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To: All
One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body

 

<< Thursday, April 9, 2009 >> Holy Thursday
Saint of the Day
 
Exodus 12:1-8, 11-14
1 Corinthians 11:23-26

View Readings
Psalm 116
John 13:1-15

 

THE MEAL THAT SHOUTS THE GOOD NEWS

 
"Every time, then, you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until He comes!" —1 Corinthians 11:26
 

You may not be a good speaker, but you can spend your life evangelizing and proclaiming the faith. You may be shy and find it hard to approach people with the message of salvation. You may not have led anyone to Jesus for years. Nevertheless, God has still provided a way for you to loudly proclaim that Jesus died for the sins of the world.

By eating the eucharistic body of Jesus at Mass, Scripture declares you are proclaiming to the world that Jesus Christ came to earth to take upon His shoulders our sins (1 Cor 11:26). By drinking of the cup of the precious blood of Jesus, you in effect shout from the rooftops (Mt 10:27) that Jesus is coming again in glory (1 Cor 11:26).

We live in a hurting world that desperately needs to hear the good news of Jesus over and over again. Let your message go out to the ends of the earth (Ps 19:5; Acts 1:8) by receiving the eucharistic Jesus daily, or as often as possible. Jesus commands: "Do this...in remembrance of Me" (1 Cor 11:25).

 
Prayer: Father, use me to bring many thousands of fallen-away Catholics back to Jesus, back to a regular sacramental life in the Church, and forward to a life of mature discipleship.
Promise: "If I washed your feet — I Who am Teacher and Lord — then you must wash each other's feet. What I just did was to give you an example: as I have done, so you must do." —Jn 13:14-15
Praise: Praise the Eucharistic Jesus, Who humbled Himself to be food for our souls.
 

35 posted on 04/09/2009 3:00:40 PM PDT by Salvation ( †With God all things are possible.†)
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To: All

Compline (Night Prayer)

O God, come to my aid.
O Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
  world without end.
Amen. Alleluia.


This is an excellent moment for an examination of conscience. In a communal celebration of Compline, one of the penitential acts given in the Missal may be recited.

Hymn
Christ, thou who art the light and day,
Who chasest nightly shades away,
Thyself the Light of Light confessed,
And promiser of radiance blest:
O holy Lord, we pray to thee,
Throughout the night our guardian be;
In thee vouchsafe us to repose,
All peaceful till the night shall close.
O let our eyes due slumber take,
Our hearts to thee forever wake:
And let thy right hand from above
Shield us who turn to thee in love.
O strong defender, hear our prayers,
Repel our foes and break their snares,
And govern thou thy servants here,
Those ransomed with thy life-blood dear.
Almighty Father, this accord
Through Jesus Christ, thy Son our Lord,
Who with the Holy Ghost and thee
Doth reign through all eternity.

Psalm 90 (91)
The protection of the Most High
He will shade you with his wings; you will not fear the terror of the night.
He who lives under the protection of the Most High
  dwells under the shade of the Almighty.
He will say to the Lord:
  “You are my shelter and my strength,
  my God, in whom I trust.”
For he will free you from the hunter’s snare,
  from the voice of the slanderer.
He will shade you with his wings,
  you will hide underneath his wings.
His faithfulness will be your armour and your shield.
You will not fear the terror of the night,
  nor the arrow that flies by day;
nor the plague that walks in the shadows,
  nor the death that lays waste at noon.
A thousand will fall at your side,
  at your right hand ten thousand will fall,
  but you it will never come near.
You will look with your eyes
  and see the reward of sinners.
For the Lord is your shelter and refuge;
  you have made the Most High your dwelling-place.
Evil will not reach you,
  harm cannot approach your tent;
for he has set his angels to guard you
  and keep you safe in all your ways.
They will carry you in their arms
  in case you hurt your foot on a stone.
You walk on the viper and cobra,
  you will tread on the lion and the serpent.
Because he clung to me, I shall free him:
  I shall lift him up because he knows my name.
He will call upon me and for my part, I will hear him:
  I am with him in his time of trouble.
I shall rescue him and lead him to glory.
I shall fill him with length of days
  and show him my salvation.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
  world without end.
Amen.
He will shade you with his wings; you will not fear the terror of the night.

Reading Apocalypse 22:4-5
They will see the face of the Lord, and his name will be marked on their foreheads. There will be no more night: they will not need sunlight or lamp-light, because the Lord God himself will shine upon them. And they will reign for ever and ever.

For our sake Christ was made obedient, even to death.

Canticle Nunc Dimittis
Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace.
Now, Master, you let your servant go in peace.
  You have fulfilled your promise.
My own eyes have seen your salvation,
  which you have prepared in the sight of all peoples.
A light to bring the Gentiles from darkness;
  the glory of your people Israel.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit,
  as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
  world without end.
Amen.
Keep us safe, Lord, while we are awake, and guard us as we sleep, so that we can keep watch with Christ and rest in peace.

Prayer
Let us pray.
  Today we have celebrated the mystery of the Christ’s resurrection, and so now we humbly ask you, Lord, that we may rest in your peace, far from all harm, and rise rejoicing and giving praise to you.
  Through Christ our Lord, Amen.

May the almighty Lord grant us a quiet night and a perfect end.
A M E N
An anthem to Our Lady should be recited here.

36 posted on 04/09/2009 3:05:24 PM PDT by Salvation ( †With God all things are possible.†)
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