Phil

Jul 10, 20218 min read

SPIRITUAL MASS 15b

Updated: Jul 11, 2021

FIFTEENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME - 11th July 2021

✠ In the name of the Father, and of the Son,

and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Lord Jesus, I come to you in sorrow for my

failings, and confess to you my weakness

and unbelief.

A brief pause for silence follows

I confess to almighty God

that I have greatly sinned,

in my thoughts and in my words,

in what I have done

and in what I have failed to do,

through my fault, through my fault,

through my most grievous fault;

therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,

and all the Angels and Saints,

to pray for me to the Lord our God.

May almighty God have mercy on us, ✠

forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting

life. Amen.

THE GLORIA Glory to God in the highest,

and on earth peace to people of good will.

We praise you, we bless you, we adore you,

we glorify you, we give you thanks

for your great glory, Lord God, heavenly King,

O God, almighty Father.

Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son,

Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father,

you take away the sins of the world,

have mercy on us; you take away

the sins of the world, receive our prayer;

you are seated at the right hand of the Father,

have mercy on us.

For you alone are the Holy One,

you alone are the Lord, you alone are the

Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit,

in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

THE COLLECT FOR THE DAY

O God, who show the light of your truth

to those who go astray,

so that they may return to the right path,

give all who for the faith they profess

are accounted Christians

the grace to reject whatever is contrary to the name of Christ

and to strive after all that does it honour.

Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,

who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,

God, for ever and ever

PSALM 85

Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.

I will hear what the Lord God has to say,

a voice that speaks of peace,

peace for his people.

His help is near for those who fear him

and his glory will dwell in our land.

Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.

Mercy and faithfulness have met;

justice and peace have embraced.

Faithfulness shall spring from the earth

and justice look down from heaven.

Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.

The Lord will make us prosper

and our earth shall yield its fruit.

Justice shall march before him

and peace shall follow his steps.

Let us see, O Lord, your mercy, and give us your saving help.

GOSPEL Jesus made a tour round the villages, teaching. Then he summoned the Twelve and began to send them out in pairs giving them authority over the unclean spirits. And he instructed them to take nothing for the journey except a staff – no bread, no haversack, no coppers for their purses. They were to wear sandals but, he added, ‘Do not take a spare tunic.’ And he said to them, ‘If you enter a house anywhere, stay there until you leave the district. And if any place does not welcome you and people refuse to listen to you, as you walk away shake off the dust from under your feet as a sign to them.’ So they set off to preach repentance; and they cast out many devils, and anointed many sick people with oil and cured them. Mark 6:7-13

HOMILY

An idealistic young priest once visited Thomas Merton at the Trappist monastery in Kentucky and spoke to him about his agony over social justice issues. “I know it’s wrong,” he said, “and sometimes I can hardly face myself in the mirror for going along with things as they are. Yet I don’t know what to do. What can I do?”

Saints and prophets aren’t characterized by bitterness, guilt or anger.

“Don’t do a damned thing,” replied Merton.

“Just take the time to become what you profess to be. Then you will know what to do.” If Merton had less credentials in the area of social justice, his answer could easily be seen as a rationalization, an excuse to escape involvement. Given his record, however, it is a profound answer. The answer of a saint to the agonizing question: what can I do in the area of social justice?

What can we do? In the circles that I move in, there is enough talk on this question, enough agonizing and enough guilt, but little in the way of practical action. At our roots, many of us feel that we need to do something about injustice and poverty. We feel guilty about being affluent, but we feel helpless: “I have enough problems of my own! I have trouble paying my own mortgage, how can I save the world!” Or, as a friend of mine recently said: “I don’t know what to do. So I go to a lot of meetings and read a lot about poverty and the Third World. It’s making me more sensitive and assuaging my guilt somewhat, but, in the end, I am still not doing anything concretely.”

What finally can we do?

Merton’s answer is that if we don’t know what to do, then we are still not ready to do anything. If we are still asking what to do, if our own problems are still too distracting, and if we are having trouble looking at ourselves in the mirror, then we are still too caught up in our own neuroses, ambitions, woundedness and false values to be of much help to the poor. We are still too poor ourselves. Our lives are not yet lives of praise and gratitude, lives that, by necessity, spill over and pour out graciousness. Our service, our prophecy and our resistance are still too self-seeking, too motivated by guilt, too distracted by wound and bitterness and anger.

