Displaying items by tag: lectio divina
Lectio Divina January 2022
Lord Jesus, send your Spirit to help us to read the Scriptures with the same mind that you read them to the disciples on the way to Emmaus. In the light of the Word, written in the Bible, you helped them to discover the presence of God in the disturbing events of your sentence and death. Thus, the cross that seemed to be the end of all hope became for them the source of life and of resurrection.
Create in us silence so that we may listen to your voice in Creation and in the Scriptures, in events and in people, above all in the poor and suffering. May your word guide us so that we too, like the two disciples from Emmaus, may experience the force of your resurrection and witness to others that you are alive in our midst as source of fraternity, justice, and peace. We ask this of you, Jesus, son of Mary, who revealed to us the Father and sent us your Spirit. Amen.
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Lectio Divina December 2021
God of all people,
You know how people hunger and thirst for truth, love and acceptance.
If we accept You and believe in You we see our deepest trust and aspirations being fulfilled by You as we work for the coming of Your kingdom.
Help us to let the cup that You pour for us overflow on all Your people, that all may praise You now and forever.
Lectio Divina November 2021
Lord, the meaning of our life is to seek your Word, which came to us in the person of Christ. Make me capable of welcoming what is new in the Gospel of the Beatitudes, so that I may change my life. I would know nothing about you were it not for the light of the words spoken by your Son Jesus, who came to tell us of your marvels. When I am weak, if I go to Him, the Word of God, then I become strong. When I act foolishly, the wisdom of his Gospel restores me to relish God and the kindness of his love. He guides me to the paths of life. When some deformity appears in me, I reflect on his Word and the image of my personality becomes beautiful. When solitude tries to make me dry, my spiritual marriage to him makes my life fruitful. When I discover some sadness or unhappiness in myself, the thought of Him, my only good, opens the way to joy. Therese of the Child Jesus has a saying that sums up the desire for holiness as an intense search for God and a listening to others: «If you are nothing, remember that Jesus is all. You must therefore lose your little nothing into his infinite all and think of nothing else but this uniquely lovable all...» (Letters, 87, to Marie Guérin).
Lectio Divina: September
Almighty God, every good thing comes from you. Fill our hearts with love for you, increase our faith, and by your constant care protect the good you have given us.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
Celebrating At Home - 12th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Life in the Kingdom of God
In Mark’s Gospel the Kingdom is not something yet to come, it is a present reality. It is the presence and action (reign) of God among his people. That may not always been readily seen, but it is there none the less.
Last Sunday Mark used two parables to talk about the reality of the Kingdom. Over the next few Sundays he begins to talk about the mystery of the Kingdom present in Jesus and what living in the Kingdom requires. None Mark’s stories are about about some awesome display of power. Mark’s stories make it clear that Jesus is about saving human beings, healing them and calming hearts disturbed by life’s storms. In Jesus is the power of life and liberation.
Sudden storms on Lake Galilee were well-known and still happen today.
Many of our ‘boats’ and those of our loved ones have been tossed about on turbulent seas since the sudden arrival of Coronavirus last year. Many of us know exactly the kind of fear and uncertainty that the disciples felt as they were tossed about in the darkness on the stormy lake in this Sunday’s Gospel. Many may also feel that Jesus is asleep somewhere.
And yet, signs of Jesus are all about us: in healthcare workers and medical researchers, in people trying their best to look after others, to provide meals and shelter, to keep themselves and their loved ones safe, to bring comfort and to pray.
Vulnerability is an uncomfortable experience. Mark helps us understand that life in the Kingdom begins with faith and confidence in God especially in the midst of epic struggles which threaten to overcome us.
The disciples’ question is ours, too. Who is Jesus for us? A magician, a wonder-worker, or a person who found the way to let the reign of God’s grace out of his heart and into the lives of those around him?
- pdf Celebrating At Home - 12th Sunday of Ordinary Time [PDF] (7.81 MB)
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- pdf Celebrando En Familia - 12 Domingo Del Tiempo Ordinario (302 KB)
- pdf Celebrando In Casa - 12 Domenica Del Tempo Ordinario (435 KB)
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Celebrating at Home is a Liturgy of the Word centred around the Gospel reading for each Sunday. It includes a reflection on the Gospel and prayers.
It can be used personally or with your family. Parts for all to pray are given in bold print and all the other parts can be shared among those present.
We hope that Celebrating at Home will be a source of nourishment and strength for all who use it.
In the room you decide to use for this prayer you could have a lighted candle, a crucifix and the Bible. These symbols help keep us mindful of the sacredness of our time of prayer and can help us feel connected with our local worshipping communities.
