Liturgy of the WordSolemnity of the Most Holy
Body and
Blood of Christ,
(Corpus Christi)
June 14, 2020 Cycle A
White priestly vestments symbolize purity and integrity of the
life of faith.
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Liturgical Year Cycle
2019-2020
Introductory Acts Of Worship
The Entrance Prayers:
On Sunday, usually a hymn praising God
is sung in place of reciting a Psalm from the Bible which invites us to
enter more deeply into the mystery of God's love for us. The recited
weekday Psalm expresses a youthful heart and spirit, delighted that we may come
before the living God.
Entrance Song
/ Entrance Psalm (Antiphon)
Entrance Song
Psalm 81
He fed them with finest wheat and satisfied
them with honey from the rock.
The Priest Approaches and Kisses the Altar: The altar is a symbol of Christ. In it are cut five crosses to recall the five wounds of Christ. The altar also represents the Church and has embedded in it the relics of her saints. The priest comes to the altar to celebrate the Sacrifice in the Church's name. Because of the glory surrounding the altar upon which the divine Sacrifice will be made, the kiss of the priest unites the Church to Christ, its Redeemer.
Priest:
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
All:
Amen.
The Greeting: We are welcomed in God's name. Our response unites us to our neighbor, to the priest and to God. (The priest may select from several forms of greeting).
Priest: The
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the
Holy Spirit be with you all.
All:
And with your spirit.
The Penitential Prayers:
We recognize our guilt for past sins,
express our sorrow for them, and ask that Mary, the angels, the saints, and our
brothers and sisters in Christ pray for the Lord God's mercy. (The priest
may select from several forms).
Priest: Brothers and sisters, let
us acknowledge our sins, and so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred
mysteries.
Priest / All: 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; there 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.
The Absolution:
Priest: May almighty God have
mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life.
All: Amen.
The Gloria: The Glory of God prayers have existed from the second century. They repeat the angels praise of God which heralded the birth of Christ on earth. Our praise is lifted again through the years as we rejoice at His coming as Lord, God, the most high Jesus Christ, who at Christmas took on our human nature while at the same time being the son of Man. This ancient hymn expresses our recognition of God's glory and love. It calls upon Christ as our holy and divine mediator, and the Holy Spirit who forever binds us together in God's love.
Priest and All: Glory to God in the highest, and peace to his people on earth. Lord God, heavenly King, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thinks, we praise you for your glory. Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world: have mercy on us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer. 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.
The Collect: The priest lifts the united prayers and petitions of the congregation to God the Father through the merits of Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit.
Priest: O God, who in this wonderful Sacrament have left us a
memorial of your Passion, grant us, we pray, so to revere the sacred mysteries
of your Body and Blood that we may always experience in ourselves the fruits of
your redemption. Who live and reign with God the Father in the unity of
the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.
Liturgy of the Word
Christ is made known to us through the Old Testament which prepares us to recognize Him. In those days, God inspired men who spoke His message. Now, the New Testament Gospel reading announces His presence to us directly through His Son. Both readings bring God's message to us. Our responsibility is to respond.
The First Reading:
From the Old Testament
Priest/Reader: A reading from the
book of Deuteronomy.
First Reading: Deuteronomy 8:2-3, 14b-16a
Moses said to the people: “Remember how for forty years now the Lord, your God, has directed all your journeying in the desert, so as to test you by affliction and find out whether or not it was your intention to keep his commandments. He therefore let you be afflicted with hunger, and then fed you with manna, a food unknown to you and your fathers, in order to show you that not by bread alone does one live, but by every word that comes froth from the mouth of the Lord.
The Responsorial Psalm:
This Psalm praising God, is a prayer to God,
or recommends the practice of virtue. It is sung as an interlude between
the scriptural readings. It provides yet another instructional setting and
invites the assembly to imitate the cantor who sings a repeated response to the
verses of an ancient Psalm many of which are attributed to King David. The
verses are sung first by a cantor (song leader) accompanied by instruments, the
refrain is sung by the people.
Psalm 147:12-13, 14-15, 19-20
Cantor: Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
All:
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Cantor: Glorify the Lord, O Jerusalem; praise your God, O Zion.
