Reflection and Prayer Series: Forgive us Lord.

My reflection and prayer series is about sharing reflections and Prayers which have impacted upon me and have provided food for thought. I hope that they will also nurture your soul and spirit.

My post is called:

FORGIVE US LORD
Forgive us Lord,
When we accuse our Suffering Saviour
Of the wrongs this world inflicts.
When we indict the Man of Sorrows
For Satan's evil tricks.


On this Holy Saturday, may we experience the emptiness
and grieve for our Saviour's death
May we experience the loss and anguish
so that we may experience afresh the joy of the Risen Lord.

Compendium Series: How do the three Divine Persons work?

49. How do the three divine Persons work? (CCC257-260,267)

Compendium states:

Inseparable in their own substance, the three divine Persons are also inseparable in their activity.  The Trinity has one operation, sole and the same.  In this one divine action, however, each Person is present according to the mode which is proper to Him in the Trinity.

What does this mean for me?

1. I can pray in confidence to the Trinity knowing in faith that the three divine Persons are inseparable in substance and in their activity and that there is one divine action with each Person present according to the mode which is proper to Him in the Trinity.

Questions to consider:

1. What is my relationship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit?

2.  How can I be more aware of the presence of the Trinity in my life?

3. What is mode which is proper to each Person of the Trinity?

 

About the Mass: Eucharistic Prayer Part 8

6. ‘Doxology and Great Amen’.

The Eucharistic Prayer comes to a climax as the priest holds up the consecrated host and chalice and proclaims our thanks and praise with the words: 

‘Through Him, with Him, and in Him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit all glory and honour is yours, Almighty Father, for ever and ever’.  To this we respond ‘Amen’ either spoken or sung.

Although this doxology text is Trinitarian in nature, it still has a special emphasis on Christ as the mediator.  The doxology summarizes the Eucharistic Prayer, which concludes, as it began, on an explicit note of praise. The Church offers praise and honour to the Father through Christ who is the High Priest, with Christ who is really present and in Christ who gives himself in the Eucharist to us.  The Church at prayer is united to the Holy Spirit. The priest proclaims the Eucharistic prayer in the name of the congregation. We confirm and approve this action by our response of ‘Amen’, the Hebrew word for ‘So be it’; either in song or loud voice.

Liturgically, it makes sense therefore for the priest to proclaim these words, as this links him in a very real way his ministerial priesthood, as he is the one who is ‘representing Christ the mediator’ in our midst. By our response, we link ourselves to our ‘own baptismal priesthood’.  Both are important and both need to be liturgically respected in the Mass.

 

Sound liturgical practice therefore, is for the priest to proclaim the doxology and for the congregation to respond enthusiastically ‘Amen’, rather than being spoken by both priest and congregation together. The priest is representing Christ the mediator in our midst and is being linked with Christ’s priesthood.

Our ‘Amen’ (known as the ‘Great Amen’) completes the Eucharistic prayer and liturgically should be sung where possible.   

Sound musical and liturgical practice for the Great Amen favours either 4 or 8 Amen's when it is harmonized, repeated or augmented, as it is our ‘Amen’ to each of the three persons of the Trinity, and the final one unites us to our fellow parishioners assembled- the faith community gathered.  

Sound liturgical and theological practice indicates the congregation remain kneeling until the Paten and chalice are placed back onto the altar by the priest, rather than the congregation standing up in the middle of the Great Amen especially when it is sung with 8 Amens.

What an amazing conclusion to the Eucharistic prayer!!             

Gospel of Matthew Series: Chapter 9

Just like in chapter 8, chapter 9 contains a number of stories about healing. However, although these healing stories are important, since they demonstrate the faith of the person desiring healing, chapter 9 seems also to be expressing the lack of faith of the pharisees. It seems that it did not matter what healing was performed by Jesus, whether it be a curing of a paralytic or  the woman suffering a hemorrhage for 12 years or a dumb demoniac, the pharisees had a reason not to believe.

 We too can be like the pharisees at times. We desire to be healed physically, emotionally or spiritually, but we do not truly believe that Jesus will heal us. We ask in prayer in earnest,  but doubt that it will happen either to us personally or for someone we love from whom we are interceding. Perhaps at times we are just like the crowd who laughed at Him.

Another aspect of this chapter, although expressed in passing is the matter of confidentiality.  Jesus asks the blind man not to tell anyone about it, but he ignores the command and tells everyone.  What do we do when someone asks us to keep a confidence?  Do we end up spreading it to others whom have no right to the information? Have you been on the receiving end when your confidence has been broken by the other party involved?


ACTION PLAN FOR CHAPTER 9.
his week as we reflect on chapter 9, we may wish to:

•  Consider our present level of faith and how we might strengthen it
• Consider our ability to maintain a confidence and its impact when it does not occur from both angles of doing and receiving.
• Consider discussing with a spiritual director/confessor your steps towards increasing your faith in a specific circumstance in your life at the moment.
• Consider how we can bring the ministry of healing to others whether through intercessory prayer and/or through the gift of healing that we may possess. How can we continue the healing mission of Jesus?

