Liturgy Alive Thursday, June 9, 2016
Opening Prayer
Our God of love,
permeate us so deeply with the mentality
of the Good News of your Son, Jesus Christ,
that in us, there remains no room
for violence, hatred, or looking down on others.
Help us to create among us,
an atmosphere of trust and deep love
that we give first place to the needs of others
and forget ourselves for their sake.
Let there be among us forgiveness without regret
as was taught to us by Christ, our Lord.
Liturgy of the Word
First Reading Introduction
In the rather difficult first reading, Paul states that in the New Testament there is the freedom of the Spirit. We see God in the mirror of Christ.
Gospel Introduction
In the Gospel, Christ tells us that our practice of love should go farther than that of the Scribes and Pharisees. All laws and the whole discipleship are based on love and creating a climate of love in which Christians do not only not kill in acts of violence but not even damage relationships in words and thoughts. Love at its deepest is shown in forgiveness without conditions, even if the one wrong is the other person! That's not easy at all!
General Intercessions
– For all of us, that we may never put the law above people but practice first the great commandment of loving one another, we pray:
– For those who feel hurt by others, that they may learn the difficult lesson of forgiving wholeheartedly, we pray:
– For our communities, that we may seek God's will together, accept one another, respect each other's freedom and bear witness to God's kindness, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God,
here are our gifts of bread and wine.
Let there be peace among us,
even if, rightly or wrongly, someone has something against us.
Even if it is very hard,
we want to seek reconciliation with one another,
for the sake of him who has brought us
reconciliation with you at the cost of his life,
Jesus Christ, our Lord for ever.
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God,
let our communities be
places of deep love and friendship
and unlimited reconciliation.
For we have listed and accepted the word of your Son
and we have celebrated his sacrifice
for the forgiveness of sins
of the new and everlasting covenant.
May we also celebrate in everyday life
the reconciliation you sent us
through Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Blessing
Remember always these words of Jesus today, to insist that we should be reconcilers: "When you are offering your gifts at the altar, if you remember that your brother or sister has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go; first, be reconciled to your brother or sister and then come and offer your gift." May Almighty God give you this Christian sense and bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
