Opening Prayer
God of all people, Creator of all life, we are each other’s keepers! That is a heavy burden You lay upon us. Yet it is the truth of our connection in You. It is the heart of Your revelation and Gospel message. We live in a time of tight and protective boundaries, which divide us from our responsibilities and lessen our divine destiny and united identity. In Jesus’ birth, You have embraced and reconnected humanity. We pass from shrinking death to the larger life of responsibility, connection and generosity. Continue to expand our hearts to be like You, generous, unconditional, unifying God of love and justice. Save us from the cynical question of Nathanael: “Can any good come from Nazareth?” Save us from dire and negative judgments that blind us. Make us Your true children, with no duplicity in what we say and do with an integrity of what we believe and how we live. Help us see the sky open and see the union of heaven and earth, that we experience the mutuality of Your angels ascending and descending in a harmony of covenant life.
View Scripture on USCCB Website