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RITE FOR THE OPENING OF THE HOLY DOOR
Basilica of Saint Paul outside the Walls
The Holy Father, the Representatives of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities and the Ministers go to the atrium of the Basilica for the "statio", while the schola sings: Cry out with joy to the Lord,all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness. Come before him, singing for joy. Liturgical GreetingThe Holy Father:In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all. R. And also with you. MonitionThe Holy Father:Brothers and sisters from East and West, pilgrims in history journeying to eternal life: two thousand years ago God's grace was revealed to us, bringingsalvation to all humanity – our Saviour and Redeemer, the Lord Jesus Christ. His love impels us to live no longer for ourselves, but for him who for us was born, died and rose again. His love calls us to fellowship and perfect charity, transcending all our sins and divisions. His love opens for us the door to life in abundance, and calls us to share that life with every creature, in word and deed, like Peter, Paul, Andrew and all the witnesses of faith. Brothers and sisters, let us sing with one voice in gratitude for the gift of his love for us. Let us bless the Father, the source in his Holy Spirit of this love which is our salvation. Benediction CanticleEph 1, 3-14 The Holy Father:Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with all the spiritual blessings of heaven in Christ. Before the world was made, he chose us, chose us in Christ, to be holy and spotless, and to live through love in his presence, determining that we should become his adopted sons through Jesus Christ for his own kind purposes, to make us praise the glory of his grace, his free gift to us in the Beloved. The Chorister:Blessed be God for ever. The Assembly repeats: Benedictus Deus in sæcula. A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastic communities: In him, through his blood, we gain our freedom, the forgiveness of our sins. Such is the richness of the grace which he has showered on us in all wisdom and insight. He has let us know the mystery of his purpose, the hidden plan he so kindly made in Christ from the beginning, to act upon when the times had run their courseto the end: that he would bring everything together under Christ, as head, everything inthe heavens and everything on earth. R. Benedictus Deus in sæcula. A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities: And it is in him that we were claimed as God's own, chosen from the beginning, under the predetermined plan of the one who guides all things as he decides by his own will; chosen to be, for his greater glory, the people who would put their hopes in Christ before he came. R. Benedictus Deus in sæcula. A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities: Now you too, in him, have heard the message of the truth and the good news of your salvation,and have believed it: and youtoo have been stamped with the seal of the Holy Spirit of the Promise, the pledge of our inheritance which brings freedom for those whom God has taken for his own, to make his glory praised. R. Benedictus Deus in sæcula. PrayerThe Holy Father:Let us pray. Lord, hear the prayers of your people and bring the hearts of believers together in your praise and in common sorrow for their sins. Heal all divisions among Christians, that we may rejoice in the perfect unity of yourChurch and move togetheras one to eternal life in your kingdom. We ask this through Christ our Lord. The Latin Deacon starts the procession towards the Holy Door singing: Let us go in peace. The Assembly:R. In Christ's name. Amen. The schola and the Assembly sing:Let us go to God's house with joy. Psalm 121 1. I rejoiced when I heard them say: “Let us go to God's house.” Opening of the Holy DoorWhen the procession arrives before the Holy Door, the Holy Father says: This is the Lord's own door. V. I will enter your house, O Lord. V. Open to me the gates of holiness. The Holy Father and the other two Representatives of the other churches and ecclesistical communities open the Holy Door. The Holy Father kneels down on the threshold and stops in prayer. Then the Book of Gospels is showed to the four cardinal points in the following ways. The Holy Father shows the Book of Gospels to the external of the Door; then he passes the threshold of the Holy Door and he enters in the Basilica. Afterwards the Book of Gospels is showed to the interior of the Door and its two inner sides from three Representatives of the other Churches and ecclesiastic Communities. The schola and the assembly sing the acclamation: Christ yesterday and today, the End and the Beginning; Christ Alpha and Omega. To him be glory through every age for ever. The Assembly repeats: From the atrium of the Basilica the procession goes towards the Holy Door, to the Altar, singing: Hymn to Christ, 1. What joy filled my heart when they told me: Let us go to the house of the Lord! City of God, open now your gates, rejoice, wellspring of every people! R. The trumpet of the Great Jubilee sounds, to proclaim that Jesus has set us free. 2. Sun and moon have already marked two millennia since you took flesh and became a partof every race, sharing our woundedness, our history. R. 3. Blessed are you, Mary, among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! Blessed are your breasts, which sweetly nursed our brother, the Son of the Most High. R. 4. Eternal Word, you are the Beloved and a penetrating two-edged sword. O God of justice and of mercy, you change our mourning into dancing. R. 5. Upon you rests the Spirit of God. Ransom of the oppressed, sight to the blind, you heal the hearts of the downtrodden, you inaugurate the year of grace. R. 6. O Living Wood, grant