Sunday Vigil
Reading of the Word of God
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Whoever lives and believes in me
will never die.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
Hebrews 13,15-17.20-21
Through him, let us offer God an unending sacrifice of praise, the fruit of the lips of those who acknowledge his name. Keep doing good works and sharing your resources, for these are the kinds of sacrifice that please God. Obey your leaders and give way to them; they watch over your souls because they must give an account of them; make this a joy for them to do, and not a grief -- you yourselves would be the losers. I pray that the God of peace, who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great Shepherd of the sheep, by the blood that sealed an eternal covenant, may prepare you to do his will in every kind of good action; effecting in us all whatever is acceptable to himself through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
If you believe, you will see the glory of God,
thus says the Lord.
Alleluia, alleluia, alleluia
At the end of the Letter, we are invited to become involved in a "sacrifice of praise" brought forth every time the community gathers to celebrate the liturgy. The liturgy indeed gives strength and meaning to the entire life of Christian communities. Christian life is not about following a set of rules or rituals but about welcoming Christ's love which frees us from the slavery of sin. This invitation of the Letter refers to embodying a particular attitude in our daily lives that brings us to a "communion of goods," possible only when we look with benevolence upon our brothers and sisters. Even obedience becomes possible when our heart lives in benevolence and communion, for obeying cannot be an obligation; obeying must grow from the awareness of our need to be helped and guided. Then, the author invites his readers to prayer, which it is not reported in the text but remains the Letter's fundamental final passage before the concluding thanksgiving. Leaving his anonymous attitude, the author insistently asks, "Pray for us." Recently Pope Francis helped us feel with greater strength the commitment to pray for one another. After this request the author of the Letter expresses a great wish that in a certain way constitutes a conclusive theological point of the Letter. He formulates a solemn blessing for the community and reminds them again of God's salvific works that destroyed death. He reminds that "the God of peace brought them back" out of the kingdom of death (Is 63:11-13) "the great Shepherd of the sheep," summing up in this way the priestly office of Christ, a precursor and promoter. It is indeed the Lord who makes us perfect in every good so that we can accomplish his will. May the Lord make us perfect in good too, so that we will be able to accomplish his will.