To be a prophet of justice, an instrument of peace and a channel of graciousness necessitates that one be living more in gratitude than in anger, more in the posture of praise than the posture of paranoia.

Resistance, prophecy and service must flow from a life which is full of gratitude, celebration, deep friendship and contemplative prayer. When these elements are there, graciousness automatically spills over. One knows what to do!

That is what is implied in Merton’s answer. Only when a person has grown in prayer, friendship and gratitude so that the bitter need to kill, to defend self, to be jealous and to be angry because one has been wounded disappears, will one truly be able to resist, prophesy and serve.

Saints and prophets aren’t characterized by bitterness, guilt or anger. These do not serve the poor. Saints and prophets are recognized by the warmth of their love and their sense of God’s presence. That is why Merton tells that young man: “Take the time you need to become what you profess to be. … Don’t rush wounded, self-preoccupied, ill-prepared and badly motivated into the crisis. Move beyond present complacency, to begin the painful task of uprooting bitterness, resentments, paranoia, self-pity, jealousy, self-interest, laziness, neuroses, and re-rooting in prayer, gratitude and friendship, so that when the poor cry out we know what to do. In the meantime, many of us are reduced to a certain impotence as we live the question.

Fr Ron Rolheiser - President of the Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio Texas

THE PROFESSION OF FAITH

I believe in God, the Father almighty,

creator of heaven and earth.

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son,

our Lord, who was conceived by the

Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary,

suffered under Pontius Pilate,

was crucified, died, and was buried;

he descended to the dead.

On the third day he rose again;

He ascended into heaven,

He is seated at the right hand of the Father,

And he will come to judge the living

and the dead.

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

the holy catholic Church,

the communion of saints,

the forgiveness of sins,

the resurrection of the body,

and the life everlasting. Amen.

THE PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL

Let us pray to the Lord, who is our refuge and stronghold.

For the health and well-being of our nation, that all who are fearful and anxious may be at peace and free from worry: Lord, hear us, Lord, graciously hear us.

For the isolated and housebound, that we may be alert to their needs, and care for them in their vulnerability: Lord, hear us, Lord, graciously hear us.

For our homes and families, our schools and young people, and all in any kind of need or distress: Lord, hear us, Lord, graciously hear us.

For a blessing on our local community, that our neighbourhoods may be places of trust and friendship, where all are known and cared for: Lord, hear us, Lord, graciously hear us.

For all who are affected by coronavirus, through illness or isolation or anxiety, that they may find relief and recovery: Lord, hear us, Lord, graciously hear us.

For those who are guiding our nation at this time, and shaping national policies, that they may make wise decisions: Lord, hear us, Lord, graciously hear us.

For doctors, nurses and medical researchers, that through their skill and insights many will be restored to health: Lord, hear us, Lord, graciously hear us.

For the vulnerable and the fearful, for the gravely ill, the dying, and all who have died, that they may know your comfort and peace: ✠ Rest eternal grant unto them, O Lord,

and let light perpetual shine upon them.

Pray with us, Mary, Mother of God,

to the

Father, through your Son,

in the Holy Spirit:

Hail, Mary, full of grace,

the Lord is with thee;

blessed art thou among 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

Keep us, good Lord, under the shadow of your mercy in this time of uncertainty and distress. Sustain and support the anxious and fearful, and lift up all who are brought low; that we may rejoice in your comfort knowing that nothing can separate us from your love in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Merciful Father,

accept these prayers for the sake of your Son,

our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

SPIRITUAL COMMUNION

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.

Jesus my Lord and my brother,

who brought divine Life out of human death,

you are meeting me here and now in this place,

in this moment.

I pause to remember

that the one thing I desire above all others

is for you to be with me.

Though I cannot receive you here and now

in the Mass, come into my heart,

and open my eyes to your sacred presence…

I offer myself to you in service.

Time to receive the Lord’s Presence spiritually.

Eternal God, in Christ you make yourself a guest.

Amid all my cares and concerns

make me attentive to your voice

and alert to your presence,

that I may know your love

that surpasses all else,

and share it with others.

God our Father, we place in your hands our unfinished tasks, our unsolved problems, and our unfulfilled hopes, knowing that only what you bless will prosper. To your love and protection we commit each other and all those we love, knowing that you alone are our sure defender, through Jesus Christ our Lord.