PrayerTime Cycle A Sample Session

PRAYERTIME

CYCLE A

Faith-Sharing Reflections on the Sunday Gospels

RENEW Inter national Plainfield, New Jersey

NIHIL OBSTAT

Reverend Lawrence E. Frizzell, D.Phil. Censor Librorum

IMPRIMATUR

Most Reverend Paul G. Bootkoski, D.D., V.G. Administrator, Archbishop of Newark

IMPRIMATUR

Most Rev. John J. Myers, J.C.D., D.D. (Presentation of the Lord, Nativity of John the Baptist, Transfiguration, Assumption, Triumph of the Cross, All Saints, All the Faithful Departed, Dedication of St. John Lateran, Nativity of the Lord)

Scripture texts in this work are taken from the New American Bible, with Revised New Testament and Revised Psalms © 1991, 1986, 1970 Confraternity of Christian Doctrine, Washington, D.C. and are used by permission of the copyright owner. All Rights Reserved. No part of the New American Bible may be reproduced in any form without permission of the copyright owner.

Passage in the reflection for All Souls Day is from Order of Christian Funerals, "Vigil for the Deceased," © 1989 Archdiocese of Chicago. All Rights Reserved.

Cover design by James F. Brisson Photograph © Katherine Andrews

Copyright © 2000, 2007, 2012 by RENEW International

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system without permission in writing from the Publisher.

Library of Congress Control Number: 2012916788

Main entry under title PRAYERTIME, Cycle A cm. ISBN 978-1-62063-011-2

1.Church year meditations. 2. Prayer groups-Catholic Church. 3. Catholic Church Custom and practices. 4. Common lectionary-Meditations. I. Heyer, Robert J., editor, 1933- .

Published by RENEW International 1232 George Street Plainfield, NJ 07062-1717 Web site: www.renewintl.org Phone: (908) 769-5400

Printed and bound in the United States of America

CONTENTS

Acknowledgments vii

For ewor d ix

Intr oduction 1

Advent Season

First Sunday of Advent 11

Second Sunday of Advent 15 Third Sunday of Advent 19 Four th Sunday of Advent 23 James McGill

Christmas Season

The Holy Family 29

Second Sunday after Christmas 33

The Epiphany of the Lord 37 The Baptism of the Lord 41 James McGill

Lenten Season

First Sunday of Lent 47

Second Sunday of Lent 51 Third Sunday of Lent 55

Four th Sunday of Lent 59 Fifth Sunday of Lent 63 Palm Sunday of the Lord's Passion 67 Jean Marie Hiesber ger

Easter Season

Easter Sunday 73

Second Sunday of Easter 77

Third Sunday of Easter 81

Four th Sunday of Easter 85

Fifth Sunday of Easter 89 Jean Marie Hiesber ger

Sixth Sunday of Easter 93

The Ascension of the Lord 97

Seventh Sunday of Easter 101

Pentecost Sunday 105 Jane Eschweiler, SDS

Solemnities

The Most Holy Trinity 111

The Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ 114 Jane Eschweiler, SDS

Or dinar y Time

Second Sunday in Ordinar y Time 121

Third Sunday in Ordinar y Time 125

Four th Sunday in Ordinar y Time 129

James McGill

Fifth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 133

Sixth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 137

Seventh Sunday in Ordinar y Time 141

Eighth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 145

Ninth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 149

Tenth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 153

Eleventh Sunday in Ordinar y Time 157

Twelfth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 161

Thir teenth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 165

Four teenth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 169

Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 173

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 177

Gloria Blanchfield Thomas

Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 181

Eighteenth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 185

Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 189

Twentieth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 193

Twenty-First Sunday in Ordinar y Time 196

Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinar y Time 200

Twenty-Third Sunday in Ordinar y Time 204

Twenty-Four th Sunday in Ordinar y Time 208

Twenty-Fifth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 212

Mar y Birmingham

Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 216

Twenty-Seventh Sunday in Ordinar y Time 220

Twenty-Eighth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 224

Bill Huebsch

Twenty-Ninth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 228

Thir tieth Sunday in Ordinar y Time 232

Thir ty-First Sunday in Ordinar y Time 237

Thir ty-Second Sunday in Ordinar y Time 241

Thir ty-Third Sunday in Ordinar y Time 246

Last Sunday in Ordinar y Time: Christ the King 251

Carol Gura Appendix

Solemnities

Im a g i n e t h e q u a l i t y o f p a r i s h l i f e i f a l l m e e t i n g s a n d g a t h e r i n g s w e re b e t t e r f o c u s e d o n t h a t c o m m o n a l i t y t h a t b r i n g s u s t o g e t h e r i n t h e f i r s t p l a c e – – o u r l o v e o f t h e Tr i u n e G o d a n d t h e i m p l e m e n t a t i o n o f t h e l i f e - g i v i n g m i s s i o n o f J e s u s .

To o o f t e n , o u r m e e t i n g s re f l e c t m o d e l s t h a t h a v e l i t t l e c o n n e c t i o n w i t h g o s p e l v a l u e s . A f i n a n c e c o m m i t t e e , f o r e x a m p l e , m u s t d e a l w i t h m o re t h a n s t r i c t l y f i n a n c i a l c o n s i d e r a t i o n s . S e e k i n g a n e n l i g h t e n e d u n d e r s t a n d i n g o f t h e C h u rc h a n d g u i d a n c e f ro m t h e H o l y S p i r i t w i l l s u re l y re s u l t i n w i s e r d i s c re t i o n a s t o e x p e n d i t u re s o f p a r i s h f u n d s .

