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5th Sunday of Lent 2020

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DEVOTIONAL PRAYER FOR MARCH

CORONA VIRUS PRAYER

Lord Jesus Christ, you travelled through towns and villages curing every disease and illness. At your command, the sick were made well. Come to our aid now, in the midst of the global spread of the coronavirus, that we may experience your healing love.

Heal those who are sick with the virus. May they regain their strength and health through quality medical care. Heal us from our fear, which prevents nations from working together and neighbours from helping one another. Heal us from our pride, which made us claim invulnerability to a disease that knows no borders.

Lord Jesus Christ, healer of all, stay by our side in this time of uncertainty and sorrow.

Be with families of those who are sick or have died. As they worry and grieve, defend them from illness and despair. May they know your peace. Be with doctors, nurses, researchers and all medical professionals who seek to heal and help those affected and who put themselves at risk in the process. May they know your protection and peace. Be with leaders of all nations. Give them the foresight to act with charity and true concern for the well-being of the people they are meant to serve. Give them the wisdom to invest in long-term solutions that will help prepare for or prevent future outbreaks. May they know your peace, as they work together to achieve it on earth.

Whether we are home or abroad, surrounded by many people suffering from this illness or only a few, Lord Jesus Christ, stay with us as we endure and mourn, persist and prepare. In place of our anxiety, give us your peace. Lord Jesus Christ, heal us. Amen.

5th Sunday of Lent Readings & Responses

Entrance Antiphon
Give me justice, O God, and plead my cause against a nation that is faithless. From the deceitful and cunning rescue me, for you, O God, are my strength.

1st Reading - Ezek 37:12-14
A reading from the prophet Ezekiel.
The Lord says this: I am now going to open your graves; I mean to raise you from your graves, my people, and lead you back to the soil of Israel. And you will know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves and raise you from your graves, my people. And I shall put my spirit in you, and you will live, and I shall resettle you on your own soil; and you will know that I, the Lord, have said and done this – it is the Lord who speaks.
The Word of the Lord.

Responsorial Psalm
With the Lord there is mercy and fullness of redemption.

2nd Reading - Rom 8:8-11
A reading from the letter of St. Paul to the Romans.
People who are interested only in unspiritual things can never be pleasing to God. Your interests, however, are not in the unspiritual, but in the spiritual, since the Spirit of God has made his home in you. In fact, unless you possessed the Spirit of Christ you would not belong to him. Though your body may be dead it is because of sin, but if Christ is in you then your spirit is life itself because you have been justified; and if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, then he who raised Jesus from the dead will give life to your own mortal bodies through his Spirit living in you.
The Word of the Lord.

Gospel Acclamation
Glory and praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ! I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord; whoever believes in me will not die for ever. Glory and praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ!

Gospel - Jn 11:1-45
A reading from the holy Gospel according to St. John.
There was a man named Lazarus who lived in the village of Bethany with the two sisters, Mary and Martha, and he was ill. It was the same Mary, the sister of the sick man Lazarus, who anointed the Lord with ointment and wiped his feet with her hair. The sisters sent this message to Jesus, ‘Lord, the man you love is ill.’ On receiving the message, Jesus said, ‘This sickness will end not in death but in God’s glory, and through it the Son of God will be glorified.’ Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus, yet when he heard that Lazarus was ill he stayed where he was for two more days before saying to the disciples, ‘Let us go to Judaea.’ The disciples said, ‘Rabbi, it is not long since the Jews wanted to stone you; are you going back again?’ Jesus replied: ‘Are there not twelve hours in the day? A man can walk in the daytime without stumbling because he has the light of this world to see by; but if he walks at night he stumbles, because there is no light to guide him.’ He said that and then added, ‘Our friend Lazarus is resting, I am going to wake him.’ The disciples said to him, ‘Lord, if he is able to rest he is sure to get better.’ The phrase Jesus used referred to the death of Lazarus, but they thought that by ‘rest’ he meant ‘sleep’, so Jesus put it plainly, ‘Lazarus is dead; and for your sake I am glad I was not there because now you will believe. But let us go to him.’ Then Thomas – known as the Twin – said to the other disciples, ‘Let us go too, and die with him.’ On arriving, Jesus found that Lazarus had been in the tomb for four days already. Bethany is only about two miles from Jerusalem, and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to sympathise with them over their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus had come she went to meet him. Mary remained sitting in the house. Martha said to Jesus, ‘If you had been here, my brother would not have died, but I know that, even now, whatever you ask of God, he will grant you.’ ‘Your brother’ said Jesus to her ‘will rise again.’ Martha said, ‘I know he will rise again at the resurrection on the last day.’ Jesus said: ‘I am the resurrection and the life. If anyone believes in me, even though he dies he will live, and whoever lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?’ ‘Yes, Lord,’ she said ‘I believe that you are the Christ, the   Son of God, the one who was to come into this world.’ When she had said this, she went and called her sister Mary, saying in a low voice, ‘The Master is here and wants to see you.’ Hearing this, Mary got up quickly and went to him. Jesus had not yet come into the village; he was still at the place where Martha had met him. When the Jews who were in the house sympathising with Mary saw her get up so quickly and go out, they followed her, thinking that she was going to the tomb to weep there. Mary went to Jesus, and as soon as she saw him she threw herself at his feet, saying, ‘Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.’ At the sight of her tears, and those of the Jews who followed her, Jesus said in great distress, with a sigh that came straight from the heart, ‘Where have you put him?’ They said, ‘Lord, come and see.’ Jesus wept; and the Jews said, ‘See how much he loved him!’ But there were some who remarked, ‘He opened the eyes of the blind man, could he not have prevented this man’s death?’ Still sighing, Jesus reached the tomb: it was a cave with a stone to close the opening. Jesus said, ‘Take the stone away.’ Martha said to him, ‘Lord, by now he will smell; this is the fourth day.’ Jesus replied, ‘Have I not told you that if you believe you will see the glory of God?’ So they took away the stone. Then Jesus lifted up his eyes and said: ‘Father, I thank you for hearing my prayer. I knew indeed that you always hear me, but I speak for the sake of all these who stand round me, so that they may believe it was you who sent me.’ When he had said this, he cried in a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, here! Come out!’ The dead man came out, his feet and hands bound with bands of stuff and a cloth round his face. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, let him go free.’ Many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary and had seen what he did believed in him.
The Gospel of the Lord