For he has strengthened the bars of your gates; he has blessed your children
within you.
All:
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Cantor: He has granted peace in your borders; with the best of wheat
he fills you. He sends forth his command to the earth; swiftly runs his word!
All:
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
Cantor: He has proclaimed his word to Jacob, his statutes and his
ordinances to Israel. He has not done thus for any other nation; his ordinances
he has not made known to them. Alleluia.
All:
Praise the Lord, Jerusalem.
The Second Reading:
Taken from the New Testament, often from a
letter written by St. Paul.
Second Reading: 1 Corinthians 10:16-17
Brothers and sisters: The cup of blessing what we bless, is it not a
participation in the blood of Christ? The bread that we break, is it not a
participation in the body of Christ? Because the loaf of bread is one, we,
though many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf.
The Sequence: "Lauda Sion." A hymn of joy said or sung before the Gospel on certain feast days.
Cantor: Laud, O Zion, your salvation, Laud with hymns of exultation, Christ, your king and shepherd true: bring him all the praise you know, He is more than you bestow. Never can you reach his due. Special theme for glad thanksgiving is the quick'ning and the living bread today before you set: from his hands of old partaken, as we know, by faith unshaken, where the Twelve at supper met. Full and clear ring out your chanting, joy nor sweetest grace be wanting, from your heart let praises burst: for today the feast is holden, when the institution olden of that supper was rehearsed. Here the new law’s new oblation, by the new king’s revelation, ends the form of ancient rite: now the new the old effaces, truth away the shadow chases, light dispels the gloom of night.
What he did at supper seated, Christ ordained to be repeated, His memorial ne’er to cease: and his rule for guidance taking, bread and wine we hallow, making thus our sacrifice of peace. This the truth each Christian learns, bread into his flesh he turns, to his precious blood the wine: sight has failed, nor thought conceives, but a dauntless faith believes, resting on a pow’r divine. Here beneath these signs are hidden priceless things to sense forbidden; sign, not things are all we see: blood is poured and flesh is broken, yet in either wondrous token Christ entire we know to be. Whoso of this food partakes, does not rend the Lord nor breaks; Christ is whole to all that tastes: thousands are, as one, receivers, one, as thousands of believers, eats of him who cannot waste.
Bad and good the feast are sharing, of what divers dooms preparing, endless death, or endless life. Life to these, to those damnation, see how like participation is with unlike issues rife. When the sacrament is broken, doubt not, but believe ‘tis spoken, that each sever’d outward token doth the very whole contain. Nought the precious gift divides, breaking but the sign betides Jesus still the same abides, still unbroken does remain. Lo! The angel’s food is given to the pilgrim who has striven; see the children’s bread from heaven, which on dogs may not be spent. Truth the ancient types fulfilling, Isaac bound, a victim willing, Paschal limb, its lifeblood spilling, Manna to the fathers sent. Very bread, good shepherd, tend us, Jesu, of your love befriend us, you refresh us, you defend us, your eternal goodness send us in the land of life to see. You who all things can and know, who on earth such food bestow, grant us with your saints, though lowest, where the heav’nly feast you show, fellow heirs and guests to be. Amen. Alleluia.
The Alleluia: An ancient expression of joy anticipating the Lord's message we will hear in the Gospel.
John 6:51-52
Cantor: Alleluia!
Alleluia! Alleluia!
All:
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
Cantor: I am the living bread that came down from heaven, says the
Lord; whoever eats this bread will live forever.
All:
Alleluia! Alleluia! Alleluia!
The Gospel:
The Liturgy of the Word is completed
by the reading of the Gospel. Before its reading, the members of the
assembly trace the sign of the cross upon the forehead to indicate their mental
acceptance of the Truth, on the lips to indicate their readiness to announce it,
and over the heart to indicate their sincere desire to accept it into their
lives. The "Good News" of the Gospel tells that God's kingdom has come for
all to hear, accept, and announce to the world for its salvation. It
is God who is speaking to us. Christ comes to teach us by the example of
His life and by His own words.
Priest: Cleanse my heart and my lips, almighty God, that I may worthily proclaim your
holy Gospel. Through the words of the Gospel may our sins be wiped away.
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And
also with you.
