REJECTED
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: Everyone has prejudices: We are impressed with appearances; we are awed by strength and power; we are easily taken in by people’s oratory and showmanship. We despise weakness. Often our prejudices prevent us from seeing a person’s true worth. Yet God can and does speak through the most ordinary and simple people. Can we discern his voice?
We pray that we listen to him when he speaks through ordinary people we know. We pray that we may be his prophets to those around us.
Penitential Rite
L: We ask the Lord to forgive us for not heeding his voice.
Pause
L: Lord Jesus, you are son of God and son of Mary:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you cured the sick by laying hands on them:
Christ, have mercy.
A: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, your grace is sufficient 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: God of the prophets,
in every age you send the word of truth,
familiar yet new, a sign of contradiction.
Let us not be counted among those who lack faith,
but give us the vision and wisdom
to see Christ in our midst
and to welcome your saving word.
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 2:2-5
Psalm Psalm 123:1-2, 2, 3-4
Response Our eyes are fixed on the Lord, pleading for his mercy.
Reading 2 2 Corinthians 12:7-10
Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia.
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
for he sent me to bring glad tidings to the poor.
Gospel Mark 6:1-6
Reflection on the Readings
Use one of the following ways to reflect on the readings.
Lectio Divina
Imagine you are in the synagogue on that sabbath when Jesus taught. What are your thoughts and feelings when you hear the remarks of the people and the words of Jesus?
Sunday Snippets
In 1960, religious persecution broke out in Sudan. Paride Taban fled to Uganda. There he studied for the priesthood and was ordained. When the Sudan situation stabilized, Fr Taban returned and was assigned a parish in Palotaka. His parishioners always had white priests before who gave them clothing and medicine. Fr Taban was like them—black, poor… with nothing material to give them. His people would not accept this poor black man as a priest.
The story of Fr Taban is an example of the rejection every prophet encounters. Prophets in Hebrew and Christian history have met with resistance and hostility.
We have an example in the prophet Ezekiel in the First Reading. God calls him to proclaim his message to his people and warns him that he will face resistance. God challenges Ezekiel to be a prophet regardless of the people’s response.
The Second Reading is an excerpt from a section called the “letter in tears.” Paul’s beloved Corinthians have betrayed him by shifting allegiance to the “super-apostles” who have seduced them with their eloquent speech. All that Paul has is a “thorn in the flesh”.
In the Gospel, Jesus’ townsfolk are astonished at his wisdom and at the reports about his miracles. But they know he is the carpenter, the son of Mary and Joseph; they have grown up with him. They see the outward person, but they do not listen to his words. Their prejudice and familiarity make them blind. They reject him.
We are not different from the Israelites, the Corinthians, and the Nazarenes. God constantly speaks to us through people we know. We do not recognize his voice because the message is unpalatable, because the messenger has weaknesses, because the messenger is someone we dislike or know very well.
The Word of God challenges us on two fronts.
It challenges us to receive God’s Word irrespective of the messenger’s status/ power/ origin.
It reminds us that we, because of our baptism, are prophets. We may be afraid and feel incompetent; God will work through our fear and incompetence.
Will I discover and listen to the prophetic voice of God in ordinary and simple people? Or am I impressed by showy rhetoric but impervious to the grace that comes through weakness?
How will I, a simple and ordinary person, be his prophet?
Questions to Ponder
Reflect on some (or all) of the following questions:
Reading 1 and Gospel: Have my ideas been rejected when I tried to change something? Have people close to me rejected me? How did I feel? How do I handle rejection?
For what cause can I be a prophet?
Reading 2: If I went out “shopping” for weaknesses or crosses to bear would I pick the ones I already have or would I pick different ones? Why? Do I find God in my weakness? Do I rely on the assurance “my grace is sufficient for you”?
The Creed
Prayer of the Faithful
L: Let us pray that we may hear and understand God’s voice and put it into practice in our communities and in each of us: Lord, hear our prayer.
R: For the Church: that God may empower us to be truth-tellers in our daily circumstances and witnesses to God’s presence in our relationships and workplaces, we pray…
R: For the leaders of nations: that God may give them wisdom to fulfil their responsibilities, hearts sensitive to the needs of their people, and freedom to pursue the common good, we pray…
R: For the acceptance of others: that we may be open to strangers and their gifts as they enter our lives so that we may be nurtured and enriched by them, we pray…
R: For all who feel alienated: that God may open new opportunities for dialogue, understanding, and reconciliation, we pray…
R: For stewardship of earth’s resources: that we may care for God’s creation and preserve its resources for future generations, we pray…
R: For ourselves: that the Spirit may comfort us when people misunderstand us, renew us when they unjustly criticize us, and inspire us to show God’s love each day, we pray…
L: Father, give us your Holy Spirit that he may move our hearts to accept and follow what you say to us in the Scriptures, through the events of our lives, and through people around us. 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 people rejected you
because for them,
you were only the carpenter, the son of Mary;
they failed to see that you are the Word,
which was with God, who is God.
I pray that you may never be amazed at my lack of faith.
Even today you send your prophets
with your message of love to transform me.
Help me
to look beyond appearances and relationships
to hear your voice through them.
Look beyond my rebellion
and show me how to be a prophet
in my own time and to my own people.
Your grace is sufficient for me.
- adapted from Anne Osdieck, Prayer Path.
CONCLUDING RITE
Concluding Prayer
L: God, our Father without equal,
your Son, your Word, came among us
as one of our own, our own flesh and blood.
Dispose us to welcome him always
and to listen to what he tells us,
even when his word upsets and disturbs us,
for it is a Word of life and grace.
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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