- Peter can declare with certainty that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of the Living God, because God himself had chosen Peter and prepared him for a new and unique vocation. Only God, with his “inscrutable” ways, could bestow on Peter such clarity in the midst of the many false claims about the identity of Christ. Christ begins to use Peter as an instrument—a Vicar—by which the Lord will open heaven to the world: “He shall open, and none shall shut”. All that Peter is and does is from Christ, “For from him and through him and to him are all things.”
Entrance Antiphon
Turn your ear, O Lord, and answer me; save the servant who trusts in you, my God. Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I cry to you all the day long.
Gloria
Collect
O God, who cause the minds of the faithful
to unite in a single purpose,
grant your people to love what you command
and to desire what you promise,
that, amid the uncertainties of this world,
our hearts may be fixed on that place
where true gladness is found.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
- I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David.
A reading from the Prophet Isaiah 22:19-23
Thus says the Lord God of hosts, “Come, go to this steward, to Shebna, who is over the household, and say to him: ‘I will thrust you from your office, and you will be pulled down from your station. In that day I will call my servant Eliakim the son of Hilkiah, and I will clothe him with your robe, and will bind your sash on him, and will commit your authority to his hand. And he shall be a father to the inhabitants of Jerusalem and to the house of Judah. And I will place on his shoulder the key of the house of David. He shall open, and none shall shut; and he shall shut, and none shall open. And I will fasten him like a peg in a secure place, and he will become a throne of honour to his father’s house.’”
The word of the Lord.
Psalm 138
RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
I thank you, Lord, with all my heart;
you have heard the words of my mouth.
In the presence of the angels I praise you.
I bow down towards your holy Temple.
RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
I give thanks to your name
for your merciful love and your faithfulness.
On the day I called, you answered me;
you increased the strength of my soul.
RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
The Lord is high, yet he looks on the lowly,
and the haughty he knows from afar.
O Lord, your merciful love is eternal;
discard not the work of your hands.RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
- From him and through him and to him are all things.
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans 11:33-36
Oh, the depths of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgements and how inscrutable his ways! “For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counsellor?” “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory for ever. Amen.
The word of the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia. You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. Alleluia.
- You are Peter, and I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew 16:13-20
At that time: When Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, he asked his disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” And they said, “Some say John the Baptist, others say Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets.” He said to them, “But who do you say that I am?” Simon Peter replied, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus answered him, “Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah! For flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven. And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” Then he strictly charged the disciples to tell no one that he was the Christ.
The Gospel of the Lord.
Credo
Prayer over the Offerings
O Lord, who gained for yourself a people by adoption
through the one sacrifice offered once for all,
bestow graciously on us, we pray,
the gifts of unity and peace in your Church.
Through Christ our Lord.
Preface of Sundays in Ordinary Time
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory,
Hosanna in the highest,
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest.
Communion Antiphon
The earth is replete with the fruits of your work, O Lord; you bring forth bread from the earth and wine to cheer the heart.
Or:
Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, says the Lord, and I will raise him up on the last day.
Prayer after Communion
Complete within us, O Lord, we pray,
the healing work of your mercy
and graciously perfect and sustain us,
so that in all things we may please you.
Through Christ our Lord
Twenty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time
- When Peter tries to deny the Lord his Passion—“Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.”—the Lord rebukes him. Why? Because Christ’s death on the cross would fulfil the “good and acceptable and perfect” will of the Father for our salvation. In union with Jesus, we offer our bodies as a living sacrifice to God. And no matter how much our sharing in Christ’s cross may make us an object of the world’s laughter and mockery, the love of God is like a fire burning in our heart. This love, in all its life-giving glory, is what Christ reveals on the cross.
Entrance Antiphon
Have mercy on me, O Lord, for I cry to you all the day long. O Lord, you are good and forgiving, full of mercy to all who call to you.
Gloria
Collect
God of might, giver of every good gift,
put into our hearts the love of your name,
so that, by deepening our sense of reverence,
you may nurture in us what is good
and, by your watchful care,
keep safe what you have nurtured.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
- The word of the Lord has become for me a reproach.
A reading from the Prophet Jeremiah 20:7-9
O Lord, you have deceived me, and I was deceived; you are stronger than I, and you have prevailed. I have become a laughing-stock all the day; everyone mocks me. For whenever I speak, I cry out, I shout, “Violence and destruction!” For the word of the Lord has become for me a reproach and derision all day long. If I say, “I will not mention him, or speak any more in his name”, there is in my heart as it were a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I am weary with holding it in, and I cannot.
The word of the Lord.
Psalm 63
RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
O God, you are my God; at dawn I seek you;
for you my soul is thirsting.
For you my flesh is pining,
like a dry, weary land without water.
RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
I have come before you in the sanctuary,
to behold your strength and your glory.
Your loving mercy is better than life;
my lips will speak your praise.
RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
I will bless you all my life;
in your name I will lift up my hands.
My soul shall be filled as with a banquet;
with joyful lips, my mouth shall praise you.
RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
For you have been my strength;
in the shadow of your wings I rejoice.
My soul clings fast to you;
your right hand upholds me.
RO Lord, your merciful love is eternal; discard not the work of your hands.
- Present your bodies as a living sacrifice.
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans 12:1-2
I appeal to you brothers and sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.
The word of the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia. May the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, enlighten the eyes of our hearts, so that we may know the hope to which he has called us. Alleluia.
- If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself.
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Matthew 16:21-27
At that time: Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you.” But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man. ”Then Jesus told his disciples, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. For what will it profit a man if he gains the whole world and forfeits his soul? Or what shall a man give in return for his soul? For the Son of Man is going to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay each person according to what he has done.”
The Gospel of the Lord.
Credo
Prayer over the Offerings
May this sacred offering, O Lord,
confer on us always the blessing of salvation,
that what it celebrates in mystery
it may accomplish in power.
Through Christ our Lord.
Preface of Sundays in Ordinary Time
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory,
Hosanna in the highest,
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest.
Communion Antiphon
How great is the goodness, Lord, that you keep for those who fear you.
Or
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called children of God. Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.
Prayer after Communion
Renewed by this bread from the heavenly table,
we beseech you, Lord,
that, being the food of charity,
it may confirm our hearts
and stir us to serve you in our neighbour.
Through Christ our Lord
Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory,
Hosanna in the highest,
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord, Hosanna in the highest.