EASTER SUNDAY SERVICE

 

Today we relive the glorious events of the Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ. The Savior was crucified between two condemned, died and - after three days - rose again. How thankful are we to have such a great Messiah. This last year has been a tomb of darkness and sorrow due to the coronavirus. Yet - despite our sufferings and bereavements - all is not lost. God is ultimately in control despite all the difficulties we may face. The Almighty turned the devastating death of Jesus Christ into glorious triumph. The Savior was resurrected back to life after three days. So our trust must always be in the Lord. After all our difficulties and life challenges we too will be resurrected. So let us keep our faith strong and our love aglow.

Jesus Christ has conquered death.

The Savior has routed sin.

The Messiah has defeated satan.

Christ the Anointed has emptied hell.

The Rabbi has overcome chaos.

The Son of God loves us and works untiringly to bring each one safely into heaven.

Let us pray for all who have ever gone before, for all peoples now, and for all who will ever exist in the future until the Last Day: that they may attain everlasting life with our resurrected Savior forever.

Priest: "The Easter Vigil begins in darkness. The darkness of the tomb is split open as the Light of the world resurrects and pours life-giving light to the whole world.

O God, grant that our hearts may be purified by your beloved Son Jesus Christ.

We offer You our love and praise in honor of so glorious a gift to our world,

Amen."

EASTER VIGIL READING

Mark 16 

The Resurrection

16 When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. 2 And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. 3 And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?”4 And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. 5 And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. 6 And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. 7 But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.” 8 And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment had seized them, and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.

Jesus Appears to Mary Magdalene

9 Now when he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons.10 She went and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept. 11 But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it.

Jesus Appears to Two Disciples

12 After these things he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. 13 And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them.

The Great Commission

14 Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. 15 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. 16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. 17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; 18 they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”

19 So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. 20 And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.

BAPTISM

If you have been baptized, here quietly renew your promises to Jesus to continue practising holiness in your life, and to be faithful to Him. 

If you have been baptized, and fallen away from your faith, why then, just renew your baptismal promises and start all over again.

If you have never been baptized, why not accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your Savior? 

He truly is the Son of God, and is waiting for you. Invite joy into your life and accept Him. Seek baptism.

Here is a chapel for accepting Jesus Christ into your life:

http://churchinterfaith.blogspot.ie/2016/06/how-to-receive-jesus-christ-as-your.html

LITANY OF THE SAINTS

Priest: "Let us thank God for the holy men and women who have gone before us, showing that it is possible to reach the holiness God desires for us. Let us remember our holy ones."

Congregation: "We remember you, our holy family in heaven."

http://churchinterfaith.blogspot.ie/2016/10/litany-of-saints.html

BLESSING OF THE WATER

If you do not have holy water, pour some water into a bowl. Sprinkle a little salt in it if you have some. Ask the Lord to bless the water and make it holy. Now you have your own holy water! 

The priest blesses the water, and sprinkles the congregation with it.

We remember that Jesus is the Water of Life and brings us to holiness through baptism.

WE NOW REJECT OUR ANCIENT ENEMY SATAN

Priest: "Do you reject sin, so as to live in the freedom of God's children?'

Congregation: "I do."

Priest: "Do you reject the glamour of evil, and refuse to be mastered by sin?"

Congregation: "I do."

Priest: "Do you reject satan, father of sin and prince of darkness?"

Congregation: "I do."

WORDS OF COMFORT
"The last year has been a test of faith and hope in God. There is scarcely a household - if, indeed, any - who has not suffered the loss of a loved one to the coronavirus. Many have undergone the pains and illness of the virus. 

Yet it is at times like these that faith in God sustains us. Jesus Himself told us: "Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock. And everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it," (Matthew 7:24-27). 

Do not lose faith. Do not despair. Do not worry unduly. Pray and put all your problems into the nail pierced Hands of the Savior. Then do your duty as best you can. God will ask no more than that. Also, if you sometimes make a mis-step, remember that God is Mercy and Compassion. He knows we are made from dust, and that to dust we shall return. The Almighty knows, too, that we are struggling from the dust towards the divine. Our eternal destiny is to win our crown in heaven, far from our humble origins in the sand of Paradise. Be confident and place your eternal destiny in the resurrected Savior's Hands. Do what you can as best you can with the facts as you know them at the time. And then: TRUST.

