18th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Mass Readings:
Thus, says the Lord: All you who are thirsty, come to the water! You who have no money, come, receive grain and eat; Come, without paying and without cost, drink wine and milk! Why spend your money for what is not bread; your wages for what fails to satisfy? Heed me, and you shall eat well, you shall delight in rich fare. Come to me heedfully, listen, that you may have life. I will renew with you the everlasting covenant, the benefits assured to David.
The hand of the Lord feeds us; he answers all our needs.
The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and of great kindness
The Lord is good to all and compassionate toward all His works.
The eyes of all look hopefully to you, and you give them their food in due season;
You open your hand and satisfy the desire of every living thing.
The Lord is just in all His ways and holy in all His works.
The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth.
Brothers and sisters: What will separate us from the love of Christ? Will anguish, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword? No, in all these things we conquer overwhelmingly through Him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia! One does not live on bread along but on every word that comes forth from the mouth of God. Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia!
When Jesus heard of the death of John the Baptist, he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself. The crowds heard of this and followed him on foot from their towns. When he disembarked and saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them, and he cured their sick. When it was evening, the disciples approached him and said, “This is a deserted place and it is already late; dismiss the crowds so that they can go to the villages and buy food for themselves.” Jesus said to them, “There is no need for them to go away; give them some food yourselves.” But they said to him, “Five loaves and two fish are all we have here.” Then he said, “Bring them here to me,” and he ordered the crowds to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to the disciples, who in turn gave them to the crowds. They all ate and were satisfied, and they picked up the fragments left over – twelve wicker baskets full. Those who ate were about five thousand men, not counting women and children.
Mass Songs:
Come to the feast of heaven and earth! Come to the table of plenty! God will provide for all that we need, here at the table of plenty.
O come and sit at my table where saints and sinners and friends. I wait to welcome the lost and lonely to share the cup of my love.
O come and eat without money; come to drink without price. My feast of gladness will feed your spirit with faith and fullness of love.
My bread will ever sustain you through days of sorrow and woe. My wine will flow like a sea of gladness to flood the depths of your soul.
Your fields will flower in fullness; your homes will flourish in peace. For I, the Giver of home and harvest will send my rain on the soil.
O let all who thirst, let them come to the water. And let all who have nothing, let them come to the Lord: without money, without price. Why should you pay the price, except for the Lord?
And let all who seek, let them come to the water. And let all who have nothing, let them come to the Lord: without money, without strife. Why should you spend your life, except for the Lord?
And let all who toil, let them come to the water. And let all who are weary, let them come to the Lord: all who labor without rest. How can your soul find rest, except for the Lord?
And let all the poor, let them come to the water. Bring the ones who are laden, bring them all to the Lord: bring the children without might. Easy the load and light: come to the Lord.
To be your bread now, be your wine now, Lord, come and change us to be a sign of your love. Blest and broken, poured and flowing, give that you gave us, to be your body once again.
We come to your table with our lives as they are. Heal us, Lord, for we are broken; make us one again.
Lord, we stumble through the darkness of night. Lead us, now, O, Lord we follow; bring us home to you.
Give us the bread and wine that bring us to life. Feed us, and we’ll never hunger, never thirst again.
Rain down, rain down, rain down your love on your people. Rain down, rain down, rain down your love, God of life.
Faithful and true is the word of our God. All of God’s works are so worthy of trust. God’s mercy fails on the just and the right; full of God’s love is the earth.
We who revere and find hope in our God live in the kindness and joy of God’s wing. God will protect us from darkness and death; God will not leave us to starve.
God of creation, we long for your truth; you are the water of life that we thirst. Grant that your love and your peace touch our hearts, all of our hope lies in you.