Thirty-First
Sunday of Ordinary Time
General
Intercessions
Celebrant: God provides for
the needs of his children. As people of faith, we present the needs of our
Church and the world to our generous Father.
Deacon/Lector:
That the Church may always keep
focused on Christ and on the mission to proclaim God's kingdom, we pray to the
Lord.
That the leaders of the Church
may make their decisions guided by the Holy Spirit and may bring us to a greater
love for Jesus, we pray to the Lord.
That all citizens may exercise
their duty to vote in this Tuesday's elections, as a way of advancing the common
good and the dignity of human life, we pray to the Lord.
For the grace to see and love
each person as a neighbor like ourselves, including the unborn, the outcast, the
burdensome, the stranger, and the criminal, we pray to the Lord.
That the families of our parish
may be strengthened in their love for one another by the love and witness of our
parish community, we pray to the Lord.
That the deceased members of our
families may be welcomed into the presence of God's love for eternity, we pray
to the Lord.
Celebrant: Lord God, hear these
prayers which we bring to you from the depths of our hearts. Answer us, we
pray, in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Bulletin Insert
Vote this Tuesday!
“We encourage all citizens,
particularly Catholics, to embrace their citizenship not merely as a duty and
privilege, but as an opportunity meaningfully to participate in building the
culture of life. Every voice matters in the public forum. Every vote counts.
Every act of responsible citizenship is an exercise of significant individual
power. We must exercise that power in ways that defend human life, especially
those of God's children who are unborn, disabled or otherwise vulnerable. We get
the public officials we deserve. Their virtue -- or lack thereof -- is a
judgment not only on them, but on us. Because of this, we urge our fellow
citizens to see beyond party politics, to analyze campaign rhetoric critically,
and to choose their political leaders according to principle, not party
affiliation or mere self-interest” (US Bishops, Living the Gospel of Life, n.
34).
Homily Suggestions on
Pro-life Themes
Christ puts the second commandment together with the first. “There is no other
commandment greater than these.” The close relationship between these two
commandments is discussed at length in the First Letter of John, in which he
makes it clear that the failure to love the neighbor we see, and to attend to
his needs, makes it impossible to love the God we do not see.
These
two closely-related commandments provide the core of the Church’s efforts to
defend the unborn and the vulnerable. Because we love God with all our mind,
heart, soul, and strength, we cannot place our own plans and choices above His
choice to create human life and entrust it to our care. Moreover, we realize
that religious piety is never meant to turn us in on ourselves, but rather to
make us more attentive and responsive to the needs of the vulnerable. We love
our neighbor – including our unborn neighbor – “like ourselves,” which means
that we recognize the unborn as a person like ourselves. Some say the unborn are
too small, or too unlike us in their characteristics, to be considered a
neighbor, a person. But the second commandment requires that we see every human
being as a neighbor “like ourselves,” and therefore love them.
This
demand of love is greater than any other commandment. Often, it is the claim to
observe other commandments that keeps people from intervening to save the
unborn. We have legal concerns, often exaggerated. We shrink back because of
human respect. We are afraid to part with certain possessions, relationships, or
guarantees of security. And sometimes even those to whom we must answer tell us
to “tone it down” regarding our outspoken defense of the unborn. But “there is
no greater commandment than these.” We are to love our unborn neighbor just as
we love our born neighbor, and without reserve.
Liturgical Resources
