Prayer Time During the Week of Laudato Si' (May 16-24, 2022)

The prayer time can begin by lighting candles and creating a space with natural decorations that represent agriculture or wild products available in the local ecosystem. The prayer time can also be celebrated outdoors in nature, after each session, asking the community to observe a few minutes of silence.

Introduction: (led) (Congregation stands)

Dear community, we are gathered here in the name of the Holy Trinity: Creator, Redeemer and Sustainer of the earth and all creation!

Praise the Most Holy Trinity! God is the melody of life, Creator of the universe, Source of life for all living things; Whom the angels sing; the miraculous light of all mysteries known or unknown to mankind, and is the life present in all creatures.

Embracing beauty and committing to care for our common home, the encyclical Laudato Si’ takes its name from the prayer of St. Francis: “Laudato Si’- Blessed be the Lord.” In the song creation reminds that the Earth is our common home, “like a sister with whom we share life and like a beautiful mother who opens her arms to embrace us.” It is “we are the land” (Genesis 2:7). Our bodies are made up of the elements of the Earth, air gives us breath, water keeps us alive and nourished.”

Today more than ever, the earth is being persecuted, being plundered, crying out in pain in union with the groans of all the abandoned people of this world. Pope Francis invites us to listen to them, he calls on all and each person, individuals, families, local groups, countries and the international community to convert to the environment, in the words of Saint John Paul II, meaning "to change direction", to accept the beauty and responsibility to commit to taking care of the common home.

Responding to the Holy Father's invitation, we celebrate a time of prayer. May God help each person, each family, each group and our entire parish to listen to the call to protect the earth, so that the earth can be a place of peace and prosperity for us and for all of God's creatures.

1.1 Sing: GLORY TO THE LORD (congregation)

Blue sky, oh blue sky. Tell us about the glory of the Lord. As high as the heavens are, spread the word about His deeds. Day and night, let us pass on the immense transcendent feats. God has lovingly given life as proof of the coming of love.

DK : The glory of God shines forth. Glory to God is great, I worship You with faith. Glory to God, all beings will be grateful to God forever. There is no one as powerful as the triune God.

No need for an hour or a sentence. The resounding echoes resonate throughout the universe. No matter how many pens or inscriptions are carved, those messages can still be spread. All things small and large come together to weave thousands of poems. Play all kinds of music in praise of the infinite power of God.
Oh sun, oh sun. Who is the tent that gives you shelter? To go throughout the winter to spread the fire of life to all creatures. Oh sun, oh sun. Let's repel the dark night. Lead us on the good path, the path of dedication and endless service.

(Congregation sits)

1.2 Conductor - Answer

Chorus: We are gathered here in the image of the Creator

Answer: Who is the community of love

Chorus: We are gathered here in the name of our Redeemer

Answer: The One who reconciled all creation

Chorus: We are gathered here in the presence of the One who gives life

Answer: The One who sparked new life and renewed life.

Praise (Psalm 104)

C: All people lift up their eyes to the Lord, and it is He who gives them food at the right time.

When He opens His hand to give, countless creatures are satisfied.

A. Bless the LORD, my soul!

B. God placed the moon to measure the weather, teaching the sun to set at the right time. Night returns when God casts darkness, deep in the forest, wild animals roam

A. The roar of lions is resounding, they hunt for their prey, screaming for God to feed them. When the sun came up, they told each other to go home, find a cave, and lie down to rest. It was people's turn to go out and work, engrossed until sunset.

B. God creates the source: streams and waterfalls, between mountains and hills, winding and winding. Bringing water to drink for wild animals and thirsty wild horses.

A. God causes green grass to grow to feed the livestock, and makes fresh herbs for the people to enjoy. From the fields, they earn bread and butter, make delicious wine to cheer up people's hearts, anoint their faces with perfume, and thanks to bread and bread, their hearts are full.

B. The earth is satisfied with the fruit He gives

A+B. May the glory of God endure forever!

3. Repentance:

Lord, we praise you because you created the life-bearing earth and placed in it cyclical laws. God has opened his hand to feed the creatures He has created. Furthermore, God also gave people and all creatures the Sabbath so that people and the land could rest. Yet today, our lifestyle has pushed the planet beyond its limits. Forests are eroding, topsoil is being washed away, fields are disappearing, deserts are expanding, seas are acidifying, storms are stronger. People and animals were forced to flee in search of safety.

Therefore, we confess:

(1 person chants - the whole community responds together)

Chorus: God of mercy, you tell us that the earth needs rest. We have asked the Earth to produce beyond its capacity, lacking the courage to resist the illusions of endless growth.

Response: May God have mercy on us

Chorus: God invites us to stop sowing, pruning and reaping with soil-destroying farming methods, but we have continuously exploited the land and poisoned it with brutal farming methods, turning the land more and more into a desert.

Response: Lord, have mercy on us.

Chorus: Lord, You assure us that: the yield of the land is enough to satisfy everyone's needs, but we have consumed food and energy wastefully, not yet trusting that You can feed us abundantly.

Response: Lord, have mercy on us

Chorus: Lord, you tell us that the land cannot be sold forever, because the land and everything in it is yours. But we have brought land out to exchange, trade and possess for private gain.

Response: Lord, have mercy on us

Chorus: God calls us to leave fruit in the fields to feed the poor, feed the wildlife, and enrich the land, but we have failed to share what we receive from the Earth with others.

Answer: God have mercy on us

Chorus: God called us to do justice and truth, but we lacked faith, did not love God with all our heart, strength and mind, did not love our neighbors and creatures as ourselves.

