 |
 |
|
The Responsorial Psalm is chosen to respond to the First Reading. The Book of Psalms is great to dip into. As we said about the First Reading, human nature has not changed much - and in the Psalms, you can find songs that celebrate the great things that God has done - songs that speak of trust in God - songs that call upon God in anger and despair... Jesus would have known most if not all the Psalms by heart - some of His last words were quotations from them - “My God, my God why have You forsaken me? (Ps.21/ 22)The Psalms form the basis of the Divine Office - the Prayer of the Church. Over a period of weeks - usually four - every Psalm in the Psalter is prayed by monks and nuns around the world. In this way, at every hour, all the different emotions of the world - its joys and its sorrows - are brought into Prayer. In the Mass, we use the Psalm as a long-loved prayer-response to the Scripture Reading - using words that time and constant prayer has made holy.Take Time Out Browse through the Psalms and see the different emotions that are expressed. See whether any seem to speak to you. Are you surprised by any of them? Which do you like most? Look ahead to next week’s Psalm. Decide who might have written it - and think of how many people have used it in prayer since then. Bring the fruit of your reflections to your praying of the Psalm next week. © Wellspring 2005 |
|