Greeting (see Responsorial Psalm)
We trust in the Lord who keeps us from lasting death, who
stands by our side in sorrow and distress, and keeps our feet from stumbling. The
Lord be always with you. R/ And also with you.
Introduction
1. Do We Go Jesus’ Way?
What are we looking for in life? Good health, happiness in
our families, in our job, in our faith, good relationships with ourselves, with
people and with God. When Jesus tells us today that we have to follow him in
taking up the crosses that come our way, do we accept that as disciples of
Jesus today? Do we take that as a part of our faith or do we say, “Lord,
everything – but not that!”? Jesus assures us: “Anyone who loses his or her
life for my sake will find life, will save life.” Come, let us meet the Lord
who speaks to us.
2. Do We Know Jesus?
We profess in the Creed, “I believe in Jesus Christ, God’s
only Son and our Lord.” We say we know who he is, our Savior and our Lord. Do
we really know him? To know him deeply we not only have to listen to what he
says but to know how he lived and died, giving himself totally to the Father
and to people. Even that is not enough: we must follow in his footsteps by
giving ourselves like him without reserve to God and to people. Then we will
know Jesus from experience.
Penitential Act
1. Do We Go Jesus’ Way?
We are scared of the cross. Let us ask pardon from the Lord that
we have not always accepted our crosses. (pause)
Lord Jesus, you suffered grievously and you ask us to take
up our cross after you. Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Jesus Christ, you were put to death and you ask us to lose
our life for your sake. Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you rose again after three days and you promise
us that we will find life with you. Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have
mercy.
Lord, forgive us all our sins, save us from evil and death and
lead us to a full and everlasting life. R/ Amen.
2. Do We Know Jesus?
We would know the Lord better if we followed him more in his
self-forgetting love. Let us ask Jesus to forgive us. (pause)
Lord Jesus. you are the truth, you are our life; those who
hope in you will never be disappointed. Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have
mercy.
Jesus, you are the Christ sent by the Father; your have
given your all: Christ, have mercy. R/ Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you are our way. You tell us to love one another
as you have loved us: Lord, have mercy. R/ Lord, have mercy.
Have mercy on us, Lord, heal us from our superficiality and
help us to follow you generously as you lead us to everlasting life. R/
Amen.
Opening Prayer
1. Do We Go Jesus’ Way?
Let us pray to God that we may learn to bear our crosses
with Jesus (pause)
Lord God, our hope and trust, you have made us for
happiness. When we seek it in glorious dreams of prosperity, success and
freedom from pain help us to face the realities of real life. Make us accept
the uncertain darkness of suffering and self-effacement as the price to pay for
light and joy. Teach us the way of your Son Jesus Christ, who died of his own
free will, that we might live and be happy. We ask this in the name of Jesus
the Lord. R/ Amen.
2. Do We Know Jesus?
Let us pray that our knowledge of Jesus may become deep and
personal (pause)
Loving Father, today your Son Jesus asks of us who he is,
what he means to us. Help us to come to know him personally by sharing his very
life of dedication to the end and his unselfish service, including his cross. May
we thus become his friends who experience him as the life of our life, and with
him become servants of one another and of you, our living God. We ask this in
the name of Jesus the Lord. R/ Amen.
First Reading: Isaiah 50:5-9a: Suffering in Hope
In this third song of the servant of God, the prophet
expresses his trust in God. He and God’s people suffer, but he is sure God is
with him and will do him justice.
Second Reading: James 2:4-18: Faith Demands Practice
James knows that a person is saved by faith. Yet he stresses
that faith must become visible in the deeds of a Christian.
Gospel: Mark 8:27-35: Take Up Your Cross and Follow Me
Peter recognizes Jesus as the promised Savior. But to win
life for himself and for us, Jesus must first lose his life. We, his disciples,
must go the way of the cross with him.
Intercessions
Let us pray to our living and loving God who has created us
for happiness, that we may learn to face the responsibilities and hardships of
life, and let us say:
R/ Lord, hear the voice of your people.
– For the Church, that it may not be ashamed of preaching
the crucified Christ and of being self-effacing with him, let us pray:
R/ Lord, hear the voice of your people.
– For the victims of injustice and poverty, that we may have
the courage to stand up for them and to bring them justice and love, let us
pray:
R/ Lord, hear the voice of your
people.
– For the stragglers in life, for the little people who “do
not count,” that they may not be trampled underfoot by the high and the mighty,
let us pray:
R/ Lord, hear the voice of
your people.
