Wednesday, January 17, 2007

The Universal Prayer


O Lord, we bring before You the distress and dangers of
Peoples and nations, the pleas of the imprisoned and the captive,
the sorrows of the grief-stricken,
the needs of the refugees the
impotence of the weak,
the weariness of the despondent;
and weaknesses of the aging.
O Lord, stay close to all of them.

O Lord, show Your mercy to us and gladden our hearts.
O Good Samaritan, come to our aid.
We are like the sheep that went astray:
O Good Shepherd, seek us out and bring us home
in accord with Your will.
Let us dwell in Your house all the days
of our lives and praise You for ever and ever with those who are there.

Lord Jesus Christ, thank you for the friends and relatives
that You have given us to love us in spite of our failures and
weaknesses, and to enrich our lives after Your example. Let us
ever behave toward them as You behaved toward Your friendsand relatives. Bind us close together in You and enable us to help one another on our earthly journey.

Grant us a knowledge of the Father and of Yourself.
Help us to Cling steadfastly to the Christian faith. In our studies and in our
teaching make us seek only the extension of Your kingdom and
Your holy Church both in ourselves and in others.

O Lord, send workers for Your harvest, so that the precepts of
Your only-begotten Son may always be obeyed and His sacrifice
be everywhere renewed. Look with favor upon Your family, and
ever increase its numbers. Enable it to lead its sons and daughters to
the holiness to which they are called and to work for the
salvation of others.

Lord Jesus Christ, watch over those who are leaders in Your Church. Keep them faithful to their vocation and to the proclamation of Your message. Strengthen them with the gifts of the Spirit and help them to serve Your people, especially the poor and lowly. Give them a vivid sense of Your presence in the world and a knowledge of how to show it to others. Lord, watch over Your missionaries—priests, religious, pastors, rabbis, clerics and lay people—who leave everything to give testimony to Your Word and Your love. In difficult moments sustain their energies, comfort their hearts, and crown their work with spiritual achievements. Let Your Cross, which accompanies them throughout life, speak to them of heroism, generosity, love, and peace.

Sweet Jesus, many indeed have never known You; many, too, Despising Your precepts, have rejected You. Have mercy on them all and draw them to Your Sacred Heart. Be King, O Lord, not only of the faithful, but also of the prodigal children who have abandoned You. Be King of those who are deceived by erroneous opinions, or whom discord keeps aloof, and call them back to You.

Great God, who has told us "Vengeance is mine,"
save us from ourselves,
save us from the vengeance in our hearts
and the acid in our souls.
Save us from our desire to hurt as we have been hurt,
to punish as we have been punished,
to terrorize as we have been terrorized.
Give us the strength it takes
to listen rather than to judge,
to trust rather than to fear,
to try again and again
to make peace even when peace eludes us.
We ask, O God, for the grace to be our best selves.
We ask for the vision
to be builders of the human community
rather than its destroyers.
We ask for the humility as a people
to understand the fears and hopes of other peoples.
We ask for the love it takes
to bequeath to the children of the world to come
more than the failures of our own making.
We ask for the heart it takes
to care for all the peoples
of Afghanistan and Iraq, of Palestine and Israel (Lebanon, Darfur,Syria, Iran & those south of our border)as well as for ourselves.
Give us the depth of soul, O God,
to constrain our might,
to resist the
temptations of power,
to refuse to attack the attackable,
to understand that vengeance begets violence,
and to bring peace – not war – wherever we go.
For You, O God, have been merciful to us.
For You, O God, have been patient with us.
For You, O God, have been gracious to us.
And so may we be merciful
and patient and gracious
and trustingwith these others who you also love.
Joan D. Chittister, OSB"Reprinted with permission from Pax Christi USA, www.paxchristiusa.org"

Grant, O Lord, to Your Church assurance of freedom and
Immunity from harm; give tranquility of order to all nations;
makethe earth resound from pole to pole with one cry:
Praise to the divine Heart that wrought our salvation;
to it be glory and honor for ever.
Dear God we know You love us. We accept whatever You decide.
We leave everything up to Your divine goodness and loving care.
You are our God.
Thank you for everything.
Amen.

God bless the whole world—no exceptions

No comments: