TIME IS RUNNING OUT—GOD’S KINGDOM IS HERE
Greeting (cf. the Gospel)
Our Lord is here in our midst and tells us: “The time has come, and the kingdom of God is close at hand. Repent and believe the Good News.” May you heed his words and may the Lord be always with you. R/ And also with you.
Introduction
“Do not postpone until tomorrow what you can do today,” says an old proverb. Unfortunately, we often do the opposite, saying that there will be time enough tomorrow. God’s word, though, keeps urging us. The time to do the things of God is now. The time to change is urgent. Repent now, be converted now, God and his kingdom are here with you now. With the Lord among us here we ask him to make us listen now to his Good News and to make it come true among us now.
Penitential Act
Too easily we postpone our wish to serve God better. We now ask the Lord to forgive us. (pause)
Lord Jesus, you tell us that now the time has come to turn away from our sins: Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus Christ, you ask us to accept fully your Good News and to live by it: Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you urge us to serve you and your kingdom: Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
In your kind mercy, forgive us, Lord, for being so slow to accept your word and to implement it fully. Lead us to everlasting life. R/ Amen.
Opening Prayer
Let us pray that we may answer the Lord’s urgent call for conversion. (pause)
God our Father, you tell us through Jesus your Son that it is more than time for us to be converted to the Good News which he wants us to hear and to live up to. You alone can change us. Give us the courage to entrust ourselves without fear and hesitation to Jesus and to follow him wherever he leads us, for we are sure he will lead us to joy and make us share his words and life with our brothers and sisters, and guide us to you, our God and Father for ever. R/ Amen.
First Reading: Pagans Are Also Called to Conversion
Jonah, thinking that salvation is only for the Jews, reluctantly preaches conversion to pagans. These pagans listen to the word of God and turn away from evil.
1 Reading: Jonah 3:1-5, 10
The word of the LORD came to Jonah, saying: “Set out for the great city of Nineveh, and announce to it the message that I will tell you.” So Jonah made ready and went to Nineveh, according to the LORD’S bidding. Now Nineveh was an enormously large city; it took three days to go through it. Jonah began his journey through the city, and had gone but a single day’s walk announcing, “Forty days more and Nineveh shall be destroyed, ” when the people of Nineveh believed God; they proclaimed a fast and all of them, great and small, put on sackcloth. When God saw by their actions how they turned from their evil way, he repented of the evil that he had threatened to do to them; he did not carry it out.
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 25:4-5, 6-7, 8-9
R. (4a) Teach me your ways, O Lord.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me; teach me your paths, Guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my saviour. R.
Remember that your compassion, O LORD, and your love are from of old. In your kindness remember me, because of your goodness, O LORD. R.
Good and upright is the LORD; thus he shows sinners the way. He guides the humble to justice and teaches the humble his way. R.
Second Reading: The Detached Style of Life of Christians
Because Christians are converted and turned to God, they are supposed to live for the kingdom. Hence, they should use the things of this world without attaching themselves to them.
2 Reading: 1 Corinthians 7:29-31
I tell you, brothers and sisters, the time is running out. From now on, let those having wives act as not having them, those weeping as not weeping, those rejoicing as not rejoicing, those buying as not owning, those using the world as not using it fully. For the world in its present form is passing away.
Alleluia: Mark 1:15
Alleluia, alleluia. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the Gospel. R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel: Repent, and Believe the Good News
The Good News proclaimed by Jesus Christ demands conversion and commitment of faith. The apostles respond with total generosity and will cast their nets over the world to gather everyone and all in Christ.
Gospel: Mark 1:14-20
After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God: “This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel.” As he passed by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea; they were fishermen. Jesus said to them, “Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.” Then they abandoned their nets and followed him. He walked along a little farther and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They too were in a boat mending their nets. Then he called them. So they left their father Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and followed him.
Commentary:
I wonder what Zebedee was thinking and saying about Jesus that evening! The enormity of it! His two sons had suddenly abandoned a secure family business (they employed some men) to wander around the country after an unknown homeless preacher. No doubt, he was angry and depressed. As the months turned into a year he had to accept that they were not coming back. He probably lost all relish for the work, and old age came quickly upon him; his life was ending in bitter disappointment. For his sons, life was just beginning. But they could have no idea what lay ahead. James would die a martyr’s death; John would live into advanced old age, still following the homeless preacher sixty years after Calvary.
The Reign of God, the Kingdom of Truth: how it drags us beyond ourselves! Zebedee wanted a secure fishing business, his sons (like all sons) wanted their freedom. Neither he nor they could ever have dreamed that their names would be remembered till the end of time. The Kingdom of Truth has dimensions that go beyond our imagination. It is our total and active “Yes” to the call that inscribe our names in the Book o Life.
Intercessions
Let us recommend to God our Father the needs and sufferings of this world, and let us say: R/ Lord, renew our hearts.
– For the Church dear to us, that the Lord may help it to keep renewing itself, that it may stay on the road of the gospel and help people to live it as Good News, let us pray to the Lord:
R/ Lord, renew our hearts.
– For those who leave their nets to follow Jesus the Lord, that they may so live the Gospel as to make it visible and tangible, let us pray to the Lord:
R/ Lord, renew our hearts.
– For those who are rejoicing, that they may take the time to bring joy to others, let us pray to the Lord:
R/ Lord, renew our hearts.
– For those who weep, that they may keep hoping for the time when their tears will be dried, let us pray to the Lord:
R/ Lord, renew our hearts.
– And for all of us, that the Lord may give us courage to take the gospel seriously and to live in closer union with Jesus, let us pray to the Lord:
R/ Lord, renew our hearts.
Keep calling us, Lord, but give us the strength to respond to your call, by the power of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Prayer over the Gifts
God our Father, you know how we are, at the same time looking and groping for you with good will and yet fickle, unreliable and weak. With these gifts of bread and wine we bring before you our good intentions, our desire to please you in all we do. Accept us with these offerings and give us the strength to follow the words of life and the example of Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer
It is good that Jesus is with us, for left to ourselves we are not capable of responding to the challenge of the gospel. Let us thank the Father for giving us Jesus.
Introduction to the Lord’s Prayer
That our hearts may be set on God’s kingdom, let us pray to God our Father the prayer of Jesus, his Son and our brother: R/ Our Father…
Deliver Us
Deliver us, Lord, from our indifference, and from our fickleness which keeps us from seeking you with all our hearts. Help us to break the chains of sin, that we can become free for you and for your kingdom and for serving our neighbour. Grant us the peace of your lasting friendship and give us the courage to prepare for the full coming among us of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom…
Invitation to Communion
This is Jesus our Lord, God’s Son and our brother. He invites us to repent and to believe in him and his Good News. Happy are we to hear him and to receive him as our food of strength.
R/ Lord, I am not worthy…
Prayer after Communion
God our Father, it has been a joy for us to be with your Son and to eat from his table. He has spoken to us and calls us to be his disciples and to come after him. Give us the courage not to hesitate but to leave behind our petty self-interests, our little plans and narrow thoughts; open us to his wide new world of all that is true and good and lovable. By the strength of the food he has given us, make us go without fear where he goes and follow him on the road to you, our God for ever and ever. R/ Amen.
Blessing
Let us not forget the urgency of the Lord’s call in this celebration. The time to conform our mentality to that of Jesus and his Good News is not later, but NOW, today: the time has come to be real disciples of Jesus. May almighty God give you that courage and bless you: the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Go in the peace of Christ.
R/ Thanks be to God.