Our Great Journey
This week our theme is “Gone Fishing!”/ “Me fui a pescar!” based on Mark 1:14-20 / Marco 1:14-20
Opening Prayer:
All pray the Sign of the Cross
Lord, our God, you sent your Son into the world to live with us as one of us, to heal, to teach to help make us holy and to proclaim the Good News of the coming of the kingdom. Help us to find ways to do what Jesus did to bring joy
and life wherever we go, to lift up those who are suffering and to tell other people about Jesus by our actions and words. We ask this through Christ our Lord, Amen.
In addition to our prayers from the heart, our prayer for January is The Nicene Creed. Please pray these prayers daily to learn. (The Nicene Creed is a profession of faith that expanded and clarified The Apostle’s Creed. It was decided at the Council of Nicaea in 325. The Nicene Creed is prayed at Mass) It is a good prayer to remember when people ask what we believe as Catholics; about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit and the Church.
Using the Bible, invite a family member to read the Gospel aloud.
Things to talk about:
- What does it mean to “believe in the Gospel?”
- Before the Gospel is proclaimed, we make the sign of the cross on our forehead, our lips, and
over our heart. What words do we say when doing this? - Why does Jesus command us to repent? What do you need to change or let go of so you can
be the person Jesus is calling you to be? - What is your greatest dream or hope about how you can make the world a better place? What
is one thing you can do right now to reach your goal?
Closing Prayer
Pray the Nicene Creed. Name those who need our prayers. Close with the Sign of the Cross.
Catholic Insights
“The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent and believe in the Gospel.” Mark 1:15
We are reminded that discipleship and God come first. Jesus always brings freedom. The Greek word for repentance is metanoia. Literally translated, it means “after thought” and was used to refer to a change of mind about something. Repentance is not about feeling guilty or even about saying
you are sorry.
Repentance means a person has recognized that his/her whole way of living needs to change. Repentance is never motivated by punishment; it happens when we realize that there is a fuller,
more joyful way to live. This is what it means to “believe in the Gospel.” If we truly believe that Jesus came to free us from our sins, then we are willing to let go of ways of thinking and acting that hold us back.
The four disciples were successful fisherman. Jesus comes and offers them an opportunity to engage
in something else with even greater possibilities. Rather than simply earn a living, the disciples have
the opportunity to change the world. The time is now for all of us to say, “Gone Fishing!” Jesus is
calling us to bring the Good News of the Gospel to others.
Did you know…that the Sea of Galilee is the largest freshwater lake in modern-day Israel? It
is still an important site for commercial fishing, the same industry in which the earliest
disciples were working when Jesus called them. The sea is also Israel’s most important
source of drinking water.
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