A Spiritual Communion

Opening Our Heart to God
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

Lord, I know you are with me always. As I begin this time of spiritual communion, I turn to you calling to mind the sin in my life and ask for your mercy.

• Lord have mercy.
• Christ have mercy.
• Lord have mercy.

May the Lord bless us, protect us from all evil, and lead us into everlasting life.

Glory to God in the highest,
and on earth, peace to people of good will!

Opening Prayer
Father,
You show your almighty power
in your mercy and forgiveness.
Help us to hurry toward the eternal life
you promise and come to share
in the joys of your kingdom.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever.
Amen.

The Word of God: The Words of Life
https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/092522.cfm

First Reading: Amos 6:1a, 4-7
Amos warns those in Israel who have become complacent and self-indulgent; it won’t last forever.
 
Responsorial: Psalm 146
Praise the Lord, my soul!

Second Reading: 1 Timothy 6:11-16
Paul encourages Timothy to pursue a life in Christ; a life that is meant to last forever.

Gospel Acclimation: 2 Corinthians 8:9
“Though our Lord Jesus Christ was rich, he became poor,
so that by his poverty you might become rich.”

Gospel: Luke 16:19-31
Jesus shares the parable of the rich man and poor man, Lazarus.

A Reflection by Fr. Mike
The rich man in the parable had a pretty good suggestion: why can’t God send someone from the dead to let us know what’s at stake? It makes me think of Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol.  Scrooge’s business partner, Marley, comes to him from the dead on Christmas Eve.  He’s weighed down by chains and warns Scrooge to change his ways while he’s alive, or he’ll regret it.  Scrooge, who is a very rich man, has to confront the way he’s lived his life—his past and present, which gives him a choice about his future.

We like the story, because Scrooge does change…and one of the things he discovers is that he has to be aware of the needs of the poor, especially in the person of Bob Cratchit who he saw every day and who he walked over.  His eyes are opened to reality.  He begins to realize the human connection God wants us to see and know.  Life isn’t about money and things after all.  He saw he could and should share his wealth to help people in need. Maybe in writing about Scrooge, Dickens was trying to re-write Jesus’ parable—to create a different ending to the story.  If God is merciful and compassionate, why not send a messenger to let us know what’s at stake?

But Jesus is pretty clear: God already has sent the messenger!  The signs we need are already there.  Out of his mercy and compassion, God has clued us in on what it is we need to know and do.  We have the Scriptures that tell us all about how to live well and what to do…and so importantly he’s given us the greatest sign there ever was: he gave us Jesus Christ, his Son.  If we need someone to come back from the dead to warn us—that already happened. God sent us Jesus Christ! He’s the messenger.

And one thing Jesus is very open about is that we need to be aware and conscious of those who don’t have as much as we do.  It’s a strong message we hear all throughout the bible, and hasn’t changed from the beginning of time.  After he murdered his brother Abel, God asked Cain where his brother was. Cain flippantly asked: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” God’s unspoken answer said everything: “yes, you are.” God knew exactly what he did to his brother.

In the first reading, Amos the prophet, warns the people about the dangers of wealth and becoming complacent, because they were neglecting those who went without.  And as a result, they were in danger of losing everything they had, which it turns out happened.  Just like the rich man in the parable, the Israelites lost everything: their homes, their wealth and were exiled away from the land God gave them. They experienced a chasm from what was and what is. And they lost the Temple—the place where God lived among them. The thing is, the prophet—whose sole purpose was to deliver God’s message—came to warn them that it didn’t have to be that way.  They could live better together.  All they had to do was respond.

Now Jesus isn’t saying that to be wealthy or to be comfortable in life is a bad thing.  But he is pointing out what happens when wealth distracts us from the kind of people God wants us to be; when it blinds us, and we become self-centered. In the end, we won’t take things or wealth into the afterlife—we take ourselves and how we’ve loved. It’s not about what we had, but who we are as a person. We learn this from Jesus.  As we heard right before the gospel, Paul said Jesus was rich but became poor for usso that in his poverty, we could become rich. It’s the great reversal. To be rich is to have God in our life, which we can have even if we’re poor.

People who work with the poor often notice how generous the poor themselves can be.  The poor often share among themselves and help each other along, even in the midst of their own poverty. That’s why in the second reading, Paul urges us to compete—but not to compete against one another.  He urges us to compete for the faith.  It’s not wealth he tells us to pursue, but the qualities that help make us good people.  He tells us to pursue righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. These are qualities that we all have within us no matter how much money we have.  The poorest person on the planet can have these things and so can the wealthiest.  And what’s pretty amazing is that they are ways we’re meant to give of ourselves. We give them away; we share them.

One of the great things about coming here to Mass is that we find ourselves in a real rhythm of life with God.  We listen to his word—we’re clued into the signs he wants to give us about living well with others and with him. And then we experience the most valuable gift we can receive—Jesus fully present to us in the Eucharist. We take him in, to be like him. So when the Church sends us into the world, she sends us to take care of those around us. We live the life of the one we follow. 

Eternal life is a life with God that comes through Jesus Christ.  It’s not something we earn, but something given and shared with us. And so, we don’t need messengers from the afterlife to warn us about how to live. We have all the signs we’ll ever need. A life with God is never meant to end. It’s up to us to value it.

Consider sharing some of your own perspectives or spend some time in personal reflection.