T h e e x a m p l e a b o v e i l l u s t r a t e s w h y w e s o o f t e n s a y, “ A n e n d o f c o m m i t t e e i n t h e C a t h o l i c C h u rc h a n d a b e g i n n i n g o f c o m m u n i t y ! ”

P R AY E R T I M E , C y c l e A : F a i t h - S h a r i n g R e f l e c t i o n s o n t h e S u n d a y G o s p e l s i s a t re a s u re d re s o u rc e f o r a d u l t f a i t h f o r m a t i o n . B e g i n a l l p a r i s h m e e t i n g s – – c o m m i t t e e s , s o c i e t i e s , m i n i s t r i e s – – w i t h P R AY E R T I M E . A l l p a r i s h m i n i s t r i e s f l o u r i s h w h e n c o m i n g f ro m a b a s e o f p r a y e r f u l a n d s c r i p t u r a l l y r i c h c o m m u n i t y. Ye s , a n e n d t o b o r i n g c o m m i t t e e m e e t i n g s a n d a b e g i n n i n g o f c o m m u n i t y !

S m a l l C h r i s t i a n c o m m u n i t i e s w i l l a l s o l o v e P R AY E RT I M E . L e t a l l p a r i s h m e e t i n g s a n d g a t h e r i n g s b e e n r i c h e d w i t h P R AY E RT I M E !

Msgr. Thomas A. Kleissler Co-Founder, President Emeritus RENEW International

FIRST SUNDAY OF ADVENT Stay Awake

Invitation to Pray

P a u s e f o r a f e w m o m e n t s o f s i l e n c e a n d e n t e r m o r e d e e p l y i n t o t h e p r e s e n c e o f G o d .

Song

Wake, O Wake, and Sleep No Longer

Proclaim the Gospel

Matthew 24:37-44

The Return of the Son of Man

Take a few minutes to savor a wor d, a phrase, a question, or a feeling that rises up in you Ref lect on this quietly or share it aloud

The other Scripture readings of the day are Isaiah 2:1-5, Psalm 122:1-9, and Romans 13:11-14

Invitation to Reflect on the Gospel

Have you ever been waiting in a long line wondering what you could be doing, or even worse, should be doing? Just such a dilemma confronted the Church in the first centur y. Jesus was expected to return in “this generation.” But “that generation” was nearly gone by the time the Gospel of Matthew was being written.

The return of Jesus was still expected, but the time of the return was unknown and becoming increasingly

unknowable. It was as unknowable as the arrival of a thief or the onslaught of the flood in Noah’s day.

What were the early followers of Jesus to do while waiting? Watch! Be alert! Be about the work of the gospel as if the Lord’s return were to be any second now. A vigilance of waiting is superseded by a vigilance of acting.

We do not look for Jesus’ immediate return with the same apocalyptic intensity of first century Christians. We have come to see over the centuries that God’s transformation of humanity and creation is a more evolutionary process. We have come to see that we share this process with God. God will not do it without us. So while we wait, we cannot be idle.

As we begin the liturgical year, we seek to recommit ourselves to be a people who watch as we wait, who stand on tiptoe in expectation of encountering the presence of Jesus who comes ever new into our hearts, our lives, and our world.

Invitation to Group Sharing

1.When have I experienced the coming of Jesus into my life at a totally unexpected hour or place?

2.How does Jesus’ coming like a thief in the night challenge my need to be securely in control at all times?

3.How can we foster a sense of confident anticipation of Jesus’ return without being either complacent or fearful?

Invitation to Act

D e t e r m i n e a s p e c i f i c a c t i o n ( i n d i v i d u a l o r g r o u p ) t h a t f l o w s f r o m y o u r s h a r i n g . T h i s s h o u l d b e y o u r p r i m a r y c o n s i d e r a t i o n . W h e n c h o o s i n g a n i n d i v i d u a l a c t i o n , d e t e r m i n e w h a t y o u w i l l d o a n d s h a r e i t w i t h t h e g r o u p . W h e n c h o o s i n g a g r o u p a c t i o n , d e t e r m i n e w h o w i l l t a k e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y f o r d i f f e r e n t a s p e c t s o f t h e a c t i o n T h e f o l l o w i n g a r e s e c o n d a r y s u g g e s t i o n s :

1. Don’t waste this Advent season. Stay awake. Make it a time to focus on Jesus who is always coming, whether we notice or not. Commit to spending ten minutes each day in quiet prayer as a preparation for Jesus’ coming.

2. Practice patience in traffic, in line, with family members, in the doctor’s office, etc. When circumstances place you in the company of other people, notice them. Give them a smile. Pray for their needs. Extend a cour tesy. Be gracious to them as God has been gracious to you.

3. Focus on being truly present to family, friends, or coworkers this week. Share the difference it made with the group next session.

Invitation to Closing Prayer

G i v e t h a n k s t o G o d ( a l o u d o r s i l e n t l y ) f o r i n s i g h t s g a i n e d , f o r d e s i r e s a w a k e n e d , f o r d i r e c t i o n s c l a r i f i e d , f o r t h e g i f t o f o n e a n o t h e r ’ s o p e n n e s s a n d s e n s i t i v i t y. C o n c l u d e w i t h t h e f o l l o w i n g :

Leader In the night, All Come, Lor d Jesus.

Leader In the cold, All Come, Lor d Jesus.

Leader As we wait, All Come, Lor d Jesus.

Leader As we tire, All Come, Lor d Jesus.

Leader Into our hear ts, All Come, Lor d Jesus.

Leader Into our lives, All Come, Lor d Jesus.

Leader Into our world, All Come, Lor d Jesus.

Leader This Advent, we pray that we might wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ. All Amen, amen.