>>> St LEO THE GREAT – Pray for Us!
THE KINGDOM OF GOD IS AMONG YOU
Introduction
At the occasion of the feast of a Pope (+461) who understood his time and who is therefore one of the two popes called “the great,” we reflect for a moment on the task and service of leadership in the Church. Serving, witnessing, collegiality among the leaders and with priests and the laity, seeking together to translate the Gospel in a language our time understands – these seem to be the key demands made today on the leadership of the Church.
Opening Prayer
Father in heaven,
you have revealed to us
that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.
At this celebration of St. Leo the Great, we ask you:
Give us a great understanding
and trust in the leadership of the Church,
that together with the pope and our bishops,
we may strengthen the community
of the faithful of your Church
and bear witness with them to the world
of your saving mercy and love.
We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen!
1 Reading – PHILEMON 7-20
Beloved: I have experienced much joy and encouragement from your love, because the hearts of the holy ones have been refreshed by you, brother. Therefore, although I have the full right in Christ to order you to do what is proper, I rather urge you out of love, being as I am, Paul, an old man, and now also a prisoner for Christ Jesus. I urge you on behalf of my child Onesimus, whose father I have become in my imprisonment, who was once useless to you but is now useful to both you and me. I am sending him, that is, my own heart, back to you. I should have liked to retain him for myself, so that he might serve me on your behalf in my imprisonment for the Gospel, but I did not want to do anything without your consent, so that the good you do might not be forced but voluntary. Perhaps this is why he was away from you for a while, that you might have him back forever, no longer as a slave but more than a slave, a brother, beloved especially to me, but even more so to you, as a man and in the Lord. So if you regard me as a partner, welcome him as you would me. And if he has done you any injustice or owes you anything, charge it to me. I, Paul, write this in my own hand: I will pay. May I not tell you that you owe me your very self. Yes, brother, may I profit from you in the Lord. Refresh my heart in Christ.
Responsorial PSALM 146:7, 8-9A, 9BC-10
R. (5a) Blessed is he whose help is the God of Jacob. or: Alleluia.
The LORD secures justice for the oppressed,
gives food to the hungry.
The LORD sets captives free. R.
The LORD gives sight to the blind.
The LORD raises up those who were bowed down;
the LORD loves the just.
The LORD protects strangers. R.
The fatherless and the widow he sustains,
but the way of the wicked he thwarts.
The LORD shall reign forever;
your God, O Zion, through all generations. Alleluia. R.
Alleluia JOHN 15:5
Alleluia, alleluia.
I am the vine, you are the branches, says the Lord:
whoever remains in me and I in him will bear much fruit.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel LUKE 17:20-25
Asked by the Pharisees when the Kingdom of God would come, Jesus said in reply, “The coming of the Kingdom of God cannot be observed, and no one will announce, ‘Look, here it is,’ or, ‘There it is.’ For behold, the Kingdom of God is among you.” Then he said to his disciples, “The days will come when you will long to see one of the days of the Son of Man, but you will not see it. There will be those who will say to you, ‘Look, there he is,’ or ‘Look, here he is.’ Do not go off, do not run in pursuit. For just as lightning flashes and lights up the sky from one side to the other, so will the Son of Man be in his day. But first he must suffer greatly and be rejected by this generation.”
Commentary
Breathe & Push
On December 31, 2016, at an inter-religious gathering in the United States, Valerie Kaur, a social activist, made a powerful speech. Reflecting on the troubled times the US was going through then, she said: “The mother in me asks: ‘What if? What if this darkness is not the darkness of the tomb, but the darkness of the womb? What if we are not a dead country but a country that is waiting to be born? What if our story is one of long labour?’ And what does the midwife tell you to do when you are in labour? ‘Breathe and Push’.” The darkness over the world has only worsened since then. So what should we do? We must continue to breathe and push, so that the baby that is within us – the Kingdom – will be born. If we don’t breathe, we die; if we do not push, the Kingdom dies within us.
Intercessions
– For the Church, which is not yet the kingdom, that it may be may be a visible sign of God’s kingdom on earth by its openness to all, its spirit of love and service, we pray:
– That all Christians may contribute to make the gospel credible by our commitment to justice and love, we pray:
– That we may build roads of peace and service to one another and that we may prepare ourselves and the world to welcome Jesus and the kingdom of God, we pray
Prayer over the Gifts
Lord our God,
we profess that Jesus, your living Son,
will be present among us
in these signs of bread and wine.
Let him strengthen us with his Spirit
to follow him wherever he leads us,
even through pain and death,
that with him we may share
in your glory and lasting joy.
For he is our Lord for ever. Amen!
Prayer after Communion
God of power and might,
your Son, Jesus Christ, has come among us
without any display of power
but rather as the humble servant
of his brothers and sisters.
Let those who bear in the Church
the burden of authority
become more like your Son.
Unconcerned about power and prestige,
may they reflect the attitude of Jesus,
who came not to be served but to serve.
Let this be their way
to Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen!
Blessing
The kingdom of God is among us. It is here if we have accepted Christ and let him light up our lives, in realities that are not so directly measurable: justice, forgiveness, love, peace, goodness. May almighty God help us to build up this kingdom with Christ our Lord and bless you for this task, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!