PRAYERS, READINGS AND SPIRITUAL COMMUNION FOR PALM SUNDAY
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord!
Hosanna in the highest!
Our Lord Jesus Christ, on this day
entered the city of Jerusalem in triumph.
The people welcomed him with palms
and shouts of praise,
but the path before him led to
self-giving, suffering and death.
Today we greet him as our king,
although we know his crown is thorns
and his throne a cross.
We follow him this week from the anticipation of the palms
to the glory of the resurrection,
but we do so by the dark road of suffering and death.
As we seek to be united with him
in his suffering on the cross;
may we share his journey through the cross to new life.
Spirit of integrity,
who led the Messiah to Jerusalem
in triumph,
to claim the Kingdom as His own.
Challenge our values;
give us the clarity to know what is right,and the courage to reject what is expedient;
that we may abandon the false innocence of failing to choose at all,
but may follow the purposes
of Jesus Christ.
Penetrate these murky corners
where we hide our memories
and tendencies on which we do not care to look….
The persistent buried grudge,
the half-acknowledged enmity
which is still smouldering;
the secret fear of failure
which saps our initiative and is really inverted pride,
the pessimism which is an insult to your joy.
Lord, we bring all these to you,
and we review them with shame and penitence
in your steadfast light.
Evelyn Underhill
Return to the Lord your God, for he is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and abounding in love. Joel 2:12,13.
Christ our King and Messiah rode into Jerusalem in humility: forgive our pride.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ came with good news for all people: forgive our silence.
Christ, have mercy.
Christ came in love to a world of suffering: forgive our self-centredness.
Lord, have mercy.
Come Holy Spirit of God,
Spirit of integrity, tenderness, joy and vibrancy,
Transform us where we have failed
into truly being the hands and feet of Jesus.
Allow us to love and to serve you,
and give us the passion and the energy
to conform our world into Your Kingdom.
This we ask, through Jesus, with Jesus, and in Jesus. Amen
THE GOSPEL OF JESUS CHRIST ACCORDING TO MATTHEW (21:1-11)
When Jesus and the disciples drew near Jerusalem
and came to Bethphage on the Mount of Olives,
Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them,
“Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find an ass tethered,
and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them here to me.
And if anyone should say anything to you, reply, ‘The master has need of them.’
Then he will send them at once.”
This happened so that what had been spoken through the prophet might be fulfilled:
Say to daughter Zion, “Behold, your king comes to you, meek and riding on an ass, and on a colt, the foal of a beast of burden.”
The disciples went and did as Jesus had ordered them. They brought the ass and the colt and laid their cloaks over them,
and he sat upon them.
The very large crowd spread their cloaks on the road,
while others cut branches from the trees and strewed them on the road.
The crowds preceding him and those following kept crying out and saying: “Hosanna to the Son of David;
blessed is the he who comes in the name of the Lord; hosanna in the highest.”
And when he entered Jerusalem
the whole city was shaken and asked, “Who is this?”
And the crowds replied,
“This is Jesus the prophet, from Nazareth in Galilee.”
PRAISE TO YOU, LORD JESUS CHRIST!
The story of Palm Sunday tells of how
people removed their cloaks and spread them out
in front of Jesus as he entered Jerusalem.
The cloak we wear every day to face the world
is both the persona we wish to present,
and our defence against the elements.
As we worship this humble King,
may we be willing to lay down our defences and disguises,
at the feet of the One who sees us as we really are.
And then, set free for worship,
may we offer our praises with open hearts and lives.
Ann Siddall
Just occasionally a period like this occurs – a period of hosannas.
Jerusalem’s enthusiastic cry to Christ as he entered through its walls.
It heralds a miracle, the miracle of gratitude.
It doesn’t last long, just long enough to unburden on the benefactor
the quasi-rebellious emotion of indebtedness.
Hosanna, Jesus!
Jesus advanced on the back of a colt,
on which nobody had ever ridden.
Humble little creature, hosanna to you too,
the last of the gospel animals, omega to that alpha
which thirty years earlier carried the baby Christ into Egypt.
In the frenetic waving of palms to greet Jesus
there were legs of nimble cripples,
blind men’s eyes whose shell of darkness had been broken open;
fingers and noses which had sprouted anew on leprous scabs;
the jars of Cana filled with vintage wine;
the loaves and fishes begotten in the desert on that hungry day;
while on the ground, shattered and quivering like relics
lay the withered hand,
the blood of the woman with the haemorrhage,
the hump of the little old woman.
And there was the dead boy from Nain,
and Jairus’s daughter,
and Lazarus, full of hosannas and happy there.
It wasn’t the people miraculously cured,
but the bits and pieces of their miracles
that welcomed Christ that day
in his brief earthly carnival.
Hosanna!
Blessed!
