INTRODUCTORY REFLECTION
Over and above the death toll, the grief and economic devastation caused by the coronavirus pandemic, there has been much collateral damage.
One of its side-effects that may seem insignificant is still to be regretted. Slow progress had been made in restoring communion from the cup to the baptised. Health concerns have brought this to a halt.
This should only deepen our desire to fulfil Jesus’ command to both eat and drink in his memory. Today’s word of God focuses on the covenant-sealing role of blood. By drinking from the cup of the covenant we are drawn ever more deeply into God’s embrace. By communing in Christ’s blood we pledge to live with his self-sacrificing love. The cup really does matter.
THE WEEK’S PRAYER FOCUS
For all who no longer take part in Sunday Mass, that they will rediscover the power of the Eucharist to nourish the hungers of their heart.
SAMPLE INTERCESSIONS
These intercessions are offered for selected use at Sunday Mass in the parish alongside those that express local needs and concerns.
PRESIDER
Dear friends, united in the new covenant by the blood of Christ, let us pray for God’s blessing on the whole of creation.
READER
- We pray for all ministers of the Eucharist, that they will lead their communities faithfully in spirited celebrations of the new covenant. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
- We pray for communities deprived of the Eucharist, that their faith will be inspired and nourished by the word of God. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
- We pray for people trapped in places of bloodshed, that their suffering and anguish will hasten a laying down of arms. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
- We pray for international leaders, that this week’s World Oceans Day [8 June] will spur them to save the seas from plastic pollution and over-exploitation. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
- We pray for children in bonded labour around the world, that advocates of reform will succeed in freeing them from their servitude. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
- We pray for the most vulnerable members of society here and abroad, that they will be given the vaccine priority that justice demands. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
- We pray for prisoners of conscience, especially those held in hidden isolation, that they will find the strength to stay true to their beliefs. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
- We pray for ourselves, that this week’s feast of the Sacred Heart [11 June] will move us to practical compassion for the needy in our midst. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
- We pray for the recently deceased . . . and for those whose anniversary of death occurs around this time, that they will be made welcome at the banquet of eternal life. (Pause for silent prayer) Lord, hear us.
PRESIDER
Ever-faithful God, by the shedding of his blood your Son sealed an everlasting covenant for us. Help us to lead lives of self-sacrifice like his. We ask this through Christ our Lord.