OPENING ANTIPHON:
(All) We must glory in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Leader:
Though he was in the form of God,
Jesus did not deem equality with God
something to be grasped at.
Rather, he emptied himself
and took the form of a slave.
being born in the likeness of men.
He was known to be of human estate,
and it was thus that he humbled himself,
obediently accepting death,
death on a cross!
Because of this,
God highly exalted him
and bestowed on him the name
above every other name,
So that at Jesus' name
every knee must bend
in the heavens, on the earth,
and under the earth,
and every tongue proclaim
to the glory of God the Father:
JESUS CHRIST IS LORD!
REFLECTION – Certain as the Dawn van Breemen
The goodness of God is like a wide, full river that flows steadily into our world. The life of Jesus is nothing but the incarnation of that stream of goodness. That body of goodness clashes with the evil and sin of this world. This causes pain and suffering, scorn and injustice. All this Jesus accepted without trying to dodge it when he discovered it to be entailed in his mission. The passion of Jesus is the collision between God's goodness and the rejection of that goodness. The cross is the intersection of the two: God's love and man's refusal.
READING: Mark 8: 34-35
PSALM: - Psalm 116: 10 – 19
Antiphon – How radiant is that precious cross which brought us our salvation.
I trusted, even when I said:
"I am sorely afflicted,"
and when I said in my alarm:
"No person can be trusted."
How can I repay the Lord
for his goodness to me?
The cup of salvation I will raise:
I will call upon the Lord's name.
My vows to the Lord I will fulfill
before all his people.
O precious in the eyes of the Lord
Is the death of his faithful.
Your servant, Lord, your servant am I:
You have loosened my bonds.
A thanksgiving sacrifice I make:
I will call on the Lord's name.
My vows to the Lord I will fulfill
before all his people,
in the courts of the house of the Lord,
in your midst, O Jerusalem.
REFLECTION – Constitution no. 6
Quiet and Shared Reflection
Spontaneous Intercessions
RESPONSE: Lord, through your cross bring us to the glory of your kingdom.
CLOSING PRAYER:
God our Father, in obedience to you, your Son accepted death on the cross for the salvation of all persons. We acknowledge the mystery of the cross on earth. May we receive the gift of redemption in heaven. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God forever and ever. Amen.