Continued from yesterday …… Open your Bible! One thing that we Catholics always acknowledge is that WE ARE SINNERS and stand in need of God’s mercy. We seek God’s mercy when we • pray for forgiveness • reconcile with each other • do acts of penance and mercy • go for sacramental confession PLEASE NOTE THAT EVEN AFTER HAVING DONE THE FIRST THREE ABOVE, WE ARE STILL OBLIGATED TO DO THE FOURTH, NAMELY GO FOR THE SACRAMENT OF CONFESSION ALSO CALLED REPENTANCE, RECONCILIATION, PENANCE At mass however, while acknowledging that we are sinners and as we prepare to partake in the sacrifice of the mass just began, we use the bible again to cry to God for forgiveness. At times, this could be sung or just recited. The intention is the same: cleanse ourselves so that our hearts are clean enough to partake in the sacrifice. This is one key moment in this first part of mass. The priest invites us to say that we are sorry, after a brief moment of self introspection. Hopefully one had done the same before mass began or at home before coming to Church. I Confess to Almighty God…..because sin is rebellion against God I confess to my bros and sisters…..because sin hurts the harmony of all. It hurts others How do we sin against God and others? In our thoughts…..Matthew 5:21-48 Through our words….James 3:1-12 Through our actions….most of which we are ashamed a minute after acting Through failing to do good…Mat 25:31-46 Then we continue to beg for mercy from God “Lord have mercy”…David made the same cry in Psalm 51:1ff after he realized his sins Baruch 3:2 Luke 18:13; 38-39 Gloria follows. This like all other prayers this too could either be said or sung. Inculturation has seen so many variations unfortunately some taking away the main gist of Gloria or in Swahili Utukufu. It is the song of the Angels on the first Christmas night announcing to the shepherds and all that Christ is born Luke 2:14 Then the priest says a prayer called THE COLLECT…literally means it collects all the intentions of the church and offers them to God. It is one of the three prayers called the Presidential Prayers where all in Church should be standing. (The other two are: prayers over the gifts and closing prayer. Maybe you have seen many seated during prayer over the gifts awaiting to stand when the priest says “lift up your hearts”…well that a misunderstanding. You know what is correct but follow the custom of your place.) Normally it is a short but pregnant prayer. Jer 37:3; 1Kings 13:6; Acts 8:24…these and many more show that the priest or prophet says prayer on behalf of others. After this prayer we all sit. Ideally, we all should sit and listen to the Word of God. In some places though, there is dance to bring in the bible. In many ways that is not very liturgical. The Word of God carried high should instead come at the start of mass during the entrance procession to start off the Liturgy of the Word. I guess it is for pastoral reasons that variance exist. Nehemiah 8:3….speaks of reading aloud the Word of God and the people responding to it. With exception of Easter period, we always read from both the Old and New Testaments on Sundays. Those charged with reading the Word of God in Church need to remember: It is a solemn duty they are performing It is a prophetic duty they are performing-we all depend on them to hear what the Lord says That they should not just read, but PROCLAIM-effectively communicate That Preparation is sine qua non- a must!...you don’t just jump from the blanket to the pulpit That preparation includes dressing, posture during reading, reverencing the sanctuary before and after etc After all the readings are done, the priest gives a brief commentary on the reading. When deacons priests, bishops give the commentary, it is called a HOMILY. When any other person other than those gives the commentary is called A REFLECTION. To be continued
Posted on: Mon, 28 Jul 2014 20:51:17 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015