+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
Opening Sentence
O God, come to our aid.
O Lord, make haste to help us.
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Reading: Psalm 10:2-4 (NLT)
The wicked arrogantly hunt down the poor. Let them be caught in the evil they plan for others. For they brag about their evil desires; they praise the greedy and curse the Lord.
The wicked are too proud to seek God. They seem to think that God is dead.
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Reading: Ecclesiastes 5:10-11 (NLT)
Those who love money will never have enough. How meaningless to think that wealth brings true happiness! The more you have, the more people come to help you spend it. So what good is wealth—except perhaps to watch it slip through your fingers!
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+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
Opening Sentence
God was in Christ, reconciling the world to himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. And he gave us this wonderful message of reconciliation. (2 Corinthians 5:19)
Morning Reading: Ephesians 2:13-16(NLT)
But now you have been united with Christ Jesus. Once you were far away from God, but now you have been brought near to him through the blood of Christ.
Crucified Jesus by Carole Foret
For Christ himself has brought peace to us. He united Jews and Gentiles into one people when, in his own body on the cross, he broke down the wall of hostility that separated us. He did this by ending the system of law with its commandments and regulations. He made peace between Jews and Gentiles by creating in himself one new people from the two groups. Together as one body, Christ reconciled both groups to God by means of his death on the cross, and our hostility toward each other was put to death.
Morning Prayer
Father, we praise you for your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ; through the Holy Spirit he offered himself in sacrifice to you, that we might be delivered from death and selfishness, and be free to live in your peace. Father, in your will is our peace.
+ We accept this new day as your gift, Lord; grant that we may live in newness of life.
+ You made all things, and keep all things in being; give us the insight to see your hand at work in them all.
+ Your Son sealed the new and everlasting covenant in his blood; help us to live by this covenant and honor it.
+ As Jesus died on the cross, blood and water flowed from his side; as we share in the Eucharist, pour out your Spirit upon us.
Praise to you, heavenly Father, in your will is our peace. Grant that in your kingdom, together with your saints, we may praise you with even greater joy. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
“He Is Our Peace” – Maranatha Singers
Blessing
Now may the God of peace himself sanctify you completely, and may your whole spirit and soul and body be kept blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful; he will surely do it. (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24)
+ In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen!
+ In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen
Opening sentences:
Father, we praise You for your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ; through the Holy Spirit He offered himself in sacrifice to You, that we might be delivered from death and selfishness, and be free to live in Your peace. We accept this new day as Your gift, Lord; grant that we may live in newness of life. Father, in Your will is our peace.
A Reading from Letters: Hebrews 8:6-13 (NLT)
But now Jesus, our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God, based on better promises.
If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it. But when God found fault with the people, he said:
“The day is coming, says the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and Judah. This covenant will not be like the one I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand and led them out of the land of Egypt. They did not remain faithful to my covenant, so I turned my back on them, says the Lord.
“But this is the new covenant I will make with the people of Israel on that day, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their minds, and I will write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. And they will not need to teach their neighbors, nor will they need to teach their relatives, saying, ‘You should know the Lord.’ For everyone, from the least to the greatest, will know me already. And I will forgive their wickedness, and I will never again remember their sins.”
When God speaks of a “new” covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear.
__________
God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
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A Reading from the Gospels: Mark 3:13-19 (NLT)
Christ’s Appearance on the Mountain Duccio Di Buoninsegna, 14th century
Afterward Jesus went up on a mountain and called out the ones he wanted to go with him. And they came to him. Then he appointed twelve of them and called them his apostles. They were to accompany him, and he would send them out to preach, giving them authority to cast out demons. These are the twelve he chose:
Simon (whom he named Peter), James and John (the sons of Zebedee, but Jesus nicknamed them “Sons of Thunder”, Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James (son of Alphaeus), Thaddaeus, Simon (the zealot), Judas Iscariot (who later betrayed him).
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Canticle
Christ, as a light illumine and guide me. Christ as a shield overshadow me. Christ under me; Christ over me; Christ beside me on my left and my right.
This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful. Be in the heart of each to whom I speak; in the mouth of each who speaks unto me. This day be within and without me, lowly and meek, yet all-powerful.
Christ as a light; Christ as a shield; Christ beside me on my left and my right.
Blessing:
May the Lord Christ go with you, wherever He may send you. May He guide you through the wilderness, protect you through the storm. May He bring you home rejoicing at the wonders He has shown you. May He bring you home rejoicing once again into our doors.
+ In the Name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen
The Peanut Gallery 