16 October 2016

Animation Material for Sunday Liturgy

Introduction to the Eucharistic Celebration

Leader: The President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India in a special letter dated 4 October 2016 has called for a Day of Prayer for India on Sunday 16 October 2016. He has invited all our Bishops, Priests, Religious and Lay Leaders to conduct special prayers for the nation on this chosen day and has extended his invitation to all people of good will to join us in praying for our country in response to the escalation of violence at the border regions and other areas in our country. The Catholic Church, along with all other believers, pray for justice, peace, prosperity, harmony and unity in our beloved country.

As we begin our Eucharistic Celebration today, the 29th Sunday of ordinary time, let us pray for our nation, for all its leaders and citizens and for all of us that we may work together for peace and harmony. Lord, continue to shower Your Grace on our nation, and offer our leaders the wisdom to guide us in the right direction. As we pray for our country’s safety, we pray to you to bless the soldiers that guard our borders. Put an end Lord to the fighting that is taking place in various places in our country even as we thank You for the protection and providential care that You continuously extend to us.

PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL

Celebrant: Lord Jesus, trusting in your words to pray and not lose heart, we place our trust in you and come before you with our prayers and petitions today as we specially pray for peace and harmony in our country especially in those areas experiencing violence and unrest. Let our response be: Lord hear our prayer.

That St. Francis of Assisi the messenger of peace and harmony may intercede with the Lord Jesus to bless our Holy Father Pope Francis that his constant appeal for peace may bear abundant fruit. Let us pray to the Lord. R.

That the ardent desire of the Church leadership in India that every place of worship chime with prayers for our beloved nation, its leaders and its people may become a reality today and that the escalation of violence that is experienced in the border regions may subside and peace and tranquility may prevail. Let us pray to the Lord. R.

That during this season of festivals, the celebration of the victory of good over evil, the celebration of harmony and light, the celebration of universal fraternity, may usher in true unity, peace and tranquility in the minds of all people. Enable everyone to shun any type of violent thoughts and actions and work together for peace and harmony in spite of our many differences. Let us pray to the Lord. R.

That all those who govern our Country may work for the common good of the people and strive to build up communities of peace and harmony irrespective of political and ideological affiliations. Enlighten all political leaders with true discernment and wisdom to seek always the welfare of all people. Let us pray to the Lord. R.

That the Leaders of our Indian Church: the Cardinals, Bishops, priests and religious belonging to the Latin, Malabar and Malankara rites may carry out their mission in communion with one another and with greater commitment to promote peace and harmony, irrespective of the ritual difference. Let us pray to the Lord. R.

That in families all overthe world and especially those in our Country, genuine love and affection may motivate parents and children to live together in mutual respect, harmony and love and that an attitude of faith may inspire all to love one other and celebrate one another’s differences.Let us pray to the Lord. R.

For those who are in the hospitals that they may have sufficient faith to accept their pain and sorrow and experience the healing that they long for. We pray for each one of us present here that in moments of difficulties, uncertainties and suffering, we may have the courage to look up to the Lord for peace, strength and healing. Let us pray to the Lord. R.

Celebrant: God our heavenly Father, as we walk life’s journey, fill our lives with trust in your promises and love in our hearts to reach out in service to others. Help us to remember that being an agent of peace is a life long journey and that you are always present with us accompanying us with your providential care and love. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Sunday 16 October

Adoration / Vigil Service

Note: Prepare the ambient for Adoration / Vigil Service appropriately. Position the Indian Flag in a visible Place with the words: Day of Prayer for India. Place the lighted Paschal candle at the side of the altar.For the renewal of the profession of faith make sure that there are candles sufficient for all.

Celebrant: Dear friends,the love of the Lord has gathered us together this evening, to pray. Let us place before Him our very being. We all experience threats to peace. We are gathered here precisely to pray for our nation and to invoke God’s peace and mercy. The President of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India in a special letter dated 4 October 2016 has called for a Day of Prayer for India to be observed on Sunday 16 October 2016. He has invited all our Bishops, Parish Priests, Religious and Lay Leaders to conduct special liturgies and prayers for the nation on this chosen day and has extended his invitation also to all people of good will to join us in praying for our countryin response to the escalation of violence at the border regions of our Country.

