EVERYDAY PRAYER

Prayer of Easter
Word of god every day

Prayer of Easter

Memory of Mary of Clopas who stood near the cross of the Lord with the other women. Prayer for all women in every part of the world who follow the Lord in difficulties and with courage. We remember Dietrich Bonhoeffer who was killed by the Nazis in the concentration camp of Flossenbürg.
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Libretto DEL GIORNO
Prayer of Easter

Memory of Mary of Clopas who stood near the cross of the Lord with the other women. Prayer for all women in every part of the world who follow the Lord in difficulties and with courage. We remember Dietrich Bonhoeffer who was killed by the Nazis in the concentration camp of Flossenbürg.


Reading of the Word of God

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Christ is risen from the dead
and will die no more.
He awaits us in Galilee!

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

John 21,1-14

Later on, Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples. It was by the Sea of Tiberias, and it happened like this:

Simon Peter, Thomas called the Twin, Nathanael from Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee and two more of his disciples were together.

Simon Peter said, 'I'm going fishing.' They replied, 'We'll come with you.' They went out and got into the boat but caught nothing that night.

When it was already light, there stood Jesus on the shore, though the disciples did not realise that it was Jesus.

Jesus called out, 'Haven't you caught anything, friends?' And when they answered, 'No,'

he said, 'Throw the net out to starboard and you'll find something.' So they threw the net out and could not haul it in because of the quantity of fish.

The disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, 'It is the Lord.' At these words, 'It is the Lord,' Simon Peter tied his outer garment round him (for he had nothing on) and jumped into the water.

The other disciples came on in the boat, towing the net with the fish; they were only about a hundred yards from land.

As soon as they came ashore they saw that there was some bread there and a charcoal fire with fish cooking on it.

Jesus said, 'Bring some of the fish you have just caught.'

Simon Peter went aboard and dragged the net ashore, full of big fish, one hundred and fifty-three of them; and in spite of there being so many the net was not broken.

Jesus said to them, 'Come and have breakfast.' None of the disciples was bold enough to ask, 'Who are you?'. They knew quite well it was the Lord.

Jesus then stepped forward, took the bread and gave it to them, and the same with the fish.

This was the third time that Jesus revealed himself to the disciples after rising from the dead.

 

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

Christ is risen from the dead
and will die no more.
He awaits us in Galilee!

Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia

The Apostles, who had left their nets to become fishers of men (Lk 5:10), return to being fishers of fish. And now, when Jesus appears without them recognizing him, the scene of the beginning repeats itself. Again, this time they had fished all night in vain. It is the experience of a work that bears no fruit, the experience of thoughts, worries and agitations that get nowhere. Without the light of the Gospel it is difficult to work and bear fruit. But with Jesus who comes, the light of sunrise shines forth on a new day. He is the Risen One, but they did not realize it and did not recognize him. Although they are tired and understandably sceptical, they still listen to him and cast their nets from the other side of the boat. Perhaps in that voice, they hear the echo of what they had listened for three years and what had fascinated them. They could not believe that he could speak again. Perhaps instinctively, they obey and cast the nets. It is beautiful, this instinct that comes from the habit to listen to the Gospel. The catch is abundant beyond any measure. At this point they recognize the Lord. The effectiveness of the Gospel opens their eyes and their hearts. Perhaps they can better understand what Jesus had told them in the past: "A part from me you can do nothing" (Jn 15:5). Only with the Lord the impossible becomes possible. And the disciple of love realizes it. He is the one who recognizes the Lord and immediately tells it to Peter who, overwhelmed with joy, jumps into the sea and swims toward Jesus. On the shore Jesus' disciples again revive the communion with the Master. Jesus already prepared for them the embers and he waits for the miraculously caught fish. This is the banquet of Jesus risen from death with his followers. The words of the Evangelist recalls those used in the multiplication of the loaves and in the Eucharist. Indeed, it is the celebration of the Eucharistic Liturgy, the place where the community of disciples is built, the place of the multiplication of love.

WORD OF GOD EVERY DAY: THE CALENDAR

Prayer is the heart of the life of the Community of Sant'Egidio and is its absolute priority. At the end of the day, every the Community of Sant'Egidio, large or small, gathers around the Lord to listen to his Word. The Word of God and the prayer are, in fact, the very basis of the whole life of the Community. The disciples cannot do other than remain at the feet of Jesus, as did Mary of Bethany, to receive his love and learn his ways (Phil. 2:5).
So every evening, when the Community returns to the feet of the Lord, it repeats the words of the anonymous disciple: " Lord, teach us how to pray". Jesus, Master of prayer, continues to answer: "When you pray, say: Abba, Father". It is not a simple exhortation, it is much more. With these words Jesus lets the disciples participate in his own relationship with the Father. Therefore in prayer, the fact of being children of the Father who is in heaven, comes before the words we may say. So praying is above all a way of being! That is to say we are children who turn with faith to the Father, certain that they will be heard.
Jesus teaches us to call God "Our Father". And not simply "Father" or "My Father". Disciples, even when they pray on their own, are never isolated nor they are orphans; they are always members of the Lord's family.
In praying together, beside the mystery of being children of God, there is also the mystery of brotherhood, as the Father of the Church said: "You cannot have God as father without having the church as mother". When praying together, the Holy Spirit assembles the disciples in the upper room together with Mary, the Lord's mother, so that they may direct their gaze towards the Lord's face and learn from Him the secret of his Heart.
 The Communities of Sant'Egidio all over the world gather in the various places of prayer and lay before the Lord the hopes and the sufferings of the tired, exhausted crowds of which the Gospel speaks ( Mat. 9: 3-7 ), In these ancient crowds we can see the huge masses of the modern cities, the millions of refugees who continue to flee their countries, the poor, relegated to the very fringe of life and all those who are waiting for someone to take care of them. Praying together includes the cry, the invocation, the aspiration, the desire for peace, the healing and salvation of the men and women of this world. Prayer is never in vain; it rises ceaselessly to the Lord so that anguish is turned into hope, tears into joy, despair into happiness, and solitude into communion. May the Kingdom of God come soon among people!

WORD OF GOD EVERY DAY: THE CALENDAR