CAFOD PRAYERS for Tuesday 3rd July 2018
Feast of St Thomas the Apostle
Opening Prayer (All)
O Lord, open our eyes to your presence,
open our minds to your grace,
open our lips to your praise,
open our hearts to your love,
open our lives to your healing
and be found amongst us.
Readings:Ephesians 2:19-22
So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are citizens with the saints and also members of the household of God, built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone. In him the whole structure is joined together and grows into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are built together spiritually into a dwelling place for God.
Psalm 116
Go out to the whole world; proclaim the good news.
Praise the Lord, all you nations.
Acclaim him all you peoples!
Strong is his love for us;
He is faithful for ever.
John 11:16
Thomas, who was called the Twin, said to his fellow disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him”.
John 20:24-29
But Thomas, one of the twelve, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples told him, “We have seen the Lord.” But he said to them, “Unless I see the mark of the nails in his hands, and put my finger in the mark of the nails and my hand in his side, I will not believe.”
A week later his disciples were again in the house, and Thomas was with them. Although the doors were shut, Jesus came and stood among them and said, “Peace be with you.” Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it in my side. Do not doubt but believe.” Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!” Jesus said to him, “Have you believed because you have seen me? Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe.”
Reflection
“This passage from John’s Gospel has all the more significance because it brings the Gospel to a close (Chapter 21 is a sort of Appendix). The Gospel ends as it began with the only two unmistakable declarations in the New Testament of the divinity of Jesus. “The Word was God” and “My Lord and my God” bracket the Gospel, showing the purpose and angle of the whole, to show that Jesus is God. It complements the other Gospels: they show a man who is also God, whereas this Gospel shows a God who is also man.”
(Henry Wansborough in “The Sunday Word”)
Prayers of Concern
Closing Prayer(All)
Go gently, my friends;
feel the good earth beneath your feet,
celebrate the rising of the sun,
listen to the birds at dawn,
walk gently under the silent stars,
knowing that you are on holy ground,
held in love,
in the wonder of God’s creation.
Amen
