    We ask this in the name of Jesus, the Lord.

Blessing

When we have sinned, we too, should go to God and tell him: Lord, you can clean me, and he is very willing to do so, for he loves us and heals us repeatedly. May we also bring healing to the people around us, with the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.