PEACE AMID STORMS
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: Each of us yearns for peace. As we follow the news and as we try to deal with life situations, we experience anything but peace. The liturgy on the VI Sunday of Easter reminds us that Jesus gives us “his” peace. We pray that we may experience this peace, which comes through the Spirit.
Penitential Rite
L: Our peace is disturbed by our sins. Let us seek the peace of the Lord’s forgiveness.
Pause
L: Lord Jesus, you ask us to keep your word and you assure us that you will live in us:
Lord, have mercy.
A: Lord, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you promise us the Spirit, who will remind us of your words and deeds:
Christ, have mercy.
A: Christ, have mercy.
L: Lord Jesus, you give us your peace, the kind of peace the world cannot give 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: Great and loving Father,
your will for us
is the peace the world cannot give;
your abiding gift
is the Advocate whom Jesus promised.
Calm all troubled hearts,
dispel every fear.
Keep us steadfast in love
and faithful to your 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 Acts 15:1-2, 22-29
Psalm Psalm 67:2-3, 5, 6, 8
Response O God, let all the nations praise you!
or: Alleluia.
Reading 2 Revelation 21:10-14, 22-23
Acclamation
Alleluia, alleluia.
Whoever loves me will keep my word, says the Lord,
and my Father will love him and we will come to him.
Gospel John 14:23-29
Reflection on the Readings
Use one of the following ways to reflect on the readings.
Lectio Divina
Imagine you are in the Upper Room with Jesus and his disciples. What are your thoughts and feelings when you hear him say: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you… Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid” in the face of his impending death?
Sunday Snippets
A wealthy man commissioned an artist to paint a picture of peace.
The artist painted a beautiful country scene: green fields with cattle; birds in a blue sky; a quaint village in the distance. The patron was disappointed and asked the artist to try again.
The artist returned to his studio, thought for several hours, and then painted a beautiful woman smiling lovingly at her sleeping child. “Surely this is true peace,” he thought and took the picture to the patron, who refused the painting.
The artist was discouraged, tired, angry. He thought and prayed. Then, he had a “eureka” moment and began painting. When he finished, he hurried to give the patron the painting. The patron studied it for several minutes and exclaimed: “Now this is a picture of true peace.”
What was this picture? It showed a stormy sea pounding against a cliff. In a crook in the cliff, was a small bird, safe and dry in her nest. The bird was at peace amid the storm that raged about her.
This is the kind of peace that Jesus gives: not the peace of a spot in nature – beautiful and serene; not the peace of a mother and child – tender and gentle; but the peace of knowing that amid turmoil there is a rock which shelters us, a power that keeps us safe.
We yearn and pray for peace. But we look for peace as an end to things that disturb us, as an absence of turmoil and conflict.
The Hebrew “shalom” is not the absence of things that disturb us but the removal of the cause of the disturbance! Peace is linked with wholeness: being “at one” with God, neighbour, self, and nature.
This peace comes through a presence, here and now, that comforts us: the presence of the Spirit.
The first reading from the Acts of the Apostles is a good example of the way in which the Spirit brings peace. The text details one of the first controversies in the Church: Must a gentile Christian follow Jewish laws? The Jerusalem Council, under the direction of the Spirit, decided that gentile converts did not have to follow every Jewish law. Peace is not the absence of conflict but the resolution of conflict.
Is there conflict and turmoil in my life? Let me surrender myself to the Spirit and allow his peace to fill my heart, a peace that comes from being “at one” with God, neighbour, self, and nature.
Questions to Ponder
Reflect on some (or all) of the following questions:
Reading 1: Is there growth without tension? Would the Church be better off today if there were never dissension and debate?
Let me reflect on the value of listening and of representing my view when resolving a problem. How are my listening skills? Do I try to see the other person’s point of view?
Reading 2: “I saw no temple in the city for its temple is the Lord God almighty.” What would happen if we had no places of worship but worshipped the Lord in spirit and in truth?
Gospel: “Do not let your hearts be troubled or afraid.” What must I do to not let my heart be troubled or afraid?
In what parts of my life do I need God’s peace? How can I be a force for peace and unity?
The Creed
Prayer of the Faithful
L: Inspired by the Spirit of the Lord, let us pray to the Lord to unite us and the world in his peace and love: Lord, hear our prayer.
R: For the Church: that we may resolve conflict through the power of the Spirit and dialogue, we pray…
R: For the world: that God may turn hearts from violence, guide people to address painful issues, and help everyone’s voice to be respected, we pray…
R: For all who are burdened by fear or anxiety: that the Spirit may free them so that they may live life fully, we pray…
R: For all who are ill or recovering from injuries: that God may heal the sick, provide quick recovery for the wounded, and heal hearts from painful experiences, we pray…
R: For greater care of the environment: that we may recognise the sacredness of the earth and grow in our respect and care for our common home, we pray…
R: For ourselves: that we may abide in the Spirit’s peace which surpasses all understanding and find strength to face challenges that arise in daily life, we pray…
L: God, our loving Father, let your Spirit free us from all fear and cowardice and give us the courage to build the Church in peace and with patient love. 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,
you had to go away from earth.
But you loved your disciples so much
that you could not lose them from your life.
You promised to give your Spirit to them,
and to us.
Lord,
let your Spirit remind us
of what you said and did, and who you are.
Let our hearts be untroubled and fearless
as we take your compassion wherever it’s needed in our world today:
the suffering, the migrant, the refugee,
climate crisis, violence, war.
May he discern for each of us, as he did for each apostle,
untold truths.
CONCLUDING RITE
Concluding Prayer
L: God, loving Father,
your Son promised to leave us his peace.
Lead us all to that peace.
Grant us a confident faith
that looks to the light rather than at darkness
that dares to enter the turmoil of the world
knowing that you are making the world new.
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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