STARTUP
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: Someone said masterpieces come from the smallest beginnings. Every song/symphony ever composed comes from eight music notes. Every piece of literature in the English language comes from twenty-six letters of the alphabet. What is true of music and language is true of every reality in life; it is true of you and me; it is true of the kingdom of God!
The kingdom of God begins from small acts. May we recognize this truth and do the small acts which make a big difference.
Penitential Rite
L: For the times we have grown impatient with a failure to see results and growth in our lives, we ask the Lord to pardon us.
Pause
L: Lord Jesus, you gave your disciples time to grow in their faith:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you spent time with the Samaritan woman
to allow her understanding of you to deepen:
Christ, have mercy.
A: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you were patient with your disciples
when they failed to understand your message and parables:
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,
at your bidding,
the seed sprouts and the shoot grows.
Make us trust in your hidden ways,
that we may pray with confidence
and wait for your kingdom
now growing in our midst.
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 Ezekiel 17:22-24
Psalm Psalm 92:2-3, 13-14, 15-16
Response Lord, it is good to give thanks to you.
Reading 2 2 Corinthians 5:6-10
Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia.
The seed is the word of God, Christ is the sower.
All who come to him will live forever.
Gospel Mark 4:26-34
Reflection on the Readings
Use one of the following ways to reflect on the readings.
Lectio Divina
Imagine you are one of the crowds. What are your thoughts and feelings when you hear Jesus narrate the two parables about the kingdom?
Sunday Snippets
Jeff Bezos started an online bookstore in his garage in Bellevue in 1994. Today, Amazon is the world’s largest online retailer.
Larry Page and Sergey Brin started a search-algorithm project in a friend’s garage in 1998. Today, Google is the most trafficked site in the world.
In 1976, twenty-year-old Steve Jobs hand-built fifty computers in a garage in Cupertino. Today, Apple is the most valuable tech company in the world.
Everything starts small, including the kingdom of God! It is a startup! In the gospel, Jesus gives two images of the kingdom.
The first image emphasizes that the building of the kingdom is God’s work. Our task, like that of the farmer, is to scatter the seeds of the kingdom – love, joy, hope – and to wait!
In the second image, Jesus compares the kingdom to a mustard seed. The tiny seed grows into a large shrub and provides shelter for birds in its branches; the kingdom has tiny beginnings and gives space for people of different races and regions. A similar image in the first reading speaks of God taking a tender shoot and causing it to grow into a mighty cedar, a dwelling for birds of every kind.
In a world where we face numerous difficulties and challenges – as individuals, as families, as communities, and as a church – it’s so easy to give in to discouragement. We want to give up because our little acts seem to make no difference to the world; we can’t see how there can be light anywhere in this darkness; we don’t know how a loss or a death can result in life. These are parables of hope.
Bezos, Page and Brin, Jobs didn’t begin by trying to create Amazon, Google, and Apple; they started an online bookstore, a search algorithm, and a computer. The mustard plant didn’t start from a shrub; it started from a small and insignificant seed. The kingdom of God is not an established empire; it begins from little acts of love and kindness.
Will I begin from where I am, scatter the seeds of love, joy, encouragement, support... and leave the growth of the kingdom to God? Where and how will I scatter the kingdom seeds?
May you and I scatter the seeds of the kingdom, act with love, and walk with hope that God will bring to fruition our small beginnings.
Questions to Ponder
Reflect on some (or all) of the following questions:
Reading 1: What are the similarities between the “tender shoot” in this parable and the mustard seed in the Gospel? Has the insignificant turned into something significant in my life?
Reading 2: “Walk by faith, and not by sight.” What does that mean to me? Why would I need the courage Paul mentions twice in this reading to walk by faith? What are the challenges I face in walking by faith?
Gospel: What is the farmer’s job in the parables; what is God’s job? Could I ask myself the same questions about my life?
Do I trust that God uses my small gifts (the smallest of seeds) to bring all creation into the kingdom of God (the largest of plants)?
The Creed
Prayer of the Faithful
L: It is the Lord who gives the tiny mustard seed the power to grow. To this God we bring our needs and pray: Lord, hear our prayer.
R: For the Church: that the seed of faith planted in the heart of each believer may grow into a bountiful manifestation of God’s kingdom in the world, we pray…
R: For public officials: that God may help them fulfil their duties, seek the truth and the common good in all issues, and be open to learning from one another, we pray…
R: For the seeds and the tender shoots in our midst: that God may give abundant growth for the young, to those new to the faith, and those beginning their ministry, and guide them to maturity of faith and service, we pray…
R: For all fathers: that the Holy Spirit may lead them to love, support, guide, and encourage their children in their holistic growth in faith and knowledge, we pray…
R: For a bountiful harvest: that God may grant growth to crops, seasonable weather, and protection from disease so that all may be nourished and sustained by the fruits of the earth, we pray…
R: For stewardship of earth’s resources: that we may recognize our gifts of time, talent, and treasure that God has entrusted to us and place these at the service of God and his creation, we pray…
R: For ourselves: that God’s faithful love may sustain us in times of discouragement and empower us to persevere through difficult times with the confidence that God makes all things new, we pray…
L: Lord our God, may we always remember that you are the first agent in the work of your kingdom: you plant the seed, you give growth, you will harvest. Grant us patience and humble modesty as we cooperate with you in building your kingdom. 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
Lord,
your kingdom is a living reality
that grows slowly and imperceptibly.
A tiny sprig is planted;
it becomes a mighty cedar to shade and shelter life.
So also my life.
I scatter my activities, my tiny acts of faith,
flung out far and profligate, some taken by the wind,
all landing somewhere.
I sleep my nights and do my days,
and growth takes place.
Life is slow and subtle.
Love takes time to show and grow.
In life and love, little acts count;
a long parade of moments deceptively inconsequential.
Lord,
give me patience
to keep scattering your seed,
to keep doing little acts of love and mercy.
Fill me with your courage,
so that I walk by faith, not by sight.
CONCLUDING RITE
Concluding Prayer
L: Curb our impatience, Lord,
when we get discouraged
when our ministry does not bear fruit.
In our helplessness and discouragement
may we learn to accept
that all true growth comes from you.
We can only plant the seed,
and you make it bloom into a mighty tree
that gives shelter to all .
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:
No comments:
Post a Comment