Hymn: A.114 – We have come into His House or any other appropriate one

Leader 1: An Anonymous saying reminds us of something very beautiful: “As the flower is before the fruit, so is faith before good works.” It is faith that leads to justice and peace. Faith without good works is dead. Faith has to be manifested through good works. Through a life of witness, we can share our faith with our brothers and sisters. Jesus Christ is the pioneer and perfecter of our faith (Heb 12:2). In his letter to the Galatians Apostle Paul wrote: “The life I now live in the body, I live byfaith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me” (Gal 2:20). Let us prepare our hearts to welcome Jesus. This evening, the Lord is inviting us to focus our attention on the strength of the faith of a community. The paralyzed man was brought before Jesus by a group of men whose faith motivated them to overcome all possible obstacles. Let us renew our faith in Jesus as we welcome Him into our midst.

Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament

Prayer: Lord Jesus, we bow our heads before you in deep faith. You are the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. Help us to live by faith so that we can become true light and salt to those around us. During this hour of our intimacy with you, shape our minds and hearts, heal us and forgive us, send us forth as your messengers of love and peace.

Hymn: Father we adore You or any other appropriate one

Leader 2: Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them from their distress. He made the storm be still, and the waves of the sea were hushed. Then they were glad that the waters were quiet, and he brought them to their desired haven Psalm 107:28-30.

Let us listen attentively to Jesus and cherish his Word in our heart. (Read out the following texts prayerfully).

Matthew 7:7“Ask, and it will be given to you seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you.”

Matthew 21:22“And whatever you ask in prayer, you will receive, if you have faith.”

Mark 11:24“Therefore I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that youhave received it, and it will be yours.”

John 14:13-14 “Whatever you ask in my name, this I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask me anything in my name, I will do it.”

Apostle Paul reminds us: Philippians 4:6-7Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”

Hymn: I just keep trusting my Lord or any other appropriate one

Leader 1: When Jesus saw the faith of the people, he said to the paralyzed man: “Son, your sins are forgiven.” Jesus responds to their faith and as a result forgives the paralyzed man. This is a marvelous example of faith in community. Their faith prompted them to action. Let us keep our palms open as an expression of our readiness to welcome Jesus and to listen to His Word.

Reading from the Scripture: Mk 2: 1-5

A few days later, when Jesus again entered Capernaum, the people heard that he had come home. They gathered in such large numbers that there was no room left, not even outside the door, and he preached the word to them. Some men came, bringing to him a paralyzed man, carried by four of them. Since they could not get him to Jesus because of the crowd, they made an opening in the roof above Jesus by digging through it and then lowered the mat the man was lying on. When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralyzed man, “Son, your sins are forgiven.”

(Pause for silent reflection. Play soft music).

What is motivating us in our life today? Is it our faith in the Lord or is it the power of wealth? It is said of St. Teresa of Calcutta that she began her work with Rs.5/-in her bag and plenty of faith in her heart. The gift of faith cannot be kept hidden in one’s heart. Faith has to lead to commitment and to responsible involvement in society. Mother Teresa’s faith moved her to work for the cause of the poor and needy. His faith prompted St. Maximilian Kolbe to tell Fritsch the camp’s commandant: “I am a Catholic priest. I wish to die in the place of Sergeant Gajownicze. He has a wife and children. I have neither.” Pope John XXIII has put it beautifully: “Neither faith alone, nor works alone, but the perfect working together of the two. It is this kind of faith, enlightened, full of conviction, and rich in good works to a greater or lesser extent, by which the stature of the perfect Christian can be measured; by it the perfect Christian can be distinguished from the person who is weak, slothful, and unhappy and almost of no account.”

Hymn: We Seek Thee, M.28 or any other appropriate one.

