Third Sunday of Lent
(Year C)
– Sunday 23rd March 2019
–
Colour: Purple
Theme: Figtree
====
7:00 - 7:03 ====
Welcome;
Today Jesus
tells us a parable about a tree that did not bear any fruit
and all the
things that the gardener planned to try to make it grow better.
People are
like trees, they need certain things to grow and be healthy too. Let’s
think a bit
more about all this today.
Entrance Song:
1 When I survey the wondrous cross
on which the Prince of glory died,
my richest gain I count but loss,
and pour contempt on all my pride.
2 Forbid it, Lord, that I should boast save in the
death of Christ, my God! All the vain things that charm me most,
I sacrifice them through his blood.
3 See, from his head, his hands, his feet, sorrow and
love flow mingled down. Did e'er such love and sorrow meet, or thorns compose
so rich a crown?
//V// In the name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
//R// Amen.
//V// May The Grace of our Lord Jesus Christ,
And the love of God,
And the fellowship of the Holy
Spirit,
be with you all.
//R// And with Your Spirit.
==== 7:03 - 7:08
====
NEWS TIME :-)
==== 7:08 - 7:11
====
Penitential Rite
Dear little children, let us
acknowledge our sins,
and so prepare ourselves to
celebrate the sacred mysteries.
Confession of our sins
I confess to the 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
-strike
the breast 3 times as you say-
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
Have Mercy on us oh Lord
For we have
sinned against you.
Show us, Oh Lord, your
mercy
And grant us your
salvation.
You were sent to heal the
contrite of heart.
Lord have Mercy
Lord have Mercy
You came to 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 the
almighty God have mercy on us, forgive us our sins and bring us to life
everlasting? AMEN
====
7:11 - 7:14 ====
GLORIA (We
do not sing it in lent period)
Opening Prayer
Forgiving God,
we thank you for the love and care that you
show for us all.
Help us to grow in your love, and to do all that we can to help
each other and
bring a special meaning to the people around us. Amen…
===
7:14 - 7:19 ====
Liturgy of
the Word
First Reading, Introduce the reading.
Today’s first reading is from the Old
Testament, the book of Exodus 3:1-8,13-15
The Wandering in the Wilderness
A
prepared child comes and takes the first reading or second reading.
Moses at the
Burning Bush
3 Moses was keeping the flock of his
father-in-law Jethro, the priest of Midian; he led his flock beyond the
wilderness, and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. 2 There the
angel of the Lord appeared to him in a flame of fire out of a bush; he looked,
and the bush was blazing, yet it was not consumed. 3 Then Moses
said, “I must turn aside and look at this great sight, and see why the bush is
not burned up.” 4 When the Lord saw that he had turned aside to see,
God called to him out of the bush, “Moses, Moses!” And he said, “Here I am.” 5
Then he said, “Come no closer! Remove the sandals from your feet, for the place
on which you are standing is holy ground.” 6 He said further, “I am
the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob.” And Moses hid his face, for he was afraid to look at God. 7 Then the Lord said, “I have observed the
misery of my people who are in Egypt; I have heard their cry on account of their
taskmasters. Indeed, I know their sufferings, 8 and I have come down
to deliver them from the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land to a
good and broad land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the country of the
Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the
Jebusites..
The Divine Name Revealed
13 But Moses said to God,
“If I come to the Israelites and say to them, ‘The God of your ancestors has
sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to
them?” 14 God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” He said
further, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘I am has sent me to you.’” 15
God also said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the Israelites, ‘The Lord, the
God of your ancestors, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of
Jacob, has sent me to you’:
“This is the word of the Lord”
All say; “Thanks
be to God”.
Let us focus on our responsorial Psalm:
< The Lord is kind and merciful.....>3x.
Introduce the
Gospel
Today’s Gospel reading comes from the book of Luke. So the story
is about a man who had some fig trees and he is upset about this particular one
that isn’t growing right. Let’s listen
to see if we can understand what Jesus is telling us.
Now we will stand to get ready to hear the Gospel
In lent period, we shall
not sing the hallelujah,
because it’s a time for us to reflect on the
quality of our life style. But another song without an hallelujah
can be sang
Praise
Him, Praise Him, Praise him in the morning, praise him in the noon-time, Praise
Him, Praise Him Praise him when the sun goes down!!
Silently
the leader says:” Cleanse my heart and my lips, almighty God, that I
may worthily proclaim your Holy Gospel.
The Lord be with You,
AND with your Spirit.
The Gospel Reading was
written by (Lk 13:6-9) Let Lord’s Word be in my
mind <make a cross on
forehead>, and on my lips <make a cross on lips>, and in my heart <make a cross on the
left side of the chest> OR Glory
to You Lord Jesus Christ.
The
Parable of the Unfruitful Fig Tree
6 Then Jesus told them this parable: “There was once a man who had a
fig tree growing in his vineyard. He went looking for figs on it but found
none. 7 So he said to
his gardener, ‘Look, for three years I have been coming here looking for figs
on this fig tree, and I haven't found any. Cut it down! Why should it go on
using up the soil?’ 8 But the gardener answered, ‘Leave it alone, sir, just one more
year; I will dig around it and put in some fertilizer. 9 Then if the
tree bears figs next year, so much the better; if not, then you can have it cut
down.’”
The Gospel of the Lord”,
“Glory and praise to you Lord, Jesus
Christ”
==== 7:19 - 7:24 ====
(*)Tell an
interesting story according to the Gospel and children’s level of
understanding.
Gospel reflection:
Ask; In both 1st
reading and the Gospel, we read about trees. Today’s Gospel reading is a kind
of story that Jesus told to give a message.
Do you remember what the stories Jesus told were called? <parables> These parables were stories that the people
listening to Jesus could understand. What do you think Jesus is trying to tell
us? Should we just give up on
people? Or should we try to teach and
guide and help them? What does God do
for us? Discuss…
Let us stand up and we profess our faith.
Profession of our faith
I believe in God the Father,
Almighty,
creator of heaven and earth:
And in Jesus Christ, his only
begotten Son, our Lord:
--bow down--
Who was conceived by the power of
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 sits 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 the life everlasting,
Amen.
==== 7:24 - 7:26
====
Prayers of the Faithful
Now is the time to pray for our
stuff :-)Intercessions.
You may want to ask the children to
offer their own prayers or you can use the suggestions below.
Say: As we try to change our lives and so the lives of others, we pray
together:
Prayer 1. Let us
pray for the Church leaders, Pope Francis, Bishop, Priests and all the clergy, that
they may not give up on God’s people even when they have no use but they may
love them and tell them more good news of God.
We pray to the Lord…
Prayer 2. Let us pray for our lovely
parents, that like the gardener in the
gospel
story, they may continue to work to help their children, especially the most
difficult ones to change their lives for the better.. We pray to the Lord….
Prayer 3. We pray for our parish, family and
friends: that through God’s grace, we may
share what
we have with others, and help make sure that all people have the chance to grow
and live life to the full. We pray to
the Lord….
Prayer 5. And for all of us gathered here,
may we be as obedient as Moses was obedient when God called on him.
We pray to the Lord...
==== 7:26 - 7:28
====
Silently, each one tell God your
petition.
We ask this through our Lord Jesus
Christ your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and
the Holy Spirit,
One God, for ever and ever.
Amen
==== 7:28 - 7:30 ====
Song Interlude: Walk Walk in the light, walk walk in the light, .........
Sing as we give in our offertory and
we walk to the big church... NOTE-- after the song, is being sung, we pick the children
that will perform next Sunday....
