Introductory Acts of Worship The Entrance Prayers:On Sunday, usually a hymn praising God is sung in place
of reciting a
Psalm from the Bible which invites us to enter more deeply
into the mystery of
God's love for us. The recited weekday Psalm expresses
a youthful heart
and spirit, delighted that we may come before the living
God. Entrance Song / Entrance Psalm (Antiphon) Entrance Song
Psalm 66:1-2 Cry out
with joy to
God, all the earth; O sing to the glory of his name. O
render him
glorious praise, alleluia.
The Priest Approaches and Kisses the Altar:The altar
is a symbol
of Christ. In it are cut five crosses to recall the five
wounds of
Christ. The altar also represents the Church and has
embedded in it the
relics of her saints. The priest comes to the altar to
celebrate the
Sacrifice in the Church's name. Because of the glory
surrounding the
altar upon which the divine Sacrifice will be made, the kiss
of the priest
unites the Church to Christ, its Redeemer.
Priest:In the name of the Father, and of the
Son, and of the
Holy Spirit. All:Amen.
The Greeting:We are welcomed in God's name. Our response
unites us to our
neighbor, to the priest and to God. (The priest may
select from several
forms of greeting).
Priest: The Lord be with
you. All:And with your spirit.
The Penitential Prayers:We
recognize our
guilt for past sins, express our sorrow for them, and ask
that Mary, the
angels, the saints, and our brothers and sisters in Christ
pray for the Lord
God's mercy. (The priest may select from several
forms).
Priest: Brothers and sisters, let us acknowledge
our sins, and
so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries. Priest: You were sent to heal the contrite of
heart: Lord, have
mercy. All: Lord, have mercy. Priest: You came to call sinners: Christ, have
mercy. All: Christ, have mercy. Priest: You are seated at the right hand of the
Father: Lord, have
mercy. All: Lord, have mercy.
The Absolution:
Priest: May almighty God have mercy on us,
forgive us our sins,
and bring us to everlasting life. All:Amen.
The Gloria:The Glory of God prayers have existed from the second
century. They
repeat the angels praise of God which heralded the birth of
Christ on
earth. Our praise is lifted again through the years as
we rejoice at His
coming as Lord, God, the most high Jesus Christ, who at
Christmas took on our
human nature while at the same time being the son of Man.
This ancient hymn
expresses our recognition of God's glory and love. It
calls upon Christ
as our holy and divine mediator, and the Holy Spirit who
forever binds us
together in God's love.
Priest and All: Glory to God in the
highest, and on
earth peace to people of good will. We praise you; we
bless you, we adore
you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great
glory. Lord God,
heavenly King, O God, almighty Father. Lord Jesus Christ,
Only Begotten
Son, Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, you take away the
sins of the
world, have mercy on us; you take away the sins of the world,
receive your
prayer; you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have
mercy on us.
For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you
alone are the most
High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God
the Father.
Amen.
The Collect: The priest lifts the
united prayers and
petitions of the congregation to God the Father through the
merits of Jesus
Christ in the Holy Spirit.
Priest: May your people exult forever, O God, in
renewed
youthfulness of spirit, so that, rejoicing now in the restored
glory of our
adoption, we may look forward in confident hope to the rejoicing
of the day of
resurrection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your son, who
lives and
reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God,
forever and ever. Liturgy of the Word
Christ
is made known
to us through the Old Testament which prepares us to
recognize Him. In
those days, God inspired men who spoke His message.
Now, the New
Testament Gospel reading announces His presence to us
directly through His
Son. Both readings bring God's message to us.
Our responsibility is
to respond.
The First Reading:From the Old Testament
Priest/Reader: A reading from the book,
Acts of the
Apostles.
First Reading: Acts 2:14, 22-23
Then Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice, and
proclaimed:
“You who are Jews, indeed all of you staying in Jerusalem.
Let this be
known to you and listen to my words. You who are
Israelites, hear these
words. Jesus the Nazarene was a man commended to you by
God with mighty
deeds, wonders, and signs, which God worked through him in your
midst, as you
yourselves know. This man, delivered up by the set plan
and foreknowledge
of God, you killed, using lawless men to crucify him. But
God raised him
up, releasing him from the throes of death, because it was
impossible for him
to be held by it. For David says of him: I saw the
Lord ever
before me, with him at my right hand I shall not be
disturbed. Therefore,
my heart has been glad and my tongue has exulted, my flesh,
too, will dwell in
hope, because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,
nor will you
suffer your holy one to see corruption. You have made
known to me the
paths of life; you will fill me with joy in your presence.