Celebrant: The paralytic couldn’t come to Jesus on his own: he has to be brought to him by others. Lord, we thank you for Holy Mother the Church who brings us to you the source of love, peace and mercy. The Church is the house where Jesus continues to teach and heal, to pardon and forgive sins today. Draw your sons and daughters dear Jesus to you. Touch and heal us. Trusting in the Lord Jesus and prompted by the faith of the Church and our own personal faith, let us place before the Lord what we hold dear at heart. Lord Jesus, teach us to integrate faith and work in a balanced manner. Lord Jesus, teach us to bear witness to those around us that we are your disciples through an enlightened faith, full of conviction and rich in good works in favour of peace and harmony. Lord Jesus, in our daily lives, grant us the grace to profess our faith through good works carried out in love.

Hymn: O Let the Son of God – D.131 or any other appropriate one.

Leader 1: Psalm 33 is a psalm that speaks of how blessed the nation whose God is the Lord, the people he chose for his inheritance. Let us prayerfully listen to part of this psalm. The psalm could be prayed aloud by a young girl or a boy.

Psalm 33: New International Version

12Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance.

13From heaven the LORD looks down and sees all mankind;

14from his dwelling place he watches all who live on earth—

15he who forms the hearts of all, who considers everything they do.

16No king is saved by the size of his army; no warrior escapes by his great strength.

17A horse is a vain hope for deliverance; despite all its great strength it cannot save.

18But the eyes of the LORD are on those who fear him, on those whose hope is in his unfailing love,

19to deliver them from death and keep them alive in famine.

20We wait in hope for the LORD; he is our help and our shield.

21In him our hearts rejoice, for we trust in his holy name.

22May your unfailing love be with us, LORD, even as we put our hope in you.

Hymn: How good is the Lord D. 75 or any other appropriate one.

Celebrant: Our prayer for peace in our nation today is undoubtedly linked to the growth of the Kingdom of God. Apostle Paul stood up before a group of philosophers in a pagan city and preached this amazing message found in Acts 17: 24-26 “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands.” (New International Version).

Leader 1: We are chosen and appointed by God to live in India and the boundaries of our nation were set from before the beginning of time in order that we might seek and find the Lord! Our attitude and our involvement as missionary disciples and Spirit filled Christians in and toward the purpose of God in our nation is a major part of our own spiritual growth and inheritance. When Paul is about to give up his life for the gospel, he writes to Timothy, his spiritual son and new apostle and elder in the Church: “Therefore I exhort first of all that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and giving of thanks be made for all men, for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life in all godliness and reverence. For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

As we come together as children of God, prayer is the first assignment that we have. We are powerful on our knees. That the Kashmir crisis and the escalation that is registered on the border region with Pakistan may lead to peaceful resolve. Let us pray for our government and all those in authority and for peace and harmony in our nation and in the world.

Hymn: Though the Mountains… G.36 or any other appropriate one.

Leader 2:Let us implore the Lord to renew our hope to pray for our nation India according to His Word and the guiding of the Holy Spirit. As we pray, let us lay down our desires and embrace God’s desires for our Country. While attentive to praying those intentions God puts on our hearts, let us learn to pray Scripture over India. We unite our hearts right now with all our brothers and sisters of our country and pray for our nation. Our hearts are longing more and more about the urgency to pray for God’s mercy and peace in our country. Cardinal Cleemis reminds us: “Amidst all the festival, our beloved Country is going through challenges especially on its borders. The Catholic Church prays for our Country, for justice and peace, prosperity and welfare, harmony and unity.” Lord inspire us to pray for our Country. When we see war, hatred and killing around us, your living Word speaks strongly to our situation: “You,Lord, will keep the needy safe and will protect us forever from the wicked,who freely strut about when what is vile is honored by the human race” - Psalm 12:7-8 New International Version (NIV).

The Psalmist David yet again asks the right question for our day: When the foundations are being destroyed, what can the righteous do?” (Ps. 11:3).
Lord, You have really blessed our Country India. You blessed us with great leaders who honored you and worked tirelessly to lead India into freedom and independence. We long to live in righteousness and peace. You have helped us to make our nation a developing one. Lord, we acknowledge that we have failed in many ways. Without Your mercy, who could stand?