A LIGHT TO THOSE IN DARKNESS
INTRODUCTORY RITES
INTRODUCTORY RITES
Gather as a family/ community; create an environment appropriate for prayer (dress appropriately - switch off your phones...).
We cannot gather as usual for the Eucharist. But we are conscious that Christ is present not only in the Blessed Sacrament but also in the Scriptures and in our hearts. Even when we are on our own, we remain part of the Body of Christ.
Place lighted candles, a crucifix, and the Bible on a covered table. These remind us of the sacredness of our time of prayer and could help us feel connected with our local worshipping communities.
You may sing or play an appropriate hymn. For instance:
The Sign of the Cross
Greeting and Introductory Words
L: The Lord invites us to the table of his Word: let us bless him for his goodness.
A: Blessed be God forever.
L: Today’s readings emphasise that Jesus is the light to the people who sit and walk in darkness.
We ask the Lord to remove the darkness in our lives. We ask for strength that we may continue his mission to bring light to “the people who sit in darkness”.
Penitential Rite
L: For the times we preferred being in the darkness and have not responded to the Lord’s call, we ask his pardon.
Pause
L: Lord Jesus, you are the light of the world:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you invite us to repent
for the kingdom of heaven is at hand:
Christ, have mercy.
A: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you proclaimed the gospel of the kingdom
and healed the sick:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.
A: Amen.
Gloria
Opening Prayer
L: God of salvation,
the splendour of your glory
dispels the darkness of earth,
for in Christ we behold
the nearness of your kingdom.
Make us quick to follow where he beckons,
eager to embrace the tasks of the gospel.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God for ever and ever.
A: Amen.
THE LITURGY OF THE WORD
Readings
The readings are those assigned for the day in the Lectionary.
Preferably use a Bible/ Lectionary for reading.
Reading 1 Isaiah 8:23—9:3
Psalm Psalm 27:1, 4, 13-14
Response The Lord is my light and my salvation.
Reading 2 1 Corinthians 1:10-13, 17
Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia.
Jesus proclaimed the Gospel of the kingdom
and cured every disease among the people.
Gospel Matthew 4:12-23 or 4:12-17
Reflection on the Readings
Use one of the following ways to reflect on the readings.
Lectio Divina
Imagine you are in Galilee when Jesus begins his ministry. What are your thoughts and feelings when he begins his ministry in “Galilee of the Gentiles” and when you hear him call his first disciples to follow him?
Sunday Snippets
Mother Teresa visited a man who lived alone. His room was dark and dirty. She started cleaning the room. The man gruffly asked her to leave it as it was. She kept cleaning. Under a pile of rubbish, she found a dirty oil lamp. She asked: “How come you never light this lamp?” He replied: “Why should I light it? No one ever comes to see me. I never see anybody.” “Will you light it if one of my sisters comes to see you?” “If I hear a human voice, I’ll light the lamp.”
Two sisters began visiting him. His situation and he gradually improved. Then one day he told them: “Sisters, I’ll manage on my own from now. But do me a favour. Tell that first sister who came to see me that the light she lit in my life is still burning.”
What Mother Teresa did for that poor man (and countless others) was to continue the mission of Jesus: to bring light to “the people who sit in darkness”.
The gospel announces the beginning of Jesus’ ministry in Galilee. It is significant that Jesus begins his ministry in Galilee. For Matthew, this is the fulfilment of Isaiah’s oracle (First Reading) concerning the Messiah: the darkness of Galilee’s Assyrian captivity will end and the “great light” of their deliverance will appear.
Further, Galilee was home to Jewish immigrants who, for centuries, were surrounded and influenced by Gentiles. The people of the southern kingdom of Judah looked down on them. Jesus, himself an immigrant, begins his ministry among these outcasts, the “lost sheep of the house of Israel”.
Jesus’ mission is to proclaim and establish the kingdom of God: a state of love, justice, and peace; a reversal of darkness and oppression of every kind. He does this by teaching and healing people, by calling them to “repent” and to follow him.
The people who sit in darkness have seen a great light – that is today’s good news. But our reality is that we still live in darkness; we still face isolation and oppression.
The Lord, who called Simon and Andrew, James and John, calls us to follow him to continue his mission to bring light to “the people who sit in darkness”.
Who are the people who sit in darkness in my life? And how will I bring light to them? Will I leave my “boat” and “nets” (my securities, my old value system) to follow him?
May we who “have seen a great light” allow this light to remove all darkness from our lives.
Questions to Ponder
Reflect on some (or all) of the following questions:
Reading 1 and Gospel: “The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone.” From where does the “darkness” in today’s world come? How can I help bring the “light” into darkness?
Reading 2: Paul urges the Corinthians that “there be no divisions among” them. What are the causes of disputes/ division in our communities and churches? What are ways to handle disputes so that good or growth could come out of them?
Gospel: “At once they left their nets and followed him.” What made Simon-Andrew and James-John respond to Jesus’ invitation?
The Creed
Prayer of the Faithful
L: Sisters and brothers, let us pray to God our Father that the light of his Son Jesus may bring hope and salvation to all: Lord, hear our prayer.
R: For the Church: that we may have the freedom to leave everything to follow Jesus’ call and be a light to those in darkness, we pray to the Lord…
R: For the world: that all who find themselves in darkness may be renewed in mind and spirit with a vision and promise of life and wholeness, we pray to the Lord…
R: For healing in communities: that those who are experiencing struggles and rivalries may allow the Spirit to touch their hearts so that the Body of Christ may be one in serving and praising God, we pray to the Lord…
R: For all who are ill: that the Spirit may ease their suffering, bring encouragement through the care of the Christian community, and restore them to wholeness, we pray to the Lord…
R: For greater stewardship of natural resources: that we may balance and harmonize our activities with the resources that God has entrusted to us, we pray to the Lord…
R: For ourselves: that we may allow God’s Word to enter our hearts, bring us to a deeper relationship with him, and inspire us to live more fully for him each day, we pray to the Lord…
L: Lord our God, creator of light and light itself, let your Son come among us as a pathway of life towards you. Open our eyes that we may discover him as your light that beckons us and that we may see the people around us and their hopes and pleas. Through Christ our Lord.
A: Amen.
SPIRITUAL COMMUNION
The Lord’s Prayer
Spiritual Communion
A: Jesus, I know and believe in your real presence in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist. It is you I desire to love and receive above all things. As I am unable to receive your sacramental presence now, come and be with me in heart and soul. Let my entire self be united with you as I welcome you again and know your loving embrace. Amen.
Post Spiritual Communion Reflection
Lord,
you invited Simon and Andrew, James and John
to follow you as fishers of men and women.
They dropped their nets
and followed the deep desires of their hearts.
Lord,
thank you for calling us too.
Teach us to leave our nets and our works
to follow you in love
and to bring your light to those in darkness.
Let not differences cause dissension and division among us
but make us one heart and one soul.
CONCLUDING RITE
Concluding Prayer
L: God our Father,
make us imitate your Son
that we may be a light to the world,
bringing a spark of hope where there is despair,
the radiance of joy where there is sadness,
a glow of love where there is indifference.
Through Christ our Lord.
A: Amen.
Blessing
L: The Lord bless us, protect us from all evil, and lead us to everlasting life.
A: Amen.
L: Go in the peace of Christ.
A: Thanks be to God.
Conclude with a hymn. For instance:
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