– For those not adapted to life, for those whose ideas or
conduct we do not share, that we may respect them and have a heart and a place
for them, let us pray:
R/ Lord, hear the voice of
your people.
– For the sick and the handicapped, that they may draw
strength from the awareness of how close they are to the suffering Lord, and
that we may visit them and care for them, let us pray:
R/ Lord, hear the voice of your
people.
Lord God, the crosses of the world are ours, for Jesus is
ours. Let them be yours to lighten, for Jesus carried the cross for all, and he
is your Son and our Lord for ever. R/ Amen.
Prayer over the Gifts
Father in heaven, your Son Jesus gives himself to us in the
signs of nourishing bread made from broken grains of wheat and of the sparkling
wine of joy poured from grapes that are crushed. With this food and drink of
life give us the mentality of your Son, that we may die to ourselves for love
of you and those entrusted to us. May this be the sacrifice we offer you through
Jesus Christ our Lord. R/ Amen.
Introduction to the Eucharistic Prayer
We give praise and thanks to the Father for having saved and
freed us by the suffering and resurrection of Jesus. We now join Jesus in his
sacrifice. May he give us the strength to take up his cross in the sacrifices
asked of us in everyday life.
Invitation to the Lord’s Prayer
In the words of Jesus, our Savior, let us pray to the Father
in heaven for the bread that gives us the strength to follow in his
footsteps: R/ Our Father...
Deliver Us
Deliver us, Lord, from every evil, and from our fear of
committing ourselves to you and to those you love. Give us the insight and the
courage to overcome and surpass life’s reality of suffering by accepting it and
turning it into a gift of love and fidelity, on the road that leads to the full
coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. R/ For the kingdom...
Invitation to Communion
This is the Lamb of God who accepted suffering and death to
take away the sin of the world. Happy are we to be invited to share in his
sacrifice so as to share also in his risen life. R/ Lord, I am not
worthy...
Prayer after Communion
Lord our God, we give you thanks for speaking to us your
word of life and nourishing us with the bread of strength. Send us out into the
world of people to bear one another’s crosses and to share each other’s joys, that
we may not merely admire your Son for having borne his cross, but follow him on
the road that leads to life and glory. Grant this through Christ our
Lord. R/ Amen.
Blessing
Jesus did not run away from the difficulties and pains of
his mission in life. May God give you the same loyalty and strength, and bless
you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. R/ Amen.
Let us go with one another
the road of Jesus our Lord. R/ Thanks be to God.
Commentary
It's time to
decide for Jesus In the Gospel of Mark, Jesus is presented as always on the
move and his disciples walk behind him. They always paid much attention to what
people said about him. Several times in the Gospel, we read that the crowds and
the disciples have put the question: "Who is this?" With today's
passage, Jesus reveals the mystery, answers the question on everyone's mind and
shows his true face. The episode is set in the vicinity of Caesarea Philippi,
the city that Philip, one of the sons of Herod the Great.
Jesus poses two questions to his disciples: “Who do people
say I am?” and, “Who do you say I am?” The first was about the ‘hear-says.’ But
for the second, Peter surprised everyone and declared – “You are the Messiah.”
The answer was perfect, but the only difference was about the type of the
messiah that Peter had in mind. He expects a mighty ruler like David who would
rule the world from the land of Palestine.
Mark wrote his Gospel for the Christians of Rome to invite
them to evaluate the reasons that led them to believe in Jesus. The
misconception in which Peter and the other eleven fell is always looming over
all Christian communities. The professions of faith can be impeccable, but the
question is what reasons do you hold for professing your faith? Is it to escape
from pains and sufferings, for success in business or for social status and
acceptance? If so, listen to Jesus telling you and me, “Get behind me satan!”
The Messiah of Jesus is bound to fail in the eyes of the
world. He does not go to Jerusalem to scare off his enemies but to offer his
own life. That would be a huge disappointment for the disciples. It's not for
this that they left the house, the boat, the family and followed the Master.
On behalf of all, Peter reacts, not for fear of sacrifices,
but to win, not to lose. He does not feel like committing himself to an absurd
project, that leads to failure. This could well be our own reaction too. It is
much difficult to present ourselves as failures before the world. We always
want to win.
Jesus' response to Peter is harsh: "Get behind me, Satan!" (v. 33). His words do not mean "Go away!" Rather, if you are in the front, you could lose the track of my plan for life because you are driven by your desires for successes. But "Come behind me," stay with me while I lead you in the right path.