We must trust in Christ. He knows what He is about: the task of your eternal sancification. Trust in Him. Trust His Words in the gospels. Trust His teachings. And then go about your daily tasks quietly.

Our faith has been tested over this past year in many ways. As we emerge from the darkness of the lockdown tomb into the sunlight of the resurrected Christ, let us rebuild our faith. We are the children of God. This means that we have access to all the graces we can ever ask for, IF WE ASK FOR THEM. So ask God for the special graces you need in your life to become a saint. Ask for the graces for your nearest and dearest. Ask for the graces for all in society. Plead for graces from God for sinners who are most in need of His Mercy.

Do you wish to turn to God to bring areas of your life to be washed in the precious Blood of the Savior? If so, perhaps you will find peace and comfort from visiting the Chapel of Repentance.

http://churchinterfaith.blogspot.com/2017/03/prayer-chapel-of-repentance.html

If you wish to accept Jesus Christ in your life, visit the following prayer chapel,

http://churchinterfaith.blogspot.com/2016/06/how-to-receive-jesus-christ-as-your.html

As we mourn the loss of so many lives during the pandemic, we draw comfort from the fact that we will meet again in the Kingdom of Heaven. Jesus won for us the way to eternal life. This Easter let us turn to the Christ of the Resurrection to pray for all our brothers and sisters who have left this world due to the coronavirus. May they rest in peace, Amen."

THE EUCHARIST
Priest; "As they were eating, Jesus took bread, and blessed and broke it. He gave it to His disciples, saying; "Take all you, and eat. This is My Body, which is broken for you."
Congregation; "Lord Jesus, You are the Bread of Life."

Priest; "At the end of supper, Jesus took the cup. He gave thanks, and gave it to His disciples, saying, "Take, all of you, and drink; this is My Blood of the new covenant, Which is shed for the forgiveness of sins. Do this in memory of Me." '

Congregation; "Lord Jesus, You are the cup of life, the wine blessed for our salvation."

[Receive communion. If you are unable to attend Holy Mass, receive Jesus spiritually within your heart and soul now. Spend some time in prayer. Let us pray for all affected by the Coronavirus].

LORD'S PRAYER
Priest; "Let us now pray the Lord's prayer in the words Jesus gave us."

Priest and Congregation;
'Our Father, Who art in heaven,
Hallowed be Thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come
Thy Will be done
One earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day
Our daily bread,
And forgive us our sins,
As we forgive those who sin against us,
And lead us not into temptation,
But deliver us from evil.
For Thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory,
For ever and ever. Amen."

PRAYER AND BLESSING
Priest; "Heavenly Father, we praise and thank You for sending us Your only Son, Jesus Christ.
We rejoice in His Resurrection. This Easter the tomb is robbed of death, and is empty!
There is Light in the midst of our darkness!

We have been fed by the Word and given new life in the waters of baptism.
We have been given renewed life in the Eucharist, and receive life from Jesus our Lord.
We ask for Your blessing as we go forth to witness to the world the truth that JESUS CHRIST IS THE RISEN SON OF GOD!"
Congregation; "Amen. ALLELUIA!"

With thanks to Youtube

MOTHER MARY - THE HOLY

 

MOTHER MARY - THE HOLY

TODAY, GOOD FRIDAY, IT BECOMES MORE IMPORTANT THAN EVER TO UNDERSTAND THAT MARY THE MOTHER OF JESUS CHRIST IS HOLY.

The coming of Mother Mary - otherwise known as Our Lady - was foretold to humanity by Almighty God. In Genesis 3:15, God told satan "And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her seed; it will crush your head, and you will bruise His Heel." So God already planned to sent an immaculately conceived human woman to our race. He would ask her if she would consent to be the Mother of His only begotten Son. If she agreed, the Messiah - Jesus Christ of divine Father and born of human mother - would crush satan's rule on earth. Likewise, satan would only hurt the Savior, not bring about His annihilation. 

