Entrance Antiphon
I know whom I have believed, and I am sure that the righteous Judge is able to guard until the Day what has been entrusted to me. (2 Tim 1:12;4:8)
The Gloria is sung or said.
Collect
Lord God, who in your love for the human race chose and sent Paul the Apostle to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ who died and rose again, grant that we who honour him as our inspirer and father, may imitate him in bringing the word of salvation to the people of our times. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, forever and ever.
First Reading
A Reading from the Prophet Isaiah (49:3,5-6)
(I will give you as a light to the nations, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.)
He said to me, “You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.” And now the Lord has spoken, he who formed me in the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him and to gather Israel to him. I am honoured in the sight of the Lord and my God has been my strength. He said, “It is too light a thing for you to be my servant, to restore the tribes of Jacob, and to bring back the remnant of Israel. I will make you a light for the nations, so that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” The Word of the Lord.
Responsorial Psalm (Ps 39:2,4,7-10;8-9)
Response: Here am I, O Lord, I come to do your will.
I waited, I waited for the Lord
and he stooped down to me;
he heard my cry.
He put a new song into my mouth,
praise of our God. R/.
You do not ask for sacrifice and offering,
but an open ear.
You do not ask for holocaust and victim.
Instead, here am I. R/.
In the scroll of the book it stands written
that I should do your will
My God, I delight in your law
in the depth of my heart. R/.
Your justice I have proclaimed
in the great assembly.
My lips I have not sealed;
you know it O Lord. R/.
Second Reading
A Reading from the Letter of St Paul to the Galatians (1:11-20)
(He who had called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me.)
I want you to know, brothers, that the Gospel we preached to you is not a human message. For I did not receive it from anyone, nor was I taught it, but it came to me through a revelation from Jesus Christ. You have heard of my previous way of life, when I belonged to the Jewish community; how I furiously persecuted the Church of God and tried to destroy it. For I was more devoted to the Jewish religion than many fellow Jews of my age, and I defended the traditions of my ancestors more fanatically. But when God who had chosen me from my mother’s womb and called me through his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, so that I might make him known among the Gentile nations, I did not seek human advice, nor did I go up to Jerusalem to those who were apostles before me. I immediately went to Arabia, and from there I returned again to Damascus. Later, after three years, I went up to Jerusalem to meet Peter, and I stayed with him for fifteen days. But I did not see any other apostle except James, the Lord’s brother. On what I am writing, I assure you before God that I am not lying.
The Word of the Lord.
Acclamation
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Holy Apostle Paul, preacher of truth, and doctor of the Gentiles, you are worthy to be glorified.
Alleluia.
Gospel
A Reading from the Holy Gospel according to Matthew (10:16-22)
(Behold, I send you out! )
Look, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. You must be clever as snakes and gentle as doves. Be on your guard with regard to people, for they will hand you over to their courts and they will flog you in their synagogues. You will be brought to trial before rulers and kings because of me, as a witness to them and the Gentiles. But when you are arrested, do not worry about what you are to say; or how you are to say it; when the hour comes, you will be given what you are to say. For it will not be you who speak; but it will be the Spirit of your Father speaking through you. Brother will hand over brother to death, and a father his child; children will turn against parents and have them put to death. Everyone will hate you because of me, but whoever stands firm to the end will be saved. The Gospel of the Lord.
Homily
The Creed is said.
Prayer over the Offerings
Sanctify, O Lord, the offering of your people, through the prayers of your Apostle Paul, that this sacrifice, which is pleasing to you, may be made yet more acceptable in your sight, through his loving intercession.
Through Christ our Lord.
Preface
R/. The Lord be with you.
V/. And with your spirit.
R/. Lift up your hearts.
V/. We lift them up to the Lord.
R/. Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
V/. It is right and just.
It is truly right and just, our duty and our salvation, always and everywhere to give you thanks,
Lord Holy Father, Almighty and eternal God.
For you, source of all grace, gave us the Apostle Paul as our model and inspiration in sanctity and apostolate. It was your holy will to change him from a fierce persecutor into an ardent apostle. He is the vessel of election and the doctor of gentiles, and for him to live was Christ and to die was gain.
He travelled to distant places and preached the good news of Jesus through spoken and written word, giving us an example of the apostolate of the media. He established and guided Churches, and valiantly shed his blood for the glory of Jesus Christ your Son.
And so, with Angels and Archangels, with thrones and dominions, and with all the hosts and powers of heaven we sing the hymn of your glory as without end we acclaim:
All: Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of hosts …
Communion Antiphon
I live by faith in the son of God, who loved me and gave himself up for me. (Gal 2:20)
Prayer after Communion
May the sacraments which we have received, Lord our God, enkindle in us the fire of your love, which burned intensely in St Paul the Apostle and made him paternally solicitous of the whole Church.
Through Christ our Lord.
Solemn Blessing
The Deacon or the Celebrant says:
Bow down for the blessing.
Then the Celebrant, holding his hands extended over the people, says:
May God who has granted you to stand firm on apostolic foundations, graciously bless you through the glorious merits of the Holy Apostle Paul.
R/. Amen.
And having instructed you by the tireless preaching of St Paul, may God teach you constantly by his example to win brothers and sisters for Christ.
R/. Amen.
So that through the intercession of the Apostle Paul, you may inherit the eternal homeland that he attained through the shedding of his blood.
R/. Amen.
And may the blessing of almighty God, the Father, and the Son X and the Holy Spirit, come down on you and remain with you for ever.
R/. Amen.