All I Believe
As an alternative to the Nicene Creed, the Church also encourages Catholics around the world to profess the most ancient creed of our faith, The Apostle’s Creed.
I believe in God, the Father Almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth;
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son Our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended into hell;
the third day he rose again from the dead;
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God, the Father almighty;
from there he shall come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy Catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body
and life everlasting.
Amen.

The Prayers of the Faithful
Good and gracious God, in union with my brothers and sisters at St. Hubert, we bring our prayers to you.

• For Pope Francis, Cardinal Cupich, and all who govern the Church, that they witness to the saving power of Jesus Christ, we pray to the Lord.
• For leaders of governments and nations, that they will be guided in a desire to work for justice and peace in all situations, and will protect and defend freedom of religion and conscience, we pray to the Lord.
• For our parish and the people of Church of the Holy Spirit, St. Matthew and St. Marcelline as we talk about the needs of our local church in Hoffman Estates and Schaumburg, we pray to the Lord.
• For those who have been blessed with abundance of good things, that they may open their hands and their hearts to the poor and those in need, we pray to the Lord.
• For those struggling with illness, injury, or addiction; those awaiting test results or in recovery; that they may experience comfort, strength and healing, including Rodolfo Manaligon, Diane MacDougal, John Hindenburg, Sue Rogers, Sandy Wetendorf, Kate Eugene, Eugene Jendrach, Debbie O’Connor, Gerald Tully, Andrew Glassberger, Kris O’Brien, Steve Heiress, Samantha Freehling, and Allison Turner, we pray to the Lord.
• For those who have died, that they know God’s eternal love, including those who have died through war and other violent acts, for Marina Pagsanjan and those you would like to remember, we pray to the Lord.
• For your needs, for the prayers in our Book of Intentions, and for those for whom we are offering Masses for this weekend: Mark Lazare, Lou Buchenot, Kim Noonan, John & Josefina Orilla, Aleyandra Millan, Cirilo Dayao, and our St. Hubert Parishioners, we pray to the Lord.

May these prayers be answered according to your will, O God. We ask them all through Jesus Christ, our Lord.  Amen.

A Spiritual Offering
During the Mass, we bring up gifts of bread and wine and thank God for them, because he gave them to us. Those gifts are then returned to us. God gives himself to us through Jesus Christ.  What do you offer to God today of yourself, that can be returned as a gift to others?  Who would you like to remember or offer this time of prayer for?

Longing for Communion
As we contemplate our desire to have Jesus Christ in our life, we prepare our hearts—knowing the angels and the saints are in communion with the One we long to be with.  Let us lift up our hearts to the Lord.

It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation,
always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord, Holy Father, almighty and eternal God
through Christ our Lord.

For in you we live and move and have our being,
and while in this body we not only experience the daily effects of your care,
we even now possess the pledge of eternal life.

For having received the first fruits of the Spirit,
through whom you have raised up Jesus from the dead,
we hope for an everlasting share in the Paschal Mystery.

And so, with all the Angels we praise you,
as in joyful celebration we acclaim:

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.

The Prayer that Unites Us
United with my brothers and sisters at St. Hubert and with Catholics around the world, with one voice we pray the prayer Jesus teaches us to pray together.
Our Father, who art in heaven…

A Time for Peace
Lord, Jesus Christ,
You said to your apostles, “Peace I leave you, my peace I give you”.
Please graciously grant peace to all of us,
to those in our family
and to everyone in our parish.
Allow us to be of one mind and heart.
Allow us to be an instrument of your peace.
(If praying with others, offer a sign of peace to one another.)

A Time for Spiritual Communion
As we long for the Eucharist, we long to be with Christ and share in his life.  Let us spend some moments now in prayer uniting our life to the life of Jesus Christ.  (You may even want to look upon a crucifix or hold it, or look upon an image or statue of Jesus Christ.)

My Jesus, I believe that you are present in the most Blessed Sacrament.
I love You above all things and I desire to receive You into my soul.
Since I cannot now 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.

Prayer for Strength and Guidance
O Lord, I give you my worries and concerns and I ask for your guidance.
You see it all, the outer circumstances, the inner turmoil. I know that you understand my life, that sometimes my heart weighs heavy with trouble.
Right now, I lay all these things before you. I breathe in, safe in the knowledge that I am held by grace. I breathe out, knowing that I am held secure in your arms. And I wait on you.
For you are all truth, you are overflowing love, you are a beacon of hope and a fortress of faith. Lord, I choose to be attentive to your voice. May I be alert to your Spirit’s guiding as I journey onwards with you. Amen. 

Pastoral Note:
For those who may want to experience a more contemplative form of prayer, allow the Holy Spirit to pray within you. One way is to center ourselves by being conscious of our own breathing.  Slowly breathe in.  As you hold your breath for a second or two, picture Jesus Christ or even his name in your mind.  Then slowly breathe out. You can repeat this type of spiritual exercise until you are ready to close in prayer. This can be done as easily with children as with adults. It can be very comforting, peaceful and a way to find communion with God by feeling His presence.

A Closing Prayer
Lord,
As we seek this spiritual communion
and desire Your presence,
we pray that You will protect us in these uncertain times.

Please give us the hope we need day by day,
strengthen our desire to help one another,
and keep our Saint Hubert Parish community close to You.

We long to all be together as a parish again,
without fear and uncertainty,
one family of faith, united and of one mind and heart,
to worship You at your altar of praise.

Please give us the strength
and connection we need
as we seek to be with you and one another.

We ask all our prayers through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Going Forth
Thank you, God, for this time we have shared.
I know you are with me.

Send me to glorify You by the way I live my life.

In the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.