We see today on Good Friday that Jesus indeed died by crucifixion as a result of historical events which were overshadowed by satan's hour of darkness. Yet Jesus - Who had been borne by holy Mary - was not destined to remain dead. On the third day after His crucifixion, Jesus arose again - alive forevermore. Furthermore, Christ has promised that all of good will shall rise again to eternal joy in heaven.

PROPHECIES

The prophets foretold that the promise of God regarding the coming of Mary to world history would be fulfilled. The book of Isaiah tells us that God promised Ahaz a sign that the Davidic dynasty would continue despite the threats of invading armies: "Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign. Behold, a young woman shall conceive and bear a son and shall call His Name Emmanuel" (Is 7:13-14).

APPARITIONS

For over two millennia, Mother Mary has constantly appeared in apparitions to uncounted people. Many apparitions occur which are not reported. Other apparitions have been reported over the centuries: Our Lady appeared in Lourdes, Guadalupe, Fatima, Ngome and many other areas. Many of Mother Mary's holy apparitions have been documented in The Miracle Hunter: 

http://miraclehunter.com/marian_apparitions/index.html

The hallmarks of an apparition of Our Lady include the following:

- The Mother of God is always holy and dignified in appearance

- True miracles - which only bring good, peace and happiness to the recipients - often occur during or after the apparition

- Those to whom Mother Mary appear either come to faith in Jesus Christ, such as Alphonse Ratisbonne :

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marie-Alphonse_Ratisbonne

- or have their faith strengthened

- or their lives deepen in holiness, such as Juan Diego after he witnessed the apparitions of Our Lady of Guadalupe:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Our_Lady_of_Guadalupe

It behoves all humanity to respect the Mother of God. Let us only read holy books which honor her name. Moreover, let us only watch non-blasphemous films which speak the truth of Mother Mary's holiness.

Holy Mary is honored as the Mother of the Son of God, the King of Heaven. Chapter 12 in the Book of Revelation shows that Mary wears the Queen Mother crown in Heaven. 

Satan's time on earth is limited: this being knows that his nemesis is a little Nazarene lady who bore the Son of God.  During our time on earth let us follow the example God set for us and honor the holy woman He chose as Mother of His Son.

WHY NOT SIGN THE PETITION?

https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/sony-pictures-to-release-film-blaspheming-virgin-mary-on-good-friday

With thanks to miraclehunter.com, wikipedia and lifesitnews

GOOD FRIDAY SERVICE: CHRIST SUFFERED AND DIED FOR ALL

 GOOD FRIDAY SERVICE

Today we relive the events of Good Friday. In this service we remember and honor Jesus Christ the Son of God Who came to earth to save all humanity from sin. We can never thank the Lord enough for all He has done for us. Let us remember Him with honor and dignity in this worship service. 

WELCOME

We pray for all who have been affected by the coronavirus since the pandemic began. We remember those who have gone before and those who suffer now. We pray for God's Grace to bless our world and bring this pandemic to a close. We thank God for all His Help to us during this trying time.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MKL2lSLOwmQ 

GOOD FRIDAY READING

The reading of the Passion of Jesus Christ. During these readings we remember the events which took place in the last hours of Jesus' Life on earth. 

 Let us never forget the price Our Savior paid for us: so deep is His Love.

READINGS:

THE LAST SUPPER

St Luke Chapter 22, verses 14 to 16

 ¹⁴ When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. ¹⁵ And he said to them, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ¹⁶ For I tell you, I will not eat it again until it finds fulfillment in the kingdom of God.”

St Luke Chapter 22, verses 19 to 20

¹⁹ And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.” ²⁰ In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.