“My brothers, one can confidently say to you about the
patriarch David that
he died and was buried, and his tomb is in our midst to this
day. But
since he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn an oath to
him that he would
set one of his descendants upon his throne, he foresaw and spoke
of the
resurrection of the Christ, that neither was he abandoned to the
netherworld
nor did his flesh see corruption. God raised this Jesus;
of this we are
all witnesses. Exalted at the right hand of God, he
received the promise
of the Holy Spirit from the Father and poured him forth, as you
see and hear.”
Priest/Reader:The Word of the Lord. All:Thanks
be to God. The Responsorial Psalm:This Psalm praising God is a prayer to God or
recommends the practice of
virtue. It is sung as an interlude between the
scriptural readings.
It provides yet another instructional setting and invites
the assembly to
imitate the cantor who sings a repeated response to the
verses of an ancient
Psalm, many of which are attributed to King David. The
verses are sung
first by a cantor (song leader) accompanied by instruments,
the refrain is sung
by the people.
Psalm 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11
Cantor: Lord, you will show us the path of life. All: Lord, you will show us the path of life. Cantor: Keep me, O God, for in you I take
refuge; I say to
the Lord, “My Lord are you.” O Lord, my allotted portion
and my cup, you
it is who hold fast my lot. All: Lord, you will show us the path of life. Cantor: I bless the Lord who counsels me;
even in the night
my heart exhorts me. I set the Lord ever before me; with
him at my right
hand I shall not be disturbed. All: Lord, you will show us the path of life. Cantor: Therefore my heart is glad and my
soul rejoices, my
body, too, abides in confidence; because you will not abandon my
soul to the
netherworld, nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo
corruption. All: Lord, you will show us the path of life. Cantor: You will show me the path to life,
abounding joy in
your presence, the delights at your right hand forever.
The Second Reading:Taken from the New Testament, often from a letter
written by St. Paul.
Second Reading: 1 Peter 1:17-21
Beloved: If you invoke as Father him who judges impartially
according to
each one’s works, conduct yourselves with reverence during the
time of your
sojourning, realizing that you were ransomed from your futile
conduct, handed
on by your ancestors, not with perishable things like silver or
gold but with
the precious blood of Christ as of a spotless unblemished lamb.
He was known before the foundation of the world but
revealed in the final
time for you, who through him believe in God who raised him from
the dead and
gave him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.
The Alleluia:An ancient expression of joy anticipating the Lord's
message we will hear
in the Gospel.
Luke 24:32
Cantor: Alleluia!
Alleluia!
Alleluia!
All: Alleluia! Alleluia!
Alleluia! Cantor: Lord Jesus, make your word
plain to us, make
our hearts burn with love when you speak. All: Alleluia! Alleluia!
Alleluia!
The Gospel:The
Liturgy of the
Word is completed by the reading of the Gospel. Before
its reading, the
members of the assembly trace the sign of the cross upon the
forehead to
indicate their mental acceptance of the Truth, on the lips
to indicate their
readiness to announce it, and over the heart to indicate
their sincere desire
to accept it into their lives. The "Good News" of the
Gospel
tells that God's kingdom has come for all to hear, accept,
and announce to the
world for its salvation. It is God who is speaking to
us. Christ
comes to teach us by the example of His life and by His own
words. Priest: Cleanse my heart and my
lips, almighty
God, that I may worthily proclaim your holy Gospel. Through
the
words of the Gospel may our sins be wiped away.
Priest: The Lord be with you. All: And, also with you. Priest/Deacon: Areading from the holy Gospel according
to Luke. All:Glory to
you, Lord.
The Gospel: Luke 24:13-35
Written to explain that
Christ came to save everyone
That very day, the first
day of the
week, two of Jesus’ disciples were going to a village seven
miles from
Jerusalem called Emmaus, and they were conversing about all the
things that had
occurred. And it happened that while they were conversing
and debating,
Jesus himself drew near and walked with them, but their eyes
were prevented
from recognizing him. He asked them, “What are you
discussing as you walk
along?” They stopped, looking downcast. One of them,
named Cleopas,
said to him in reply, “Are you the only visitor to Jerusalem who
does not know
of the things that have taken place there in these days?”
And he replied
to them, “What sort of things?” They said to him, “The
things that
happened to Jesus the Nazarene, who was a prophet mighty in deed
and word
before God and all the people, how our chief priests and rulers
both handed him
over to a sentence of death and crucified him. But we were
hoping that he
would be the one to redeem Israel; and besides all this, it is
now the third
day since this took place.
