Liturgy of the Word: A Date With God?
A large part of our celebration of the Eucharist every week is the Liturgy of the Word. I have often suggested that good prayer is very much like a good date. The best kind of prayer involves both speaking and listening. Neglecting one or the other can derail the prayer very quickly. If you have ever been on a date where the other person says nothing or just won’t allow you a word in edgewise, you understand exactly what I am talking about. Prayer is about continuing to build a relationship with God and like every relationship, our relationship with God requires communication. The Liturgy of the Word is one of the best examples of this I can think of.
We begin the Liturgy of the Word by listening to the Word of God. We sit during the first two readings as a sign of our receptiveness to what is being proclaimed. The first reading is usually taken from the Old Testament and describes some great thing that God has done for His people. This first reading is followed by the singing of the Responsorial Psalm. Here is our opportunity as a community who has listened to God’s Word to respond to what He has said and done. On Sundays this is followed by another reading, usually from the epistles of Paul. This is another chance for us to open our ears to hear God’s Word. Our next response is even stronger as we stand to sing the Alleluia and the Gospel Proclamation. Standing during the Liturgy is always a posture of praise and thanksgiving and as such an appropriate response not only to what we have already heard at this point in the Liturgy, but to what is about to be proclaimed in the Gospel. Before the reading of the Gospel, we trace the sign of the cross on our bodies three times asking God to touch our minds, our lips and our hearts. Once we have heard the words of the Gospel, we sit again and listen to the homilist whose job it is to bring the community to thanksgiving for what God has done for us. Finally, we once again speak to God in the prayers of intercession, trusting that the Lord will listen to our needs.
It may seem like a stretch, but I believe if each of us entered into the Liturgy of the Word with the same kind of nervous anticipation that is present on a first date, we might just see some new things about God, and even about ourselves. What would happen if we came to mass each week looking forward to hearing what God had to say? What would happen if we couldn’t wait to be able to tell Him about what was going on in our lives? What would happen if we had butterflies in our stomachs as we anticipated God’s touching our minds, lips and hearts when we walked through the door? What would happen if we were able to bring all of our joys and sorrows to Him each week, knowing that He would listen to our needs as a trusted friend?
I’d sure like to find out.
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