THE BETRAYAL

St John, Chapter 13, verses 21 to 30

²¹ After he had said this, Jesus was troubled in spirit and testified, “Very truly I tell you, one of you is going to betray me.”
²² His disciples stared at one another, at a loss to know which of them he meant. ²³ One of them, the disciple whom Jesus loved, was reclining next to him. ²⁴ Simon Peter motioned to this disciple and said, “Ask him which one he means.”
²⁵ Leaning back against Jesus, he asked him, “Lord, who is it?”
²⁶ Jesus answered, “It is the one to whom I will give this piece of bread when I have dipped it in the dish.” Then, dipping the piece of bread, he gave it to Judas, the son of Simon Iscariot. ²⁷ As soon as Judas took the bread, Satan entered into him.
So Jesus told him, “What you are about to do, do quickly.” ²⁸ But no one at the meal understood why Jesus said this to him. ²⁹ Since Judas had charge of the money, some thought Jesus was telling him to buy what was needed for the festival, or to give something to the poor. ³⁰ As soon as Judas had taken the bread, he went out. And it was night.

THE DENIAL 

St Mark, Chapter 14, verses 27 to 31

 ²⁷ “You will all fall away,” Jesus told them, “for it is written:

“‘I will strike the shepherd,
    and the sheep will be scattered.’

²⁸ But after I have risen, I will go ahead of you into Galilee.”

²⁹ Peter declared, “Even if all fall away, I will not.”
³⁰ “Truly I tell you,” Jesus answered, “today—yes, tonight—before the rooster crows twice you yourself will disown me three times.”
³¹ But Peter insisted emphatically, “Even if I have to die with you, I will never disown you.” And all the others said the same.

THE AGONY
St Mark, Chapter 14, verses 32 to 46
 ³² They went to a place called Gethsemane, and Jesus said to his disciples, “Sit here while I pray.” ³³ He took Peter, James and John along with him, and he began to be deeply distressed and troubled. ³⁴ “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death,” he said to them. “Stay here and keep watch.”
³⁵ Going a little farther, he fell to the ground and prayed that if possible the hour might pass from him. ³⁶ “Abba, Father,” he said, “everything is possible for you. Take this cup from me. Yet not what I will, but what you will.”
³⁷ Then he returned to his disciples and found them sleeping. “Simon,” he said to Peter, “are you asleep? Couldn’t you keep watch for one hour? ³⁸ Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.”
³⁹ Once more he went away and prayed the same thing. ⁴⁰ When he came back, he again found them sleeping, because their eyes were heavy. They did not know what to say to him.
⁴¹ Returning the third time, he said to them, “Are you still sleeping and resting? Enough! The hour has come. Look, the Son of Man is delivered into the hands of sinners. ⁴² Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”

Jesus Arrested 

⁴³ Just as he was speaking, Judas, one of the Twelve, appeared. With him was a crowd armed with swords and clubs, sent from the chief priests, the teachers of the law, and the elders. 

⁴⁴ Now the betrayer had arranged a signal with them: “The one I kiss is the man; arrest him and lead him away under guard.” ⁴⁵ Going at once to Jesus, Judas said, “Rabbi!” and kissed him. ⁴⁶ The men seized Jesus and arrested him.

THE TRIAL
St Luke, Chapter 22, verses 52 to 53 
⁵² Then Jesus said to the chief priests, the officers of the temple guard, and the elders, who had come for him, “Am I leading a rebellion, that you have come with swords and clubs? ⁵³ Every day I was with you in the temple courts, and you did not lay a hand on me. But this is your hour—when darkness reigns.”

THE VERDICT
St Matthew, Chapter 27, verses 15 to 26
 ¹⁵ Now at the feast the governor was accustomed to releasing to the multitude one prisoner whom they wished. ¹⁶ And at that time they had a notorious prisoner called Barabbas. ¹⁷ Therefore, when they had gathered together, Pilate said to them, “Whom do you want me to release to you? Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ?” ¹⁸ For he knew that they had handed Him over because of envy.
¹⁹ While he was sitting on the judgment seat, his wife sent to him, saying, “Have nothing to do with that just Man, for I have suffered many things today in a dream because of Him.”
²⁰ But the chief priests and elders persuaded the multitudes that they should ask for Barabbas and destroy Jesus. ²¹ The governor answered and said to them, “Which of the two do you want me to release to you?”
They said, “Barabbas!”
²² Pilate said to them, “What then shall I do with Jesus who is called Christ?”
They all said to him, “Let Him be crucified!”
²³ Then the governor said, “Why, what evil has He done?”
But they cried out all the more, saying, “Let Him be crucified!”
²⁴ When Pilate saw that he could not prevail at all, but rather that a tumult was rising, he took water and washed his hands before the multitude, saying, “I am innocent of the blood of this just Person. You see to it.”
²⁵ And all the people answered and said, “His blood be on us and on our children.”
²⁶ Then he released Barabbas to them; and when he had scourged Jesus, he delivered Him to be crucified.

