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First Reading: 2 Corinthians 3:4-11
Brothers and sisters:
Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.
Not that of ourselves we are qualified to take credit
for anything as coming from us;
rather, our qualification comes from God,
who has indeed qualified us as ministers of a new covenant,
not of letter but of spirit;
for the letter brings death, but the Spirit gives life.
Now if the ministry of death, carved in letters on stone, was so glorious
that the children of Israel could not look intently at the face of Moses
because of its glory that was going to fade,
how much more will the ministry of the Spirit be glorious?
For if the ministry of condemnation was glorious,
the ministry of righteousness will abound much more in glory.
Indeed, what was endowed with glory
has come to have no glory in this respect
because of the glory that surpasses it.
For if what was going to fade was glorious,
how much more will what endures be glorious.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 99:5, 6, 7, 8, 9
R./ Holy is the Lord our God.
Extol the Lord, our God,
and worship at his footstool;
holy is he!
R./ Holy is the Lord our God.
Moses and Aaron were among his priests,
and Samuel, among those who called upon his name;
they called upon the Lord, and he answered them.
R./ Holy is the Lord our God.
From the pillar of cloud he spoke to them;
they heard his decrees and the law he gave them.
R./ Holy is the Lord our God.
O Lord, our God, you answered them;
a forgiving God you were to them,
though requiting their misdeeds.
R./ Holy is the Lord our God.
Extol the Lord, our God,
and worship at his holy mountain;
for holy is the Lord, our God.
R./ Holy is the Lord our God.
Gospel Reading: Matthew 5:13-16
Jesus said to his disciples:
"Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets.
I have come not to abolish but to fulfill.
Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away,
not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter
will pass from the law,
until all things have taken place.
Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments
and teaches others to do so
will be called least in the Kingdom of heaven.
But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments
will be called greatest in the Kingdom of heaven."
Opening Prayer
Lord our God,
you have taken the initiative of loving us
and bringing us your freedom
through your Son, Jesus Christ.
Enrich us with the Spirit of Jesus,
pour him out generously, without measure,
that we may no longer hide
behind traditions and the letter of the law,
to extinguish the Spirit of freedom.
Let him enlarge our hearts
and stimulate our fantasy
to discover love's numerous ways
to fulfill the law to perfection.
We ask you this through Christ, our Lord.
Liturgy of the Word
First Reading Introduction
Paul, defending his ministry against Jewish converts who insist on their prerogatives, states that the new covenant is superior to the old one as the life-giving Spirit is superior to the death-bringing law.
Gospel Introduction
Jesus says something similar in words that at first sight seem to say the opposite: he has come not to abolish the law but to fulfill it, that is, to give it deeper dimensions. What matters for us especially is that we must be aware that we live under the new law of love and that we are guided by the liberating Holy Spirit from servitude to the law.
General Intercessions
– For all of us in the Church, that we may have enough love to obey the commandments, to know and practice, that they show our love of God and of neighbor, we pray:
– For priests, that in the sacrament of reconciliation, they may let sinners feel the patience and the compassion of God, we pray:
– For all of us, that we may ask ourselves not what we are obliged to do, but what we can do for God and one another, we pray:
Prayer over the Gifts
God our Father,
in this Eucharist, we celebrate the new covenant
brought us by your Son, Jesus Christ.
All that we can offer you
is our openness to your initiative of love,
freely given and shared.
Make us ministers
of your adventure with us
of intimate and lasting friendship.
We ask you this in the name of Jesus, the Lord.
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God,
we have listened to the Word of your Son
and eaten his refreshing bread.
As he was not afraid
of committing himself to fickle people,
we ask you to liberate our faith
from banality and routine
and to help us to commit ourselves to others
without fear or conditions.
For you loved us first
in Jesus Christ, our Lord.
Blessing
We live under the law of the new covenant, where the key to all laws and observances is love. May we understand and live by this love, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
