Thanksgiving

Our lord God, we have are met together today,

yet another sunday, in your name, in our community of faith,

because we believe in you,

although we don't search very well and look for you far and wide

when, in reality, you reside within us.

To start this prayer, we thank you for life

and for the miracle of our own existence.

We call you father and mother, with reason,

because you are a good God. Thank you for being what you are.

We also thank you that there are so many good people

who continue your work of love throughout the world,

consoling those who suffer

and dedicating their lives to help their fellows.

May this hymn which we now offer up to you

become a hymn of thanksgiving for your infinite goodness

which we see reflected in so many of our brothers.

Memorial of the Lord's Supper

We specially want to give you thanks for your son Jesus,

prototype of humanity, an example for mankind.

Thank you, because in his way of life

and in his good actions every day,

he showed us a wide perspective.

To believe in him, is to believe his message,

to accept his leadership and follow him

and make us outward looking

and find you in our neighbours,

making us more human, more motivated and more full of life.

This is the authentic meaning of the eucharist:

that Jesus, in his life and until his death,

gave himself fully for us, with the same simplicity

with which he broke the bread and shared it with everyone

or gave them to drink from his own cup of wine.

Invocation to the Spirit of God

This is the meaning of this sacrament of the bread and wine

that Jesus gave us his whole life

and you, father God, have him with you.

Our eucharist cannot remain just a ritual.

We want to be minimally consequential with our faith

and fulfill the most elemental obligations that it implies.

We need, Lord, your Spirit, your strength.

If we call on you our father,

we must be capable of loving and helping

not only the brother we have at our side

but also those who live badly on the other side of the street

and suffer hunger.

Give us the courage to open them the door of our house

and share with them the surplus bread on our table.

We will be poor in spirit

if we are not generous and disinterested,

we will be unhappy

if we don't know how to enjoy things in the company of others.

Because the measure of our generosity,

cannot be our surplus, what we don't need,

but what others need.

Bless you, Father, and blessed be your son Jesus.

By him and with him we want to live for ever

blessing your name.

AMEN.