Liturgy Alive Easter Feria

Introduction

The world that has rejected Christ hates Christ and his disciples; it persecutes them because the lifestyle of a good Christian is a silent condemnation of the world. Think, for example, of the films by Luis Bunuel, the Spanish director, who is obsessed by everything Christian and holds it up to bitter sarcasm.
Perhaps, more deadening than persecution is the attitude of a world that has not discovered Christ or has a distorted view of him and of Christianity. To these people, we are ridiculous, old-fashioned, irrelevant, out of touch with reality, and worthy of a pitying smile.
Yet this was the lot of Christ. We share in his love, and also in the treatment he is given by the world. The disciple is no better than the master. In the disciple, the world still rejects Christ, the Master. At least, we are in good company…

Opening Prayer

Lord, our God,
it is good to live in the friendship
of your Son, Jesus Christ.
Make us realize that also in this love,
we are committed to him and share with him
for better and for worse,
in misunderstanding and contradiction
as well as in joy and intimacy.
Help us to rejoice, even when treated
with indifference or ridicule on account of him,
for it means that he is still with us,
who is our Lord forever.

General Intercessions

–    That our missionaries may be guided by the Holy Spirit to bring the joy of Easter to other people and cultures, we pray:
–    That like the early Christians, those who are persecuted on account of the Lord may retain their joy of witnessing to the Lord, we pray:
–    That like Jesus, our Lord, we may be willing and eager to render service to people, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

Lord, our God,
your Son Jesus, pours for us
the cup of joy,
but it can also become at times
a cup of sorrow to be emptied to the dregs.
May his Spirit guide us
to stay with him when the going is rough
as he stays always with us,
who is our Lord forever.

Prayer after Communion

Lord our God, we thank you
for the joy of sharing the table of your Son
in this Eucharistic celebration.
Make our faith be strong enough
to share all of the life of Jesus,
even when he is rejected or ignored,
and we with him.
Make us understand that his Paschal Mystery
is both death and life
and the way we have to live
with Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Blessing

The message of Christ is not always a comfortable message, it also has to speak of the cross. But speak we must, even in the face of ridicule and contradiction. May Almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.