SIXTH SUNDAY OF EASTER PRESIDENTIAL PRAYERS FROM THE CHAIR Introductory Rites [Presider enters during Processional Hymn and remains with servers/lector at the baptismal font for the introduction and then immediately begins the rite of sprinkling] Sign of the Cross Priest Celebrant (†): In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Faithful Celebrants (‡): Amen. Greeting † The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all. or † Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. or † ‡ The Lord be with you. And with your spirit. Invitation to Prayer over Blessed Water † Dear brothers and sisters, let us implore the mercy of God, our Father. May this rite of sprinkling revive in us the grace of baptism through which we have been immersed in the redeeming death of the Lord, 1 that we may rise with him to new life. † O Father, from the Lamb sacrificed for us upon the cross, you have made spring up for us fountains of living water. Cantor 2X: † O Christ, you have renewed the youthfulness of the church in the cleansing of water with the word of life. Cantor 2X: † O Spirit, you have brought us up from the waters of Baptism as the first fruits of a new humanity. Cantor 2X: † Almighty God, in the sacred signs of our faith you renew the wonders of creation and redemption. We thank you for the gift of this water. Grant that all who have been born again in baptism may be heralds and witnesses of the paschal mystery which is forever renewed in your church. 2 Through Christ our Lord. All: Amen. [Singing the Gloria, the presider (and assistants) sprinkle the community as other ministers process in. The Collect follows.] [If the Rite of Sprinkling has not taken place, then the penitential rite follows. If sprinkling has taken place, then the Penitential Rite is omitted.] Penitential Rite † Brothers and sisters, Let us acknowledge our sins, and so prepare ourselves to celebrate the sacred mysteries. Choose one of the following forms: †‡ I confess to almighty God and to you, my brothers and sisters, that I have greatly sinned in my thoughts and in my words, in what I have done and in what I have failed to do, through my fault, † through my fault, through my most grievous fault; therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin, all the Angels and Saints, and you, my brothers and sisters, to pray for me to the Lord our God. or † ‡ † ‡ Have mercy on us, O Lord. For we have sinned against you. Show us, O Lord, your mercy. And grant us your salvation or 3 † ‡ † ‡ † ‡ † ‡ You were sent to heal the contrite of heart: Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. You came to call sinners: Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. You are seated at the right hand of the Father to intercede for us: Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. May almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins, and bring us to everlasting life. Amen. The invocations follow, unless they occurred previously. † ‡ † ‡ † ‡ Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy. 4 The Gloria †‡ Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to people of good will. We praise you, we bless you, we adore you, we glorify you, we give you thanks for your great glory, Lord God, heavenly King, O God, almighty Father. Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son, Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us; you take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer; you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us. For you alone are the Holy One, you alone are the Lord, you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen. Collect † Let us pray. Grant, almighty God, that we may celebrate with heartfelt devotion these days of joy, which we keep in honor of the risen Lord, and that what we relive in remembrance, we may always hold to in what we do. ‡ Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. RCIA Rite of Dismissal 5 [Catechetical leader or Presider invites those to be dismissed:] † Would our candidate/s and/or catechumen/s please come forward? [once gathered in the dismissal area, continues:] † My dear candidates and catechumens, our Scripture readings for today emphasize that unselfish love is what makes our lives meaningful and worth living. We are challenged by Jesus to love others as he has loved us. May you seriously examine your lives to see the opportunities that are yours to love unselfishly. Go now in the peace of Christ to ponder the Scriptures and break open the Word of God in your lives. God bless you. [a dismissal mantra is sung as they are led out, and then follows the community’s Profession of Faith.] 6 Profession of Faith: Renewal of Baptismal Promises † Dear brothers and sisters, through the Paschal Mystery we have been buried with Christ in Baptism, so that we may walk with him in newness of life. And so, let us renew the promises of Holy Baptism, by which we once renounced Satan and his works and promised to serve God in the holy Catholic Church. And so I ask you who have been baptized: † Do you believe in God, the Father almighty, Creator of heaven and earth? ‡ I do. † Do you believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, suffered death and was buried, rose again from the dead and is seated at the right hand of the Father? ‡ I do. † Do you 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? ‡ I do. † And may almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has given us new birth by water and the Holy Spirit and bestowed on us forgiveness of our sins, keep us by his grace, in Christ Jesus our Lord, for eternal life. 7 ‡ Amen. 8 or Niceno-Constantinopolitan Creed †‡ I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth, of all things visible and invisible. I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ, the Only Begotten Son of God, born of the Father before all ages. God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father; through him all things were made. For us men and for our salvation he came down from heaven and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary, and became man. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate, he suffered death and was buried, and rose again on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures. He ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church. I confess one baptism for the forgiveness of sins and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. Amen. 9 or, the Apostles’ Creed, may be recited: †‡ 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; on 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 will 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. 10 The Prayer of the Faithful or Universal Prayer † [Insert Priest Celebrant’s Introduction here] Petitions of prayer are proclaimed by the Lector or, if present, the deacon. † [Insert Priest Celebrant’s Concluding Prayer here] 11 Prayers of the Faithful [Insert particular petitions, prayers and intentions on this page.] 12 Prayer after Communion † Let us pray. Almighty ever-living God, who restore us to eternal life in the Resurrection of Christ, increase in us, we pray, the fruits of this paschal Sacrament and pour into our hearts the strength of this saving food. Through Christ our Lord. ‡ Amen. A MOTHER’S DAY BLESSING [Ad lib introduction after Prayer After Communion and invite mothers to the sanctuary.] 13 Presider: Loving God, as a mother gives life and nourishment to her children, so you watch over the Church Bless these women, that they may be strengthened as Christian mothers. Let the example of their faith and love always shine forth. And grant that we, their sons and daughters, may honor them always with a spirit of profound respect & love. Grant this through Christ our Lord. All: Amen. [Send mothers back to their pews.] 14 Concluding Rites † ‡ The Lord be with you. And with your spirit. Optional Solemn Blessing † Bow down for the blessing. † May God, who by the Resurrection of his Only Begotten Son was pleased to confer on you the gift of redemption and of adoption, give you gladness by his blessing. Amen. ‡ † ‡ May he, by whose redeeming work you have received the gift of everlasting freedom, make you heirs to an eternal inheritance. Amen. † And may you, who have already risen with Christ in Baptism through faith, by living in a right manner on this earth, be united with him in the homeland of heaven. ‡ Amen. † ‡ And may the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, come down on you and remain with you for ever. Amen. Or Simple Blessing 15 † May almighty God bless you, the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. ‡ Amen. Dismissal † Go forth, the Mass is ended. or † Go and announce the Gospel of the Lord. or † Go in peace, glorifying the Lord by your life. or † ‡ Go in peace. Thanks be to God. Excerpts from the English translation of The Roman Missal © 2010, International Commission on English in the Liturgy Corporation. All rights reserved. 16