THE CROSS
St Mark, Chapter 15, verses 21 to 39
 ²¹ A certain man from Cyrene, Simon, the father of Alexander and Rufus, was passing by on his way in from the country, and they forced him to carry the cross. ²² They brought Jesus to the place called Golgotha (which means “the place of the skull”). ²³ Then they offered him wine mixed with myrrh, but he did not take it. ²⁴ And they crucified him. Dividing up his clothes, they cast lots to see what each would get.
²⁵ It was nine in the morning when they crucified him. ²⁶ The written notice of the charge against him read: the king of the Jews.
²⁷ They crucified two rebels with him, one on his right and one on his left. ^[28]  29 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads and saying, “So! You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, ³⁰ come down from the cross and save yourself!” ³¹ In the same way the chief priests and the teachers of the law mocked him among themselves. “He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! ³² Let this Messiah, this king of Israel, come down now from the cross, that we may see and believe.” Those crucified with him also heaped insults on him.

The Death of Jesus

³³ At noon, darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. ³⁴ And at three in the afternoon Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?” (which means “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?”).
³⁵ When some of those standing near heard this, they said, “Listen, he’s calling Elijah.”
³⁶ Someone ran, filled a sponge with wine vinegar, put it on a staff, and offered it to Jesus to drink. “Now leave him alone. Let’s see if Elijah comes to take him down,” he said.
³⁷ With a loud cry, Jesus breathed his last.
³⁸ The curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. ³⁹ And when the centurion, who stood there in front of Jesus, saw how he died, he said, “Surely this man was the Son of God!”

THE TOMB 

St John, Chapter 19, verses 38 to 42

 ³⁸ Later, Joseph of Arimathea asked Pilate for the body of Jesus. Now Joseph was a disciple of Jesus, but secretly because he feared the Jewish leaders. With Pilate’s permission, he came and took the body away. ³⁹ He was accompanied by Nicodemus, the man who earlier had visited Jesus at night. Nicodemus brought a mixture of myrrh and aloes, about seventy-five pounds. ⁴⁰ Taking Jesus’ body, the two of them wrapped it, with the spices, in strips of linen. This was in accordance with Jewish burial customs. ⁴¹ At the place where Jesus was crucified, there was a garden, and in the garden a new tomb, in which no one had ever been laid. ⁴² Because it was the Jewish day of Preparation and since the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.

SILENCE
Spend some time in silence. Let us remember all our brothers and sisters throughout the world at this time of pandemic. Let us pray for all.

COMMUNION
Receive communion. If you cannot attend a service, receive Jesus in your heart. If this is your first time to know Jesus Christ as your Lord and Savior, and you wish to receive Him as your personal Savior, you can do so at the following link:
http://churchinterfaith.blogspot.co.za/2016/06/how-to-receive-jesus-christ-as-your.html 

FINAL WORD
We remember that the tragedy and sorrow of Good Friday is not the end. This sad day leads towards the glorious Easter Resurrection of Our Lord Jesus Christ Who triumphed over our real enemies - satan, illness, death and the long estrangement from our Father God. 
Let us go forward in peace and silence to serve others as our Savior taught us. Let us help others with Christly love, friendship and kindness. . 
Go in peace from this blessed service to love and serve the LORD. Spend as much time in prayer this sacred night as you wish. During this time let us pray for all affected by the coronavirus.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RPClih1HLPg

With thanks to youtube