Priest/Deacon: A
reading from the holy Gospel according
to John.
All: Glory
to you, Lord.
The Gospel: John 6:51-58
John wrote to show that Christ was
the Messiah, the Divine Son of God.
Jesus
said to the Jewish crowds: “I am the living bread that came down from heaven;
whoever eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I will give is my
flesh for the life of the world.”
The Jews quarreled among
themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” Jesus said to
them, “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and
drink his blood, you do not have life within you. Whoever eats my flesh and
drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him on the last day. For my
flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. Whoever eats my flesh and
drinks my blood remains in me and I in him. Just as the living Father sent me
and I have life because of the Father, so also the one who feeds on me will have
life because of me. This is the bread that came down from heaven. Unlike your
ancestors who ate and still died, whoever eats this bread will live forever.”
Priest/Deacon: The Gospel of the Lord.
All: Praise
to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
The Priest's Sermon: The priest develops, explains, and comments upon the Master's words, so our minds may be enlightened, and our hearts enriched.
(A priestly reflection upon this Gospel)
Profession of Faith: We state in the Nicene Creed the principles of our faith in precise and definite terms.
All: We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all that is seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, one in Being with the Father. Through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven: by the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered, died, and was buried. On the third day he rose again in fulfillment of 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. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the son. With the Father and the Son he is worshipped and glorified. He has spoken through the Prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic Church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.
General Intercessions: We pray for the needs of the pope, civic leaders, our own needs, those of others, the sick, the dying, those who have died, the church, and the world. The response of all to each intercession: Lord, hear our prayer.
All: Lord,
hear our prayer.
The Liturgy of the Eucharist
Gifts of bread and wine
symbolizing ourselves are presented to the priest who will offer them to God the
Father. Through the Holy Spirit, they will become the Body and Blood of
Jesus Christ whom we receive in Holy Communion. Jesus unites Himself with
us for our spiritual nourishment and strength. Today, when individuals do
not present their own personal offerings of bread and wine, the monetary contribution
symbolizes the material of their united sacrifice.
Preparation of the Bread and Wine:
Priest: Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation, for through your goodness we have
received the bread we offer you; fruit of the earth and work of human hands, it will become for us the bread of life.
All: Blessed be God for ever.
Priest: By the mystery of this water and wine may we come to
share in the divinity of Christ, who humbled himself to share in our humanity.
Priest: Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for through your goodness we have
received the wine we offer you; fruit
of the vine and work of human hands it will become our spiritual drink.
All: Blessed be God for ever.
Priest: Lord God, we ask you to receive us and be pleased with the sacrifice we offer you with humble and contrite hearts.
The Priest's Hands are Washed: This act was traditional necessary because the priest handled the various gifts presented by the people. Now, the cleansing act using water reminds the priest and ourselves of the need to cleanse not only the hands but the soul. Soon, the priest's hands will hold the actual body of Christ, and we will become His dwelling place.
Priest: Lord,
wash away my iniquity; cleanse me from my sin.
Pray, brethren, that
my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God, the almighty Father.
All: May the Lord accept the sacrifice at your hands, for the praise and glory of his
name, for our good, and the good of all his holy Church.
Prayer over the Gifts:
Speaking in our name, the priest asks
the Father to accept the gifts we offer through him.
Priest: Grant your Church, O Lord, we pray, the gifts of unity and peace, whose signs are to be seen in mystery in the offerings we here present. Through Christ our Lord.
Eucharistic Prayer: (Number One: The priest may select from several forms).
Priest: The Lord be with you.
All: And with your
spirit.
Priest: Lift up your hearts.
All: We lift them up to the Lord.
Priest: Let us give thanks to the Lord, our God.
All: It is right
and just.
Preface Prayer:
Priest: It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation, always and everywhere to give you thanks, Lord, holy Father, almighty and eternal God through Christ our Lord. For at the Last Supper with his Apostles, establishing for the ages to come the saving memorial of the Cross, he offered himself to you as the unblemished Lamb, the acceptable gift of perfect praise. Nourishing your faithful by this sacred mystery, you make them holy, so that the human race, bounded by one world, may be enlightened by one faith and united by one bond of charity. And so, we approach the table of this wondrous Sacrament, so that, bathed in the sweetness of your grace, we may pass over to the heavenly realities here fore-shadowed. Therefore, all creatures of heaven and earth sing a new song in adoration, and we, with all the host of Angels, cry out, and without end we acclaim:
Acclamation:
Priest and All: Holy, Holy, Holy Lord, God of power and might, Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest. Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.