renewed life to our dry and withered branches. Third millennium of new hope, make known to his children the Father of lights. R. 7. You, O Breath, powerful, rushing wind, Fire ever awaited, Holy Spirit: come and renew the face of the earth, and fill the universe with your love. R. 8. To you, Holy Father, who loved us, to you, O Christ, the Light of every Life, to you, living Water, Consoler, Lord our God, to you be all glory! R. Enthronement of the Book of GospelsWhen the procession arrives at the Altar, the Orthodox Deacon places the Book of Gospels on the special seat before the Altar. Afterwards the Holy Father fills the incensory and the two Deacons, Orthodox and Latin, incense the Book of Gospels. PsalmodyThe Holy Father:Together let us pray in the words of Psalm 144, a song of blessing and praise of God, the faithful and holy one, gracious and merciful, full of goodness to all his creatures. The common prayer of his children is pleasing to God the Father.The prayer of his beloved Son and the sighs of the Holy Spirit findan echo in the prayer of the Church. We join in confessing God's holiness, with one heart we praise the greatness of his name and the goodness of his works. In our journey towards unity, the Lord sustains us when we falter and raises usup when we fall. With confidence let us now ask him to grantus unfailing hope, for he is faithful in all his promises. Antiphon The schola:How good is the Lord toall, compassionate to all his creatures. Psalm 144 I (1-9)I will give you glory, O Godmy King, I will bless your name for ever. The Lord is great, highly tobe praised, Age to age shall proclaimyour works, shall declare your mighty deeds, They will speak of your terrible deeds, recount your greatness and
might. The Lord is kind and full of compassion, slow to anger, abounding in
love. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Psalm Prayer A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities: Lord our God, you give us the grace to praise you each day for the splendour of your glory and the grandeur of your marvellous deeds. May we who are gathered in your name proclaim together to the world, through the witness of our charity, that you are a gracious and merciful God, abounding in steadfast love to all your creatures. Through Christ our Lord. II (10-13) All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord, and your friends shall
repeat their blessing. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Psalm Prayer A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities: Father of goodness and mercy, in Christ your beloved Son you have given us a share in the radiant glory of your Kingdom through the gift of the Holy Spirit whom you poured into our hearts. Strengthen our fellowship and grant us courage as we strive for unity, so that the holiness of your name and the power of your love may be ever more clearly seen in the world.
Through Christ our
Lord. III (14-21) The Lord is faithful in all his words and loving in all his deeds. The eyes of all creatures lookto you and you give them their food in due
time. The Lord is just in all his ways and loving in all his deeds. He grants the desires of those who fear him, he hears their cry and he
saves them. Let me speak the praise of the Lord, let all mankind bless his holy name for ever, for ages unending. Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. Antiphon The schola:Psalm Prayer A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities: Lord, heavenly Father, you are holy and faithful, just and true in your words and deeds, close to all who call upon your name. Look upon us as we gather in prayer, our eyes lifted up to you, and satisfy the burning desire of our hearts to attain full unity. Bestow upon us your abundant gifts and renew us by your Spirit, so that, in sincerely seeking your will, we may bear witness in unity to the saving power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns for ever and ever. R. Amen. First ReadingA reading from the first letterof St Paul to the Corinthians. 12, 4-13 There is a variety of gifts but always the same Spirit; thereare all sorts of service to be done, but always to the same Lord; working in all sorts of different ways in different people, it is the same God who is working in all of them. The particular way in which the Spirit is given to each person is for a good purpose. One may have the gift of preaching with wisdom given him by the Spirit; another may have the gift of preaching instruction given him by the same Spirit; and another the gift of faith given by the same Spirit; another again the gift of healing, through this one Spirit; one, the power of miracles;another, prophecy; another the gift of recognising spirits; another the gift of tongues and another the ability to interpret them. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit,who distributes different gifts to different people just as hechooses. Just as a human body, though it is made up of many parts, is a single unit because all these parts, though many, make one body, so it is with Christ. In the one Spirit we were all baptised, Jews as well as Greeks, slaves as well as citizens, and one Spirit was given to us all to drink.Responsorial PsalmSecond ReadingDes écrits de Georges Florovsky, prêtre orthodoxe russe (Le Corps du Christ vivant. Une interprétation orthodoxe de l'Église). Le Mystère catholique The Church is one. There is only one Church of Christ. For the Church is his body. And Christ is never divided. In Christ, the Incarnate and Glorified Lord, the unity of the human race, after being endangered by the fall and rent asunder by sin, has now been supremely restored. With the creation of the Christian Church, a completely new form or regime of existence has come into being. A catholic regime, one might say, as opposed to that tragic