Day 6: Companions, A Union of Minds and Hearts

Day 6 Companions: A Union of Hearts and Minds

OPENING HYMN

Dakilang Pag-ibig (Eddie Hontiveros, SJ) or Diyos ay Pag-ibig

INTRODUCTION TO THE CELEBRATION

P. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
A. Amen.

If the presider is a priest or deacon:
P. The Lord be with you.
A. And also with you.

In this year of Jubilee, we honor the first companions, who, bound by the shared experience of the Spiritual Exercises, united themselves under the standard of Christ as a holy and apostolic company in a blessed union of minds and hearts. We pray that we too may have some share in their spiritual fellowship, with one another in the Lord.

A moment of silence is observed.

PRAYER OF PRAISE

P. We are the Body of Christ raised from the dead.
A. We belong to him and to one another so we may give glory to God. (Rom 7: 4)
P. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ?
A. Because there is one bread, we who are many are one body, for we all partake of the one bread. (1 Cor 10: 16-17)
P. And his gifts were that some should be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ.
A. Until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. (Eph 4: 11-13)

P. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
A. As it was in the beginning is now and will be for ever. Amen.

GRACE OF THE DAY
We beg for the grace to be united to Christ and to one another, in a holy union of minds and hearts; that we may bear together the mind and heart of Christ our Lord.

SCRIPTURE READING

From the letter of Paul to the Colossians 3: 12-17

Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus.

Put on then, as God's chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassion, kindness, lowliness, meekness, and patience, forbearing one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony. And let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in the one body. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teach and admonish one another in all wisdom, and sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs with thankfulness in your hearts to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

MEDITATION SONG

Kaibigan, Kapanalig (Tim Ofrasio, SJ – Eddie Hontiveros, SJ) or
Love is the Answer (Raymond Hannisian)
The meditation song may be preceded or replaced by a homily or sharing, or a period of silent prayer.

REFLECTION

It is by being sent that a Jesuit becomes a companion of Jesus. Moreover, it is in companionship that the Jesuit fulfills his mission. He belongs to a community of friends in the Lord, who, like him, have asked to be received under the standard of Christ the King. A communitas ad dispersionem but also a koinonia, a sharing of goods and life, with the Eucharist as its center: the sacrifice and sacrament of the Death of Jesus, who loved his own to the end.

And each member of every Jesuit community is ever mindful of what Saint Ignatius says about love, that it consists in sharing what one has, what one is, with those one loves. When we speak of having all things in common, this is what we mean. (Horacio dela Costa, SJ. Jesuits Today. Rome, 1974-1975.)

DAILY PRAYER

Please refer to First Day.

INTERCESSIONS

As friends in the Lord, the first companions united under the standard of Christ in brotherhood and fellowship for the service and glory of his Name. Let us pray to the Father of Jesus, confident that he will give us all that we ask in His Name:

R. Lord, gather us in your love.

1. For our Holy Father, N. in his ministry of solicitude for all the Churches. That he may gather in fellowship all believers around the world and engage in sincere dialogue with people from other faiths. Let us pray to the Lord.
2. For our Father General, N., successor of Saint Ignatius. That he may lead the Society in love and service to God our Lord with clarity of discernment, fidelity to the Church and the Roman Pontiff, and care for all our members. Let us pray to the Lord.
3. For all our political leaders. That they may work together for the good of our people and put an end to all ill-motivated and self-centered opposition of one another that so hinders our national growth. Let us pray to the Lord.
4. For our universal Society “widely dispersed over the face of the earth”. That we may always be united in the love and service of God our Lord in a plurality of gifts and tasks but unity of purpose. Let us pray to the Lord.
5. For our community. That transcending our differences, we may attain in the Lord, a genuine union of minds and hearts “in a close sharing of goods and of life, with the Eucharist as our center.” Let us pray to the Lord.

Our Father…

CLOSING PRAYER

God our Father, your Son prayed that all may be one in your love unto fullness of life. By the example and merits of Ignatius, Francis and Peter, gather us in a holy union of minds and hearts, to serve you and bear fruit for the glory of your Name.

We ask this in the Name of Jesus the Lord.

A. Amen.


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