How does our action plan compare with Jesus?  May Chapter 9 inspire us to consider how we are continuing the ministry of Jesus. Let us pray that we will have faith strong enough to move mountains.

Opening Prayer Series: Palm Sunday Year A

The Opening Prayer of Palm Sunday Mass  Year A reads as follows:

Let us pray

(for a closer union with Christ)

Almighty ever-living God

You have given the human race Jesus Christ our Saviour

as a model of humility

He fulfilled Your will by becoming man 

and giving His life on the cross.

Help us to bear witness to You

by following His example of suffering 

and make us worthy to share in His resurrection.

NB On Palm Sunday, there is also an opening prayer in the procession of palms ceremony. The prayer above is the Opening Prayer for the Mass on Palm Sunday.

In making this prayer tangible for this coming week, the following reflection questions emerged:

1. What steps will I take to have a closer union with Christ this week ( eg attend the Holy Week ceremonies, spend time at the altar of repose on Holy Thursday, offer up some suffering)?
2. How will I reflect on the meaning of Jesus Christ as Saviour during Holy week?
3. What do I understand humility to mean and how is my definition related to the humility of Christ?
4. How do I fulfill God's will in my life so far and how will I fulfill it during this coming week?
5. What is my attitude to suffering in general and to personal suffering ( myself actually suffering)?
6. How will I bear witness to You during this coming week?
7. Why do I need to suffer the cross/s in my life to share in the Christ's resurrection?

There are many aspects of today's gospel which could be spoken about.  However,  I will not present a gospel reflection on this Sunday, but suggest that during this week, that we spend some time re-reading and reflecting on the passion of Christ presented in today's Gospel of Matthew.

With the end of Lent, we are now about to embark on the holiest days of our journey, Holy Week, culminating in the greatest event in history, Christ’s Resurrection on Easter. .

Together with the faithful we remain united to the suffering Christ in prayer and praise during Holy Week. We seek the hope of physical, emotional, and spiritual healing for all of our own suffering as we look to Jesus during these holy days.

Compendium Series: Expressing Trinitarian faith

48. How does the Church express her Trinitarian faith? (CCC 249-256, 266)

Compendium states:

 The Church expresses her Trinitarian faith by professing a belief in the oneness of God in whom there are three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  The three divine Persons are only one God because each of them equally possesses the fullness of the one and indivisible divine nature.  They are really distinct from each other by reason of the relations which place in correspondence to each other.  The Father generates the Son, the Son is generated by the Father, the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son.

What does this mean for me?

1. Even though the Trinity is a mystery, I can profess my belief in the oneness of God in whom there are three Persons each day.

Questions to consider:

1. How can I come to know and deepen my relationship with Father, Son and Holy Spirit?
2. How can I profess my belief in the oneness of God in whom there are three Persons?

About the Mass Series: Eucharistic Prayer Part 7

5. ‘Second Invocation of the Spirit and Intercessions’.

During the Eucharistic Prayers, there is a second invocation of the Spirit followed by the intercessions of all its members both living and dead.  The Jewish blessing prayer over the cup included various formulae requesting God to show mercy upon the people of Israel, to send Elijah and the Messiah, and to restore the house of David.  It is natural therefore that the Eucharistic prayer came to include intercessions for various classes of people. Yet these are not part of the earliest tradition of the prayer; they were added only once the main structural elements were in place, since they appear at different places in various liturgical traditions. 

At Antioch these occurred at the end of the prayer, while at Alexandria they were placed before the institution narrative.  In Eucharistic Prayer No 1 (the Roman Canon) there is a preliminary block of intercessions, which mention the Church, the pope, the local bishop, certain members of the living, and those assembled.  These are followed by a list of the apostles and martyrs especially venerated in Rome.  Toward the end of the prayer occurs a second set of intercessory prayers, which remember the dead and invoke the martyrs and saints. The structure of the intercessions in Eucharistic prayer No 1 remains unchanged, although the lists of the saints may be shortened.

Eucharistic Prayers No 2, 3, and 4 follow the Antiochene tradition and place all the intercessions toward the end of the prayer, and links them with the second invocation of the Spirit.  The congregation first requests the fruits of the Eucharist and then prays for more universal intentions.  Although each Eucharistic prayer varies, there is always the supplication for the Church and its pastors, for the immediate community and for the dead. 

The intercessions make it clear that the Eucharist is celebrated in communion with the entire Church of heaven and earth. The offering is made for the Church and all its members, living and dead, who are called to share in the salvation and redemption purchased by Christ’s body and blood. 

As we attend Mass, let us pray in ernest for these intentions of the universal church, both living and dead.