Some women from our group, however, have astounded us: they
were at the
tomb early in the morning and did not find his body; they came
back and
reported that they had indeed seen a vision of angels who
announced that he was
alive. Then some of those with us went to the tomb and
found things just
as the women had described, but him they did not see.” And
he said to
them, “Oh, how foolish you are! How slow of heart to
believe all that the
prophets spoke! Was it not necessary that the Christ
should suffer these
things and enter into his glory?” Then beginning with
Moses and all the
prophets, he interpreted to them what referred to him in all the
Scriptures. As they approached the village to which they
were going, he
gave the impression that he was going on farther. But they
urged him,
“Stay with us, for it is nearly evening and the day is almost
over.” So
he went in to stay with them. And it happened that, while
he was with
them at table, he took bread, said the blessing, broke it, and
gave it to
them. With that their eyes were opened and they recognized
him, but he
vanished from their sight. Then they said to each other,
“Were not our
hearts burning within us while he spoke to us on the way and
opened the
Scriptures to us?” So, they set out at once and returned
to Jerusalem
where they found gathered together the eleven and those with
them who were
saying, “The Lord has truly been raised and has appeared to
Simon!” Then
the two recounted what had taken place on the way and how he was
made known to
them in the breaking of bread.
Priest/Deacon: The Gospel of the Lord. All:Praise
to you, Lord
Jesus Christ.
The Priest's Sermon:The
priest develops,
explains, and comments upon the Master's words, so our minds
may be
enlightened, and our hearts enriched.
Profession of Faith:We state
in the
Nicene Creed the principles of our faith in precise and
definite terms.
All: We believe in one God,
the Father
Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is visible and
invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only
Begotten Son of
God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God,
Light from Light, true
God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the
Father; through
him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation
he came down
from heaven, and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin
Mary and became
man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered
death and was buried and rose again on the third day in
accordance with the
Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the
right hand of
the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the
living and the dead,
and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy
Spirit, the Lord,
the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who
with the
Father and the Son he is adored and glorified, who has spoken
through the
prophets. I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic
Church. I
confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins, and I look
forward to the
resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to
come. Amen.
General Intercessions:We pray
for the needs
of the pope, civic leaders, our own needs, those of others,
the sick, the
dying, those who have died, the church, and the world.
The response of
all to each intercession: Lord, hear our prayer. All:Lord,
hear our
prayer.
The Liturgy of the Eucharist
Gifts of
bread and
wine symbolizing ourselves are presented to the priest who
will offer them to
God the Father. Through the Holy Spirit, they will
become the Body and
Blood of Jesus Christ whom we receive in Holy
Communion. Jesus unites
Himself with us for our spiritual nourishment and
strength. Today, when
individuals do not present their own personal offerings of
bread and wine, the
monetary contribution symbolizes the material of their
united sacrifice.
The priest makes and offering of the bread and wine to God.
Preparation of the Bread and Wine: Priest: Blessed are you, Lord,
God of all
creation, through your goodness we have this bread to offer,
which earth
has given and human hands have made. It will become
for us the bread
of life. All:Blessed
be God for
ever. Priest:By the
mystery of
this water and wine may we come to share in the divinity of
Christ, who humbled
himself to share in our humanity.
Priest: Blessed are you, Lord God of all
creation, for through
your goodness we have received the wine we offer you; fruit of
the vine and
work of human hands it will become our spiritual drink. All:Blessed
be God for
ever.
Priest:Lord
God, we ask you
to receive us and be pleased with the sacrifice we offer you
with humble and
contrite hearts.
The Priest's Hands are Washed: This act was
traditionally necessary
because the priest handled the various gifts presented by
the people.
Now, the cleansing act using water reminds the priest and
ourselves of the need
to cleanse not only the hands but the soul. Soon, the
priest's hands will
hold the actual body of Christ, and we will become His
dwelling
place.
Priest:Lord, wash away my
iniquity; cleanse me
from my sin. Pray, brethren, that my sacrifice and yours may be
acceptable to
God, the almighty Father. All:May the
Lord accept
the sacrifice at your hands, for the praise and glory of his
name, for our
good, and the good of all his holy Church.
Prayer over the Gifts:Speaking
in our name,
the priest asks the Father to accept the gifts we offer
through him.
Priest: Receive, O Lord, we pray, these offerings
of your
exultant Church, and, as you have given her cause for such great
gladness,
grant also that the gifts we bring may bear fruit in perpetual
happiness.
through Christ our Lord. All:Amen.