Within six days the same crowd,
swept along in the frenzy of the corrida,
should have wanted Christ dead,
should have yelled that he must be crucified,
and opted for the murderer Barabbas instead.
They would go on crying hosanna every day, even now,
till the end of the world.
- Luigi Santucci – Wrestling with Christ
This is holy space
God is here - you are welcome
This is your space to be with God And God's space to be with you
Make yourself at home
Be yourself
Be real
There's no rush
Let God love you
Let God know you
Let God heal you
Let God speak to you
Receive from God
Commune with God…..
Sit for a moment in silence
THE CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC: PRAYER is our action point. Jesus calls us to pray because that is where we find His presence. Jesus acknowledges that in this world, we will have trouble, “but take heart!” He says, “I have overcome the world”
(John 16:33).
Pray for world leaders as they work with healthcare organizations and the medical community to develop next steps. Pray that all would be united for the common good.
Pray with researchers and biologists as they work to develop a coronavirus vaccine. Pray for wisdom and insight.
Pray with first-responders around the world who are tasked with triaging, testing, and treating increasing numbers of people. Ask God to give them patience, wisdom and a gentle spirit as they work to navigate fears and offer effective treatment. Hospitals are seeing unprecedented numbers of patients with symptoms of this virus.
Pray with church leaders as they offer insight and wisdom to their congregations and communities. Ask God to give them opportunities to be voices of reason, clarity and grace.
Pray with the families of those who have died, and for those undergoing treatment. Ask God to comfort the broken-hearted and to strengthen those who are suffering physically and emotionally.
Pray for those whose jobs or hours have been cut due to economic downturn. Pray for parents who are struggling to work and care for their children. Pray that churches would look for ways to reach out to families in their communities to provide for them and show them the love of Christ.
Pray that God’s people would be unified as one Church, and that we would look to the lives and faith of our persecuted brothers and sisters as we navigate fear and the unknown … that we would look to them for guidance and for hope
Pray that we as God’s people would be reminded of our hope in Christ
and the truth that Jesus has already overcome the world.
Glory to God, Source of all being,
Eternal Word and Holy Spirit:
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and shall be for ever. Amen.
Let us lift up our hearts, and give thanks to God.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God,
through Christ our Lord.
For though innocent he suffered willingly for sinners
and accepted unjust condemnation to save the guilty.
His Death has washed away our sins,
and his Resurrection has purchased our justification.
And so, with all the Angels,
we praise you, as in joyful celebration we, too, acclaim:
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts.
Heaven and earth are full of thy glory.
Glory be to thee, O Lord most high!
Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
At the Saviour’s command
and formed by divine teaching, we dare to say:
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy 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.
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 Saviour, Jesus Christ.
For the kingdom,
the power and the glory are yours
now and for ever.
Time to sit quietly in Our Lord’s Presence,
to receive that Presence spiritually.
“My Jesus, I believe that You are present
in the Most Holy Sacrament of the altar.
I love You above all things,
and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot at this moment receive You sacramentally,
come at least spiritually into my heart …
I embrace You as if You were already there
and unite myself wholly to You.
Never permit me to be separated from You,”
Pope Francis prayed this on March 21
in his televised daily Mass from the Vatican City.
Lord Jesus Christ,
you are the bread of life and the one true vine.
I believe that you are truly present
in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Eucharist.
I seek you. I worship and adore you.
Since I cannot receive you in the eucharistic bread and wine,
I pray that you will come into my heart and soul,
that I may be united to you,
by your all-powerful and ever-present Holy Spirit.
Let me receive you, and be nourished by you.
Become for me the manna in my wilderness,
the bread of angels for my very human journey through time,
a foretaste of the heavenly banquet,
and solace in the hour of my death.
I pray all this, trusting that you yourself are our Life,
our Peace, and our everlasting Joy. Amen.
From the Pray Tell Blog
Christ crucified draw us to himself,
to find in him a sure ground for faith,
a firm support for hope,
and the assurance of sins forgiven;
and may the blessing of Almighty God,
the Father, the Son, ✠ and the Holy Spirit
come down upon us, and remain with us for ever. Amen.
THE ANGELUS
The angel of the Lord brought tidings unto Mary. And she conceived by the Holy Ghost.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Behold the handmaid of the Lord. Be it unto me according to thy word.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of our death. Amen.
And the Word was made flesh. And dwelt amongst us.
Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now,
and at the hour of our death. Amen.
Pray for us, O holy Mother of God. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ.
Let us pray. We beseech thee, O Lord, pour thy grace into our hearts,
that as we have known the Incarnation of thy Son Jesus Christ
by the message of an angel, so by his Cross and Passion
we may be brought unto the glory of his Resurrection;
through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
May I go in peace, glorifying the Lord by my life. Amen.
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