Communion Antiphon
Everyone who lives and believes in me will not die for ever, says the Lord.

Next week’s Readings
Is 50:4-7;  Phil 2:6-11;   Mt 26:14 – 27:66

HOW TO MAKE AN ACT OF SPIRITUAL COMMUNION

  1. Make the Sign of the Cross
  2. If possible, read the Mass Readings
  3. Recite the Prayer of Spiritual Communion

My Jesus, I believe that You are present in the Most Holy Sacrament. I love You above all things, and I desire to receive you into my soul. Since I cannot, at this moment, receive You sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace You as if You were already there and unite myself wholly to You. Never permit me to be separated from You. Amen.

PARISH NEWS

PARISH GUIDELINES

  • Our church is now closed as per Government regulations.
    Please note that the Sunday Obligation will not apply during this time of suspension.
  •  Online Masses are available at the following links:
    1. Live daily streaming of Masses from St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Masses are then available on demand until one hour before the next scheduled Mass: https://melbournecatholic.org.au/Mass
    2. shalomworld.org/dailymass (Link is available when you open this website on the Welcome Page)
  • To receive current information, you can update us with your email address by emailing the parish office at hopperscrossing@cam.org.au.
  • Thanksgiving Contributions
    As there are no regular masses being held, we have been approached by some parishioners with regard to their weekly contributions. If you would like to continue your contributions to support the parish, the following options are available:

    • You can drop off your Thanksgiving envelope at the Parish office during office hours Monday to Friday 9:00am to 3:30pm.
    • Thanksgiving donations can be made directly to our Church Bank Account. Details as follows:
      Account name: St Peter Apostle Parish Church Account
      BSB: 083-347 Account No: 637286747. (Please use your Thanksgiving Envelope number and your name for reference purposes. - Example: TG 123-Tom Smith).
    • If you would like to amend your Thanksgiving from Envelopes to Credit Card/Debit Card, please call or email the parish office and we will send you a form to make this change.

Fr Vincent and Dcn Charles thank you for your continued support to the parish.

KEEPING THE FAITH
Helping families stay connected
As Masses are restricted throughout the world, many parish and school communities are asking what they can do to keep their families connected to their faith. CathFamily can help with online resources which are available free of charge.

1.   FREE Resource Database
CathFamily has a vast library of free resources for families, schools and parishes that celebrates Catholic culture. The free weekly eNews lists seasonal resources including downloadable prayers, feast day celebrations, recipes, craft, articles and links to other helpful resources.

Visitors can search and browse thousands of posts or take advantage of the eNews to triage the most relevant content for the week.
Go to   https://cathfamily.org/

2.   Children's Sunday Liturgy @Home
CathKids is a weekly interactive experience designed for primary aged children that includes a short animated video on the Sunday reading, 'I wonder' questions, a craft activity and prayers. CathKids has a modest subscription fee but due to the situation with COVID19 they are offering this resource FREE for the next 3 months.
Go to   https://cathfamily.org/cathkids-faith-unlimited/

PROJECT COMPASSION 2020
Message from Deacon Jim Curtain, Diocesan Director of Caritas Australia, about the Project Compassion 2020 Appeal.

We here at Caritas understand that many in our community will have financial concerns, worries about health, and worries about their future due to the COVID19 crisis. We do appreciate that many generous people who would normally give may no longer be in a position to do so. However through Project Compassion we support people and communities in countries that have nothing like the resources of Australia, where governments do not have the ability to provide social welfare payments or subsidise employers to keep people in work. Bearing in mind the uncertainty that we are all experiencing, we would still ask that, if you are able, you consider continuing to support Project Compassion as best you can.

Thank you for your generosity in the past, and for whatever you feel able to give now.