Apr 01 2008
Prayers For Our Pope
We enter upon a new month with new intentions and a special reason to support the Holy Father with our prayers: from April 15-20 he will be visiting the United States. As we prepare for his visit let us make an extra effort to lift him up in prayer, to ask God to protect him and keep him safe. Let us also pray that the Church in the U.S., all citizens of the U.S., the delegates at the United Nations, and all people may be receptive to the message he will bring.
In his General Intention this month Pope Benedict has asked us to pray that Christians may not tire of proclaiming with their lives that Christ’s resurrection is the source of hope and peace. It is not enough for us to profess our faith in the resurrection of Jesus when we pray the Creed at Mass or at the beginning of the Rosary. Words are not enough. Our words, our belief must take flesh in the way we lead our lives. Our lives must witness to the world that the hope for peace is not some empty dream. Because Jesus triumphed over sin and death through His resurrection, His power makes peace possible. But we must turn to Him and place all our hopes in Him.
And for his Mission Intention this month the Holy Father asks us to pray with him that the future priests of the “young Churches”, those dioceses in mission lands, may be formed to evangelize their nations and the whole world. May seminarians be filled with great zeal and a desire to share the riches of Christ with all people.
Our prayer is from William G. Storey’s A Prayer Book of Catholic Devotions (Loyola Press):
Lord Jesus Christ, you were fastened with nails to the wood of the cross and raised on high for all to see. As the sun grew dark and the earth quaked, you surrendered your spirit to your Father, descended among the dead, broke open the gates of hell, and freed those bound in darkness. As angel choirs rejoiced, you were raised to life again on the third day, mastering death by your own death, and canceling the power of sin. By these mighty deeds on our behalf, rescue us from our blindness and tepidity, inspire us anew by your Holy Spirit, and lead us into a life of prayer and service worthy of your awesome sacrifice, O Savior of the world, living and reigning, now and forever. Amen.
Todays Readings: Acts 4:32-37; Psalm 93: 1-2, 5; John 3:7b-15
