CELEBRATION OF THE WORD OF GOD IN THANKSGIVING FOR THE

PAST SCHOOL YEAR

In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.
All pray together.
Opening Prayer
Let us pray.
O GOD who taught the hearts of your faithful
by the light of the Holy Spirit,
grant us by the same Spirit to discern wisely what is right,
and evermore to rejoice in his consolation.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever.
Amen.
All stand.
GOSPEL
Luke 17, 11-19
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Luke
Glory to you, O Lord.
As Jesus continued his journey to Jerusalem,
he traveled through Samaria and Galilee.
As he was entering a village, ten persons with leprosy met him.
They stood at a distance from him and raised their voices, saying,
Jesus, Master! Have pity on us!
And when he saw them, he said,
Go show yourselves to the priests.
As they were going they were cleansed.
And one of them, realizing he had been healed,
returned, glorifying God in a loud voice;
and he fell at the feet of Jesus and thanked him.
He was a Samaritan.
Jesus said in reply,
Ten were cleansed, were they not?
Where are the other nine?
Has none but this foreigner returned to give thanks to God?
Then he said to him, Stand up and go;
your faith has saved you.
The Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
All sit down.
REFLECTION
Dear girls:
Maybe you are wondering why we read this Gospel today. It
does not seem to be relevant to us. But, listen carefully as we look
into the lesson from this Gospel. Let us recall some important
details in it.
The men were sick with a dreaded disease called leprosy. They
are called lepers. The people in their village feared that they would
contaminate others with their disease, so they are cast out from
living with the normal, healthy people. Imagine how difficult their
life might beliving away from their loved ones, rejected and
despised. It must have been a miserable life. And here comes Jesus
who cures them from their disease. Jesus saw their misery, and felt
mercy on them.
We, too, experience moments when we feel so miserable,
rejected, and alone. Do you still recall when we started the school
year? Some of you felt uncomfortable getting transferred to another
section. You feared that you would not have friends there. You felt
alone being away from your old friends. But look at you now! You
have managed to blend in well and be comfortable with each other.
You have made new friends. You have met Jesus in the people in
your new section, and now, you call each other familysisters. Jesus
has looked with mercy on you, and sent you friends and teachers to
accompany you in your journey. And in return, Jesus asks you for
just one thing. What is that? Let us look again into the Gospel.
When the lepers were going to the priests to be examined and
declared clean from their disease, they were gradually healed. One
of them noticed that he is healed, so he ran back to Jesus to thank
Him. This man shows us the response Jesus is asking from us
thankfulness. This man shows us what thankfulness means
knowing that God has been merciful to us, we acknowledge His
mercy, and we look back at what He has done for us with grateful
hearts. Girls, look back at your experiences this past school year.
Who are the people who helped you? Who are the people who
enabled you to go through the entire year? These are the people
who showed you that God is merciful and He understands whatever
you are going through. Go to them and thank them But most
of all, thank God for all He has done for you.
But God also shows us that thanksgiving includes putting our
trust in God. God knows exactly what we are going through, and He
will send us the necessary help to get through it. Jesus invites us to
put our trust in Him as the school year ends, and as we prepare to
embark on another. Soon, you will be put into new sections. He
invites you to trust in Him, that as you get new classmates, He will
help you again to get new friends, new sisters, and keep the old
ones as well. We trust Him that as we go through this, He will help
us to grow.
Girls, as we go through this day, let us fill our hearts with
thankfulness. And we look forward to new opportunities that we
may grow even more and bloom like beautiful flowers for the
greater glory of God. We do this ALL FOR JESUS, IN JESUS!
All stand.
PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL
Before the Prayer of the Faithful starts, the students write down on a piece of
paper their reasons for thanking God the past school year and the anxieties
or worries they have for the next school year. They will offer these to the
altar or crucifix before the Lords Prayer.
Class adviser. With thankful and trusting hearts, let us call to the
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ that He may open our hearts to His
new blessings. Let us call out to Him:
Lord, help us to trust in you.
Student. That we may be thankful for the ways you have shown mercy on us,
we pray to you:
Response. Lord, help us to trust in you.
Student. That we may be open to the ways that you help us grow, we pray to
you:
Response. Lord, help us trust in you.
Student. That we may be thankful for the people who helped us grow, we
pray to you:
Response. Lord, help us trust in you.
Student. That we may be open to the ways by which we can be channels of
your mercy for others, we pray to you:
Response. Lord, help us trust in you.
The students will now offer the pieces of paper to the altar or crucifix.
Class adviser. Now, let us pray in the words that Jesus our brother
taught us.
All. Our Father, who art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name. Thy
Kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven. Give us
this day our daily bread and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive
those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation but
deliver us from evil.
Then, the class adviser along with other teachers pray the blessing over the
students.
Blessing over the students
LORD our God, in your wisdom and love you surround us with the
mysteries of the universe. In times long past you sent us your
prophets to teach your laws and to bear witness to your undying
love. You sent us your Son to teach us by word and example that
true wisdom comes from you alone.
Send your Spirit upon these students and upon us their teachers
and fill them with your wisdom and blessings. Fill them with
thankfulness for all the things that you have brought them this past
school year. Grant that they may be open to new learning and
opportunities of growth for this coming schoolyear, devote
themselves to their studies, and share to others what they have
learned.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.