state of dislocation and fragmentation in which humanity as a whole was imprisoned by original sin. Salvation called for a genuine restoration, a complete recapitulation. The Church is one: this unity is not simply one nota ecclesiae alongside others, but rather her very nature. And indeed the principal work of the Church in the world is to gather individuals who are divided and scattered and to incorporate them into an organic and living unity, into Christ. The unity of the Church is both the beginning and the end of her life, her very foundation and goal, a primordial datum and a problem to resolve. Unity is a dynamic principle, a principle of life and growth. “The unity of the Spirit” was something given from the beginning. But that unity needs to be preserved and perpetuated by “the bond of peace”, through an unceasing effort of faith and of charity. A synergism of grace and human fidelity is always present. In this way, “speaking the truth in love, we are togrow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ” (Eph 4: 3, 15). One and catholic are two aspects of a single living reality.Moment of Silence.Third ReadingAus den Schriften von Dietrich Bonhoeffer, evangelischer Theologe und Pfarrer (Ethik, München, 1966). Die Kirche als Gestalt Jesu Christi In Christ there was re-created the form of man before God. It was not an outcome of the place or the time, of the climate or the race, of the individual or the society, or of religion or of taste, but quite simply of the life of mankind as such, that mankind at this point recognized its image and its hope. What befell Christ had befallen mankind. It is a mystery, for which there is no explanation, that only a part of mankind recognize the form of their Redeemer. The longing of the Incarnate to take form in all men is as yet still unsatisfied. He bore the form of man as a whole, and yet He can take form onlyin a small band. These are his Church. “Formation” consequently means in the first place Jesus's taking form in his Church. What takes form here is the form of Jesus Christ himself. The New Testament states the case profoundly and clearly when it calls the Church the Body of Christ. The body is the form. So the Church is not a religious community of worshippers of Christ but is Christ himself who has taken form among men. The Church can be called the Body of Christ because in Christ's Body man is really taken up by him, and so too, therefore, are all mankind. The Church, then, bears the form which is in truth the proper form of all humanity. The image in which she is formed is the image of man. What takes place in her takes place as an example and substitute for all men. But it is impossible to state clearly enough that the Church, too, is not an independent form byherself, side by side with the form of Christ, and that she, too, can therefore never lay claim to an independent character, title, authority or dignity on her own account and apart from him. The Church is nothing but a section of humanity in which Christ has really taken form. What we have here is utterly and completely the form of Jesus Christ and not some other form side by side with him.The Church is man in Christ, incarnate, sentenced and awakened to new life. In the first instance therefore, she has essentially nothing whatever to do with the so-called religious functions of man, but with the whole man in his existence in the world with all its implications. What matters in the Church is not religion but the form of Christ, and its taking form amidst a band of men. If we allow ourselves to lose sight of this, even for an instant, we inevitably relapse into that programme-planning for the ethical or religious shaping of the world, which was where we set out from.HomilyThe Holy Father offers the Homily.The sign of peaceUbi caritas (sung)The schola:Where charity and love are found, there is God. The Assembly repeats: Ubi caritas est vera, Deus ibi est. The Orthodox Deacon:Let us love one another, so that with one heart we may profess our faith in the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, the consubstantial and undivided Trinity. The Latin Deacon:Before we join in professing our faith, in the love of Christ who has gathered us in his name, let us exchange a sign of peace. All exchange a Sign of Peace, as a sign of fraternal communion. The schola:The Assembly repeats: Ubi caritas est vera, Deus ibi est. The schola:The love of Christ has gathered us together into one. The Assembly: Ubi caritas est vera, Deus ibi est. Profession of FaithThe Holy Father:The word of God is a lamp to our feet and a light to our path. In that light, let us acknowledge with confidence that God is greater than our sin. In that light, in the hope that does not disappoint, let us acknowledge that we are saved by faith, the faith which we proclaim to be one, together with one Lord and one baptism. The Chorister:A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities: We believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities: We believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was born of the Virgin Mary, died and was buried; he rose from the dead and is seated at the right hand of the Father. A Representative of the other churches and ecclesiastical communities: We believe in the Holy Spirit, The Lord's PrayerThe Holy Father:The God of peace, the Teacher of unity and concord, who in his person bore all humanity, wishes each of his disciples to pray for all others. Obedient to his word, we dare to say: The Assembly: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. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and for ever. BenedictionThe Holy Father:Dominus vobiscum. The Assembly:Et cum spiritu tuo. The Latin Deacon:Inclinate vos ad benedictionem. The Holy Father:
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