Happy Easter

The churches are empty,
The schools are empty,
The shelves are empty.
But that’s OK because
The tomb is empty too!

This year, Easter Sunday - Covid

This year, Easter Sunday falls during the COVID-19 pandemic. A time when we are secluded in our homes and told to wrap our faces in cloth if we dare to go out for groceries or supplies. Walk into the grocery store, and you'll see people wandering quietly through the aisles with gloved hands and masked faces. Get too close, and you'll register a wide-eyed look of alarm on the face of that passer-by. We are in hiding from an invisible beast.

Easter - Entombed - Yet a Power Greater Than Us

Easter: Break Open My Tomb, Lord

Lord of Easter promise, I live in Faith of the Resurrection, but such is the nature of my Faith, that so much of me remains entombed. Come, Lord, Break open the tomb.

1.     Where I have buried my love for God due to my materialistic approach: come, Lord, break open the tomb.

2.     Where I have buried my life of prayer due to lack of regularity and interest, come, Lord, break open the tomb.

Corona: Holy Week - Prayer of the Faithful -1

Prayer of the Faithful-1

During Corona Virus Pandemic

Leader:

Merciful God, we entrust to your tender care those who are ill or in pain, particularly those who are affected by the corona virus knowing that whenever danger threatens, your everlasting arms are there to hold them safe.

Our response: R/-: Lord, bring your healing and comfort to your people

Corona Virus: Intercessory Prayers for Holy Week-2

Corona Virus: Intercessory Prayers for Holy Week-2

*Leader:* God of love and hope, you made the world and care for all creation, but the world feels strange right now. The news is full of stories about Corona virus. Some people are worried that they might get ill. Others are anxious for their family and friends. Be with them and help them to find peace. We pray for the doctors and nurses and scientists, and all who are working to discover the right medicines to help those who are ill. Thank you that even in these anxious times, you are with us. Help us to put our trust in you and keep us safe. Let us pray to God, who alone makes us dwell in safety:

Jesus Litany

 Jesus Litany

R/ We praise / thank/ adore you, 0 Lord

R/- Sing Praise him/thank him…..after 9 verses –bold letters

01) Jesus, Word of the Father, (we thank you, etc)           Jn 1, 1.

02) Jesus, eternal Wisdom of God.                                 I Cor. 1, 24

03) Jesus, Son of God.                                                   Rom. 1,4(R/)

04) Jesus, Son of Man.                                           Mt. 8, 20

05) Jesus, Son of David.                                         Mt. 21, 9.

06) Jesus, Son of Abraham                                     Mt. 1, 1. (R/)

Easter 2020 - Liturgical Prayers

A. The Victory Of Life
Greeting (See alternative Second Reading)
Christ, our passover, has been sacrificed
and he is risen from the dead.
Let us celebrate the feast
by getting rid of all that is evil
and becoming all new in the Lord.
May the Risen Lord be always with you.

Holy Week -5: Meditation: Jesus Betrayed

The betrayals of so many people ended in a tragedy of cosmic proportions. Let us pay particular attention to all those seemingly insignificant decisions made by the supporting actors in this melancholy drama. It won't be difficult to see ourselves in this play; each of us commits the same little murders every day. 

COVID – Prayer-18: Open our Locked Doors

Lord, our God,

Your earth whispered but we did not hear. Your earth spoke but we did not listen. Your earth screamed but we turned her off. And so “it” was born...It was not born to punish us… It was born to awaken us…. The earth cried out for help...Massive flooding. But we didn't listen, Lord. Burning fires. But we didn't listen. Strong hurricanes. But we didn't listen. Terrifying Tornadoes. But we didn't listen. We still don't listen to the earth when….. Ocean animals are dying due to pollutants in the waters. Glaciers melting at an alarming rate. Severe drought.

COVID – Prayer-17: You have invaded, Lord, our Hiding Places

Dear Lord, our God,

You have tested your people often through exiles and wars, snake bites and deprivations, under foreign rules and captivities. Even then they have yearned for the junk food of the slavery of Egypt rather than the freedom to be a chosen people. They have bent their backs before idols and made sacrifices to them. They have rebelled against their leaders and scattered their tribes and communities. Through Covid today, Lord, you have brought us back to our families and communities in order to deepen our bonds and connections. And yet we too yearn for the junk food of the market, desire to thumb through the social media for hours and use the “mobility” of the phones to carry it everywhere with their sounds trespassing the peace and sanctity of the family / community and invading their quiet privacy for reflection, meditation or rest.