Eucharistic Prayer:Number Three: (The priest may select from several
forms).
Priest:The Lord be with you. All:And with your
spirit.
Priest:Lift up
your hearts. All:We lift
them up to
the Lord.
Priest:Let us
give thanks to
the Lord, our God. All:It is right and just.
Preface Prayer:
Priest: It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation, at
all times to
acclaim you, O Lord, but in this time above all to laud you yet
more
gloriously, when Christ our Passover has been sacrificed.
Through him the children of light rise to eternal life, and
the halls of
the heavenly Kingdom are thrown open to the faithful; for his
Death is our
ransom from death, and in his rising the life of all has
risen.
Therefore, overcome with paschal joy, every land, every
people exults in
your praise and even the heavenly Powers, with the angelic
hosts, sing together
the unending hymns of your glory, as they acclaim:
Acclamation:
Priest / All:Holy,
Holy, Holy
Lord, God of power and might, Heaven and earth are full of your
glory.
Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in
the name of the
Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
Priest: You are
indeed Holy,
O Lord, and all you have created rightly gives you praise, for
through your Son
our Lord Jesus Christ, by the power and working of the Holy
Spirit, you give
life to all things and make them holy, and you never cease to
gather a people
to yourself, so that from the rising of the sun to its setting a
pure sacrifice
may be offered to your name.
Therefore, O Lord, we humbly implore you: by the same
Spirit graciously
make holy these gifts we have brought to you for consecration,
that they may
become the Body and Blood of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, at
whose command
we celebrate these mysteries.
The priest repeats the words which Christ used at his
Last Supper when He
changed the bread into His Body and the wine into His
Blood. His Body and
Blood are truly present but under the appearance of bread
and wine. The
death of Christ is prolonged in each of those who receive
Him worthily.
We apply His death to ourselves so that we may share His
glory. This
moment is the most solemn on earth because it is Divine act
which enables us to
apply to ourselves the Cross which Christ willingly took
upon Himself.
We are called to die to sin and lift our very selves to
God so that we
become changed; to do as God would have us do, to become
what God would have us
become. Our own little cross can lift us into union
with Christ's Cross
so we may earn the joys of everlasting happiness with God
the Father.
The Lord'sSupper:
On the day before he was
to suffer, he
took bread in his holy and venerable hands, and with eyes raised
to heaven to
you, O God, his almighty Father, giving
you thanks, he
said the blessing, broke the bread and gave it to his disciples,
saying:
Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my
Body, which will be
given up for you.
In a similar way, when supper was ended, he took the
precious chalice in
his holy and venerable hands, and once more, giving you thanks,
he said the blessing and gave the
chalice to his
disciples, saying:
Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is
the chalice of my
Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will
be poured out for
you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this
in memory of me.
Memorial Acclamation:(The priest may
select from several
forms).
Priest:The
mystery of faith. Priest / All:When we eat this Bread and drink this Cup,
we proclaim
your Death, O Lord, until you come again.
Priest: May he make of us an eternal offering to you, so that we
may obtain an
inheritance with your elect, especially with the most Blessed
Virgin Mary,
Mother of God, with Blessed Joseph her spouse, with your blessed
Apostles and
glorious Martyrs with Saint ____, and all the Saints, on whose
constant
intercession in your presence we rely for unfailing help.
May this Sacrifice of our reconciliation, we pray, O Lord,
advance the
peace and salvation of all the world. Be pleased to
confirm in faith and
charity your pilgrim Church on earth, with your servant, _____
our Pope and
____ our bishop, the Order of Bishops, all the clergy, and the
entire people
you have gained for your own.
To our departed brothers and sisters and to all who were
pleasing to you
at their passing from this life, give kind admittance to your
kingdom.
There we hope to enjoy for ever the fullness of your glory
through Christ our
Lord, through whom you bestow on the world all that is good.
Doxology Prayer of Praise:Through
him, with
him, and in him, O God, almighty Father, in the unity of the
Holy Spirit, all
glory and honor is yours, forever and ever. All:Amen.
Communion Rite
In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we symbolically offer
ourselves to the
Lord through the gifts of bread and wine. At the
Consecration, we offer
our very lives to be united the God the Father through the
Cross of
Christ. In Communion, we find that we have not died at
all but have come
to life. We have surrendered ourselves to God through
His Divine Son,
Jesus Christ. In return, become ennobled and
enriched. We give up
time and we get eternity, we give up our sin and we receive
grace, we surrender
our self-will and receive the strength of the Divine Will,
we give up ourselves
and we receive everything. For the Son of God says to
us that unless we
receive Him, we shall not have Divine life in us. But
it is not really we
who receive Christ, as it is Christ who receives us,
bringing us into Himself.