Answer: God have mercy on us

Chorus: Free us from fear and doubt

Answer: So that we can imagine a life of reconciliation with the Earth and all creatures, through the Gospel preached by Jesus Christ.

Chorus: Holy Spirit, help us who are weak, because we do not know how to pray properly; but the Spirit himself intercedes and helps, with indescribable groanings. And God, who knows the heart, knows what the Spirit wants to say, because the Spirit intercedes and helps the holy people according to God's will. (Rom 8:26-27)

Congregation: Amen

(silence 1-2 minutes)

4. The Word of God: (standing congregation)

Matthew 20:1-16:

"The kingdom of heaven is like a householder who went out early in the morning to hire workers to work in his vineyard. Having agreed with the workers on one denarii a day, he sent them into the vineyard to work. About the third hour, he returned and saw others standing idle, standing in the marketplace. He also said to them, “You too, go into the vineyard, and I will pay you fairly.” They immediately left. About the sixth hour, then the ninth hour, he came out again and did the same thing.Around the eleventh hour, he returned and saw other people standing there. He said to them: "Why are you standing here all day doing nothing?" They replied, “Because no one hired us.” He said to them, “You too, go into the vineyard!” When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to the manager, "Call the workers and pay them, starting from the last to work and ending with the first." So the new men who came in at the eleventh hour came forward and each received a denarii.When it was the turn of the first people to work, they thought they would receive more, but they only received one denarii each. They both received and grumbled at the homeowner: "These last few people only worked for an hour, yet you consider them equal to us who have had to work hard all day, and were also scorched by the hot sun." The boss replied to one of them: "Hey friend, I haven't treated you unfairly. Didn't you agree with me for one denarii? Take your share and go. As for me, I want to let the last person who comes in to work be as good as you."Don't I have the right to freely decide what is mine? Or because you see that I am kind, do you become jealous?” So those who are last will be first, and those who are first will be last.

(Congregation sits)

There is enough for our needs, not our greed.

The story of the Kingdom of Heaven is told by the evangelist Matthew through a very simple and specific story: the owner hired workers to work in his vineyard. The story begins at dawn and ends at dusk. We are invited to observe the behavior of the boss and the emotions of the workers.

Perhaps, after reaching an agreement with the owner, the first worker was also very happy because he had a job opportunity right from the beginning of the morning and was satisfied with the salary. However, let us feel how much greater joy there is in the person who is finally hired by the employer. The Gospel says that he was hired at the "eleventh hour", which is 6:00 p.m. This guy's joy was increased even more when he was still paid a salary of 1 dong and was paid first. The story was all good until the manager paid the first employee. The happy atmosphere was taken away when he complained about his boss's salary.

In my "heaven", I am always satisfied and happy with what I am given; This joy disappears when I start comparing myself to my brothers and sisters around me. A false need has been woven into desires, covered up or disguised by greed and jealousy. God nourishes people with fine wheat, gives them full enjoyment, and no one will ever be in need. Out of greed, people have put themselves in a state of scarcity.

This human greed has made the earth today hurt and exhausted. Humans tragically poison the environment from their waste; exhausting resources from mother earth without thinking about preservation and restoration; Massacre of forests amid cries for help from animals and creatures; and in the end man destroys himself.

The Holy Year for the Earth invites us to think about how to use our earth: using it with a sense of responsibility, with love or using it in a selfish way, only knowing how to demand and satisfy without knowing how to give, preserve and create. Greed pushes us into sad stories, puts us in a "polluted" environment and loses life and joy.

Pope Francis in his encyclical Laudato Si’, invites the Earth community to live its faith in a new relationship with God through love for creation. The question is asked: "What do we come to this earth for? For what purpose do we work and fight? Why does the Earth need us?".Only when we let nature envelop our faith and our vision of the world, we will not "litter" the social and ecclesial environment with "indestructible" human ideas. "Many things need to be reoriented, first humanity in general and our community in particular must change themselves. There needs to be a sense of common origin, a mutual belonging and a shared future for everyone. This basic awareness helps shape into new convictions, new attitudes and ways of life.

May the spirit of the Lord's Prayer be embraced by each of us: may we receive our daily bread, may Your will always be done, and may you forgive us.

Community silence (2-3 minutes)

Sing: ALL CREATURES (Ngoc Kon)

DK: All creatures, sing a song with me. Sing praises to God's power and authority to create all living things. Lift up all your words, you righteous people. Praise God in thousands of voices everywhere.

1. He gave me high seas, high mountains and long rivers. The sky is cloudy and the stars are clear in the cool streams and deep forests. Yes, the sun shines during the day, the moon shines bright at night. Spring, summer, autumn, and winter are filled with so many blessings.

2. He gave me an unfading Faith. He gave me a heart full of love. The dream of heaven, endless happiness and peace. Offer Him a song of love and gratitude day and night.

4. He has given me fragrant rice fields for many seasons. Thousands of flowers and leaves blooming brightly at dawn. Birds sing loudly, butterflies fly. The green color of time, oh so much love.

5. Prayer (Standing Congregation)

Conductor: Let us pray together in thanksgiving for Mother Earth, from whom all life originates. Brother Sun has the energy that radiates life, Sister Water nourishes and revives humans and all creatures, and for them we are called to cultivate and preserve this garden. O Spirit of Creation.

Response: Enlighten our hearts and stay with Your world.

Chorus: Almighty God, you are present in the entire universe and in the smallest creatures. God embraces all that exists with tenderness. Please pour down on us the power of Your love, so that we can protect life and beauty. Please fill us with peace, so that we can live as brothers and sisters, without harming anyone. O Spirit of Creation.