PRIEST: As we gather today around the Table of the Eucharist and the Table of the Word, we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses on every side, encouraging us to continue the sometimes hard journey of the disciple and the prophet – a journey that leads us to the fire of conflict in order to live truly the Gospel of Jesus. The prophets among us, help us all to see and understand our contemporary world differently, more authentically with the love of Christ. But the path of the prophets leads to suffering – let us not flinch from ‘the Love of Christ that urges us on’, or the Fire of the Spirit in our bones leading us along the often lonely Way of Christ.
READER: When we do not seek to throw off the sin that clings so easily;
when we lose sight of Jesus and avoid the Cross
LORD HAVE MERCY …
When we are afraid to stand out against the crowd
for the sake of the values of the Gospel;
when we seek acceptance more than faithfulness to the Lord
CHRIST HAVE MERCY …
When we want respectable Christianity rather than
the radical Gospel of Christ that leads to love’s conflict for justice
LORD HAVE MERCY …
PRIEST: May the God of fire purify us with his merciful love;
may the truth-bearer Christ heal our hearts of fear;
may the Spirit empower us for holiness and wholeness
and bring us all to everlasting life
AMEN!