Liturgy Alive Friday 18th Week in Ordinary Time Year 1

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Friday, August 9, 2019

Opening Prayer

Lord, our God,
we know that following your Son means
to let someone else lead us,
where we perhaps were not intending to go.
But it is your Son who leads us and goes with us.
And so, we say: We are willing to go with him,
but help us Lord, when our hearts grow faint,
that we may keep going with him
who is our Lord for ever.

Liturgy of the Word

First Reading Introduction: For love of your fathers the Lord chose their descendants.
           Today’s passage of the Book of Deuteronomy sums up the meaning and theology of the whole book: Israel is the chosen people of God, as its past experience clearly manifests–the exodus and liberation, God’s theophany on Sinai and the covenant, the journey to the Promised Land. God is a faithful, loving God. And so, Israel owes God a response of faithful love.

Gospel Reading Introduction: What can one give in exchange for one’s life?
           In the Gospel, Jesus presents the Christian life by means of three equivalent expressions. It means: to renounce oneself—that is, to accept God’s way of thinking and acting rather than one’s own; to take up the cross—that is, to take the risk of undergoing the fate of the Master and give up personal security; and to follow Jesus—that is, to accept the guidance of Jesus, his Gospel, not only in theory but also in practice. Are we ready to do this? Is this what the Christian life means for us?

General Intercessions

–    Lord Jesus, for those who follow you on the way to the cross as they are persecuted for believing in you, we pray:
–    Lord Jesus, for those who follow you on the way of the cross as they make self-renunciation to dedicate themselves to take care of lonely and sick people, we pray:
–    Lord Jesus, for those who bear their sufferings in patience with you, we pray:

Prayer over the Gifts

Bread and wine, Lord our God,
are our strength and joy on the road of life.
Let your Son break for us the better bread
and pour for us the better wine of himself,
that keep us going, and when needed,
even climbing the mountain of suffering
and of apparent defeat.
For we trust in Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Prayer after Communion

Lord our God,
you know how much we are afraid
of taking risks and committing ourselves
to the new and the unknown.
But you beckon us through your Son
and you let him be our strength.
And so, we pray you:
Keep calling us out of our enclosures
and give us the courage to go all the way
to you and to one another
without fear or compromise.
Let the Gospel of Jesus
become good news of happiness and joy
to fill our lives, for ever and ever.

Blessing

“Take up your cross and follow me.” We must take up the cross demanded by faithfulness to the Gospel, our Christian community, our family, our task in life, with the blessing of Almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

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