THE GREATEST GIFT
INTRODUCTORY RITES
Gather as a family/ community; create an environment appropriate for prayer (dress appropriately - switch off your phones...).
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: This Sunday’s readings remind us about the greatest gift ever given: God’s love… given to anyone who wants to receive it. We don’t have to pay for it; God does not force us to accept his gift. He just invites us: “Would you like to accept me and my love?
We pray that we may understand the value of this immense gift and respond to him in love.
Penitential Rite
L: Let us ask forgiveness from the Lord for the times we have refused his love or remained indifferent to it.
Pause
L: Lord Jesus, you are the sign of the Father’s love for us:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you had compassion on the crowd of people:
Christ, have mercy.
A: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you showed your love for us by dying for us:
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: O God, rich in mercy,
you so loved the world
that, when we were dead in our sins,
you sent your only Son for our deliverance.
Raise us up with Christ
and make us rich in good works,
that we may walk as children of light
toward the paschal feast of heaven.
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 2 Chronicles 36:14-16, 19-23
Psalm Psalm 137:1-2, 3, 4-5, 6
Response Let my tongue be silenced, if I ever forget you!
Reading 2 Ephesians 2:4-10
Acclamation
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.
God so loved the world that he gave his only Son,
so that everyone who believes in him might have eternal life.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ, King of endless glory.
Gospel John 3:14-21
Reflection on the Readings
Use one of the following ways to reflect on the readings.
Lectio Divina
Imagine you present during the dialogue between Jesus and Nicodemus. What are your thoughts and feelings when you hear Jesus speak about him being “lifted up” and about God’s great love for the world?
Sunday Snippets
A man saw his five-year-old tearing expensive wrapping-paper and sticking it on an old box. He yelled at her for wasting paper.
The next morning, she gave him that box and said: “This is for you, Daddy.” The father was embarrassed by his earlier reaction.
He opened the box, found it empty, and yelled again: “Don’t you know, when you give someone a present there’s supposed to be something inside the package?” The little girl’s eyes became little pools. She said: “Daddy, there is something inside. I blew kisses into it; I filled it with my love.”
The father was crushed. He hugged his little girl, and he asked her to forgive him for his anger. He kept that love-filled box by his bed for the rest of his life. Often, he’d open the box, take out an imaginary kiss, and remember the love of the child who had put it there.
In a very real sense, God our parent has given each of us a gift-box filled with the greatest gift of his unconditional love.
The First Reading tells us that God manifested his love through his patient faithfulness towards his unfaithful people. He persistently sent his messengers to them and consistently went after them because he loved them.
The Second Reading and the Gospel remind us that God shows his love in the ultimate gift: the sending of his only Son.
The text from John reads: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.” This is the core of the Gospel: God took the initiative to love us; he sent his Son… for one reason: he loved us. It tells us of the width of God’s love: he loved the world. Not just the “chosen people”, not only those who loved him.
The greatest gift of all is for you and me. All you and I must do is to accept the gift.
Do I accept the gift of God’s love? Do I believe that God loves me so much that he sent his son to be my redeemer? How do I respond to his love?
When someone gives a gift, it is not polite to ask: “How much did it cost?” In this case, the Bible tells us how much God’s gift cost. It cost God his only Son.
Questions to Ponder
Reflect on some (or all) of the following questions:
Reading 1: “The God of their fathers (sent) his messengers to them, for he had compassion on his people.” Does God send messengers “early and often” now? What about to me personally? How open am I to his message and messengers?
Reading 2: “We are his handiwork, created in Christ Jesus…” How does my life manifest that I am God’s handiwork created in Christ Jesus?
Gospel: What needs should I lift up to God? How can I carry my cross as a disciple? When have I felt the consolation of God’s love? How can I share that love with those I meet?
The Creed
Prayer of the Faithful
L: Let us pray with the fullest confidence to God, our compassionate Father, who loved us so much as to give us his Son: Lord, hear our prayer.
R: For the Church: that we may continue to grow in our relationship with Christ and manifest God’s unbounded love for the human family, we pray…
R: For our human family: that God may raise up all who have been wounded by racism and prejudice, and inspire us with new ways to build a community of justice and cooperation, we pray…
R: For those uprooted – prisoners, victims of oppression and war, migrants and the homeless: that they may find hope in our concern for justice and feel the warmth of our love in our commitment to better their lot, we pray…
R: For all who are suffering: that God may heal the sick, protect the caregivers, and strengthen those who are most vulnerable, we pray…
R: For our common home: that we may efficiently use the natural resources entrusted to us and work to share them with those who are in need, we pray…
R: For ourselves: that we may recognize everything as a gift from God and open our hearts to accept the additional gifts that God has for us, we pray…
L: Loving and gracious Father, you still love the world so much that you keep giving it Jesus your Son. May we look up to him and learn from him to open our hands and hearts to one another. We ask this 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
O Lord God,
you are rich in mercy and great in love.
So why do you not protect your people from heartbreak:
the destruction of Jerusalem,
the loss of lives, the devastation of our common home?
Ah Lord!
You are willing to use desperate measures,
even the heartbreak of your people, to save us.
You are willing to use your own suffering too.
You gave your beloved Son to save the world.
Jerusalem was rebuilt and the Temple was restored.
Christ’s death was followed by his resurrection.
Heartbreak was turned into joy.
Lord,
may we put our trust in you,
know that you love us deeply,
and believe that heartbreak is not the end of the story.
CONCLUDING RITE
Concluding Prayer
L: Patient and merciful God,
you do not condemn us
but raised up Jesus your Son
to lift us up from our guilt and sorrow.
Help us to lift up the fallen
and comfort the broken-hearted,
to let them become fully human and free
as your sons and daughters.
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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