Priest:
To you, therefore, most merciful Father, we make humble prayer and petition
through Jesus Christ, your son, our Lord: that you accept and bless these gifts,
these offerings, these holy and unblemished sacrifices, which we offer you
firstly for your holy catholic Church. Be pleased to grant her peace, to
guard, unite and govern her throughout the whole world, together with your
servant ____ our Pope and ____ our Bishop, and all those who, holding to the
truth, hand on the catholic apostolic faith.
Remember, Lord, your servants ____ and ____ and all gathered here, whose faith and devotion are known to you. For them, we offer you this sacrifice of praise or they offer it for themselves and all who are dear to them: for the redemption of their souls, in hope of health and well-being, and paying their homage to you, the eternal God, living and true.
In communion, with those whose memory we venerate, especially the glorious ever-Virgin Mary, Mother of our God and Lord, Jesus Christ, and blessed Joseph, her Spouse, your blessed Apostles and Martyrs, Peter and Paul, Andrew, James, John, Thomas, James, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Simon and Jude; Linus, Cletus, Clement, Sixtus, Cornelius, Cyprian, Lawrence, Chrysogonus, John and Paul, Cosmas and Damian and all your Saints; we ask that through their merits and prayers, in all things we may be defended by your protecting help. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Be pleased, O God, we pray, to bless, acknowledge, and approve this offering in every respect; make it spiritual and acceptable, so that it may become for us the Body and Blood of your most beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
The priest repeats the words which
Christ used at his Last Supper when He changed the bread into His Body and the
wine into His Blood. His Body and Blood are truly present but under the
appearance of bread and wine. The death of Christ is prolonged in each of
those who receive Him worthily. We apply His death to ourselves so that we
may share His glory. This moment is the most solemn on earth because it is
Divine act which enables us to apply to ourselves the Cross which Christ
willingly took upon Himself.
We are called to die to sin and
lift our very selves to God so that we become changed; to do as God would have
us do, to become what God would have
us become. Our own little cross can
lift us into union with Christ's Cross so we may earn the joys of everlasting
happiness with God the Father.
The Lord's Supper: On the day before he was to suffer, he took bread in his holy and venerable hands, and with eyes raised to heaven to you, O God, his almighty Father, giving you thanks, he said the blessing, broke the bread and gave it to his disciples, saying:
Take this, all of you, and eat of it, for this is my Body, which will be given up for you.
In
a similar way, when supper was ended, he took the precious chalice in his holy
and venerable hands, and once more giving you thanks, he said the blessing and
gave the chalice to his disciples, saying:
Take this, all of you, and drink from it, for this is the chalice of my Blood, the Blood of the new and eternal covenant, which will be poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in memory of me.
Memorial Acclamation: (The priest may select from several forms).
Priest: Let us proclaim the mystery of faith:
Priest
/ All: When we
eat this Bread and drink this Cup, we proclaim your Death, O Lord, until you
come again.
Priest: Lord, may I receive these gifts in purity of heart. May they bring me healing and strength, now and for ever.
Memorial Prayer:
Priest: Therefore, O Lord, as we celebrate the memorial of the blessed Passion, the Resurrection from the dead, and the glorious Ascension into heaven of Christ, your son, our Lord, we, your servants and your holy people, offer to your glorious majesty from the gifts that you have given us, this pure victim, this holy victim, this spotless victim, the holy Bread of eternal life and the Chalice of everlasting salvation.
Be pleased to look upon these offerings with a serene and kindly countenance, and to accept them, as once you were pleased to accept the gifts of your servant Abel the just, the sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith, and the offering of your high priest Melchizedek, a holy sacrifice, a spotless victim.