God makes His Cross the very means of our salvation and
our life.
While we have crucified Him, His eternal love cannot be
extinguished.
Christ willed to give us the very life we crucified in our
Redemption, the
Consecration of Holy Thursday into Communion, His death into
our everlasting
life.
The Lord's Prayer:
Priest: At the Savior's command and formed by divine teaching, we
dare to say: Priest and All:Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed
be they name;
Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in
heaven. Give us
this day our daily bread, and forgive us our trespasses, as we
forgive those
who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation but
deliver us from
evil.
Priest: Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil, graciously
grant peace in our
days, that, by the help of your mercy, we may be always free
from sin and safe
from all distress, as we await the blessed hope and the coming
of our Savior,
Jesus Christ.
All: For the
kingdom, the
power and the glory are yours now and forever.
Prayer for Peace:
Priest: Lord Jesus Christ, who said to your Apostles: Peace, I
leave you my peace
I give you, look not on our sins, but on the faith of your
Church, and
graciously grant her peace and unity in accordance with your
will. Who
live and reign forever and ever.
All: Amen.
Priest: The peace of the Lord be with you always.
All: And with your spirit.
Priest: Let us offer each other the sign of
peace.
Breaking of the Bread:
Priest: May this mingling of the Body and Blood
of our Lord
Jesus Christ bring eternal life to us who receive it.
Priest and All: Lamb of God, you take
away the sins of
the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have
mercy on us. Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, grant
us peace.
Priestly Preparation: Lord Jesus Christ, Son
of the living
God, who, by he will of the Father and the work of the Holy
Spirit, through
your Death gave life to the world, free me by this, your most
holy Body and
blood, from all my sins and from every evil; keep me always
faithful to your
commandments, and never let me be
parted from you.
Priest:Behold
the Lamb of
God, behold him who takes away the sins of the world.
Blessed are those
called to the supper of the Lamb.
Priest and All:Lord, I am not worthy that you should
enter under my
roof but only say the world and my soul shall be healed.
Priest:May the Body of Christ keep me safe for
eternal life. May the Blood of Christ keep me safe for eternal
life.
Communion Antiphon: John 15:1, 5 I am the true vine and you are the branches, says the
Lord. Whoever
remains in me, and I in him, bears fruit in plenty, alleluia.
Communion of the Faithful:
Priest:The Body of Christ.
The Faithful: Amen.
Priest/Deacon/
Extraordinary Eucharistic Minister: The Blood of Christ. The
Faithful: Amen.
Cleansing of the Vessels:
Priest: What has passed our lips as food, O Lord,
may we possess
in purity of heart, that what has been given to us in time may
be our healing
for eternity.
Prayer after Communion:
Priest:Let us
pray. Priest: Graciously be present to your people, we
pray, O Lord, and
lead those you have imbued with heavenly mysteries to pass from
former ways to
newness of life. Through Christ our Lord.
Concluding Rite
Greeting:
Priest:The Lord be with you. All:And with
your
spirit. Priest:Bow down
for the
blessing.
Dismissal Prayer
Priest: Bow your heads and pray for God's
blessing. Priest: May God, who by the Resurrection of
his Only
Begotten Son was pleased to confer on you the gift of redemption
and of
adoption, give you gladness by his blessing. All:Amen. Priest: May he,
by whose
redeeming work you have received the gift of everlasting
freedom, make you
heirs to an eternal inheritance. All:Amen. Priest: And may you, who have already risen
with Christ in
Baptism through faith, by living in a right manner on this
earth, be united
with him in the homeland of heaven. All: Amen.
Final Blessing:
Priest: And may the blessing of almighty God, the
Father, and
the Son, and the Holy Spirit, come down on you and remain with
you
forever.
Dismissal Prayer:
Priest:
Go
in peace, alleluia, alleluia.
All:Thanks be to God, alleluia,
alleluia. O
my Jesus, forgive us our sins.
Save us from the fires of hell.
Christ
is made known
to us through the Old Testament which prepares us to
recognize Him. In
those days, God inspired men who spoke His message.
Now, the New
Testament Gospel reading announces His presence to us
directly through His
Son. Both readings bring God's message to us.
Our responsibility is
to respond.
The Lord's Supper:
O
I
Priest:
