ENTRANCE RITE

Entrance Antiphon (Introit)

Turn your ear, O Lord, and answer me;
save the servant who trusts in you, my God.
Have mercy on me, O Lord,
for I cry to you all the day long. Psalm 86:1-3

Entrance Song

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

My brother and sisters, to prepare ourselves to celebrate the mysterier, let us call to mind our sins.

I confess to almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, 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, all the Angels and Saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, 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.

Lord, have mercy,
Lord, have mercy,
Christ, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy,
Lord, have mercy,

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.

OPENING PRAYER

O God, who cause the minds of the faithful
to unite in a single purpose,
grant your people to love what you command
and to desire what you promise,
that, amid the uncertainties of this world
our hearts may be fixed on that place
where true gladness is found.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

LITURGY OF THE WORD

FIRST READING

A reading from the book of the Prophet  Joshua

We will serve the Lord, for He is our God. (24:1-2a,15-17,18b)

Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem,
summoning their elders, their leaders,
their judges, and their officers. 
When they stood in ranks before God,
Joshua addressed all the people:
“If it does not please you to serve the LORD,
decide today whom you will serve,
the gods your fathers served beyond the River
or the gods of the Amorites in whose country you are now dwelling. 
As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
But the people answered,
“Far be it from us to forsake the LORD
for the service of other gods. 
For it was the LORD, our God,
who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt,
out of a state of slavery. 
He performed those great miracles before our very eyes
and protected us along our entire journey
and among the peoples through whom we passed. 
Therefore we also will serve the LORD, for he is our God.”

This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

RESPONSORIAL PSALM

(Ps 34)

Response: Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

I will bless the LORD at all times;
       his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
       the lowly will hear me and be glad.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

The LORD has eyes for the just,
       and ears for their cry.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
       to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
       and from all their distress he rescues them.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
       and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

Many are the troubles of the just one,
       but out of them all the LORD delivers him;
he watches over all his bones;
      not one of them shall be broken.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.

SECOND READING

A reading from the first letter of Paul to the  Ephesians

This mystery is great; but I am speaking with reference to Christ and the church. ( 5:21-32 )

Brothers and sisters:
Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ. 
Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord.
For the husband is head of his wife
just as Christ is head of the church,
he himself the savior of the body. 
As the church is subordinate to Christ,
so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives,
even as Christ loved the church
and handed himself over for her to sanctify her,
cleansing her by the bath of water with the word,
that he might present to himself the church in splendor,
without spot or wrinkle or any such thing,
that she might be holy and without blemish. 
So also husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. 
He who loves his wife loves himself. 
For no one hates his own flesh
but rather nourishes and cherishes it, 
even as Christ does the church,
because we are members of his body.
    For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother
        and be joined to his wife,
    and the two shall become one flesh.
This is a great mystery,
but I speak in reference to Christ and the church.

This is the Word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.

ALLELUIA VERSE

Alleluia, alleluia.
Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life;
you have the words of everlasting life. (John 6:63c,68c)
Alleluia.

GOSPEL

You are Peter, and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. (16:13-20)

The Lord be with you.
And also with you.

A reading from the Holy Gospel according to John.

Glory to you, Lord.

Many of Jesus’ disciples who were listening said,
“This saying is hard; who can accept it?”
Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this,
he said to them, “Does this shock you?
What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending
to where he was before? 
It is the spirit that gives life,
while the flesh is of no avail.
The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life.
But there are some of you who do not believe.”
Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe
and the one who would betray him. 
And he said,
“For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me
unless it is granted him by my Father.”
As a result of this,
many of his disciples returned to their former way of life
and no longer accompanied him.
Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?” 
Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go? 
You have the words of eternal life. 
We have come to believe
and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”

This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.

PROFESSION OF FAITH

I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
(at the words that follow up to and including and became man, all bow)
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son
is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism
for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.

PRAYERS OF THE FAITHFUL

Our response is: Lord, hear our prayer.

For the Church – that we, the baptized, may always serve Christ, by loving one another generously, through acts of kindness and tender-hearted charity. Let us pray to the Lord.

For the leaders of nations – that those in power act with concern for the well-being of all, especially the poorest and weakest in their societies, and that their leadership be shaped by genuine humility and a desire to serve. Let us pray to the Lord.

For countries where civil unrest  is present– that those who cause oppression relent, that they would honour the rights of citizens and that those who live in poverty may have the means of life. Let us pray to the Lord.

For married couples – that the love of Christ may abound in their relationships and in their homes. Let us pray to the Lord.

For the unity of all Christians – that people of different Christian denominations seek understanding of one another, find opportunities to pray together and profess their common belief in Jesus, whose words are spirit and life. Let us pray to the Lord.

THE LITURGY OF THE EUCHARIST

Offertory Song

PRAYER OVER THE GIFTS

O Lord, who gained for yourself a people by adotpion
through the one sacrifice offered once for all,
bestow graciously upon us, we pray,
the gifts of unity and peace in your Church.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

PREFACE and EUCHARISTIC PRAYER

COMMUNION RITE

Communion Antiphon

The earth is replete with the fruits of your work, O Lord;
you bring forth bread from the earth
and wine to cheer the heart. (Psalm 104:13-15)

— or —

Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood
has eternal life, says the Lord,
and I will raise him up on the last day. (John 6:54)

PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION

Complete within us, O Lord, we pray,
the healing work of your mercy,
and graciously perfect and sustain us,
so that in all things we may please you.
Through Christ our Lord. 
Amen.

Final Song