In humble prayer we ask you , almighty God: command that these gifts be borne by the hands of your holy Angel to your altar on high in the sight of your divine majesty, so that all of us, who through this participation at the altar receive the most holy Body and Blood of your Son, may be filled with every grace and heavenly blessing. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Remember also, Lord, your servants ____ and ____, who have gone before us with the sign of faith and rest in the sleep of peace. Grant them, O Lord, we pray, and all who sleep in Christ, a place of refreshment, light and peace. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
To us, also, your servants, who, through sinners, hope in your abundant mercies, graciously grant some share and fellowship with your holy Apostles and martyrs: with John the Baptist, Stephen, Matthias, Barnabas, Ignatius, Alexander, Marcellinus, Peter, Felicity, Perpetua, Agatha, Lucy, Agnes, Lucy, Agnes, Cecilia, Anastasia and all your Saints; admit us, we beseech you, into their company, not weighing our merits, but granting us your pardon, through Christ our Lord.
Through whom you continue to make all these good things, O Lord; you sanctify them, fill them with life, bless them, and bestow them upon us.
Doxology:
Prayer of Praise: Through him, with him,
and in him, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all glory and honor is yours,
almighty Father, for ever and ever.
All: Amen.
Communion Rite
In the Liturgy of the Eucharist, we symbolically offer ourselves to the Lord through the gifts of bread and wine. At the Consecration, we offer our very lives to be united the God the Father through the Cross of Christ. In Communion, we find that we have not died at all, but have come to life. We have surrendered ourselves to God through His Divine Son, Jesus Christ. In return become ennobled and enriched. We give up time and we get eternity, we give up our sin and we receive grace, we surrender our self-will and receive the strength of the Divine Will, we give up ourselves and we receive everything. For the Son of God says to us that unless we receive Him we shall not have Divine life in us. But it is not really we who receive Christ as it is Christ who receives us, bringing us into Himself.
God makes His Cross the very means of our salvation and our life. While we have crucified Him, His eternal love cannot be extinguished. Christ willed to give us the very life we crucified in our Redemption, the Consecration of Holy Thursday into Communion, His death into our everlasting life.
The Lord's Prayer:
Priest:
Let us ask our Father to forgive our sins and to bring us to forgive those
who sin against us.
Priest and
All: Our
Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be they name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be
done on earth as it is in
heaven. Give us this
day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who
trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Priest: Deliver us, Lord, we pray, from every evil,
graciously grant peace in our days, that, by the help of your mercy, we may be
always free from sin and safe from all distress, as we await the
blessed hope and the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ.
All: For the kingdom, the power,
and the glory are yours, now and for ever.
Prayer for Peace:
Priest: Lord
Jesus Christ, you said to your apostles: I leave you peace, my peace I give you.
Look not on our sins, but on the faith
of your Church, and grant us peace and unity of your kingdom where you live for
ever and ever. Amen.
Priest: Let
us offer each other the sign of peace.
Breaking of the Bread:
Priest and All: Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the
world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, grant us peace.
Priest: May this mingling of the body and blood of our Lord
Jesus Christ bring eternal life to us who receive it.
Communion of the Priest:
Priestly Preparation: May
the receiving of your Body and Blood, Lord Jesus Christ, not bring me to
judgment and condemnation, but through your loving mercy be for me protection in
mind and body and a healing remedy.
Priest: This is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. Happy are
those who are called to his supper.
Priest and All: Lord, I am not worthy to receive you, but only say the word and I shall be healed.
Priest: May the Body of Christ keep me safe for eternal life.
May the Blood of Christ keep me safe for eternal life.
Communion Antiphon:
Communion Prayer:
John 6:57
Priest: Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood remains in me
and i in him, says the Lord.
Communion of the Faithful:
Priest: The Body of Christ.
The Faithful: Amen.
Priest/Deacon/
Extraordinary Eucharistic Minister:
The Blood of Christ.
The Faithful: Amen.
Cleansing of the Vessels:
Priest: What has passed our lips as food, O Lord, may we possess in purity of heart, that what has been given to us in time may be our healing for eternity.
Prayer after Communion:
Priest: Let us pray.
Priest: Grant, O Lord, we pray, that we may delight for all eternity
in that share in your divine life, which is foreshadowed in the present age by
our reception of your precious Body and Blood. Who live and reign for ever
and ever.
Procession with the Blessed Sacrament:
