Apr 22 2008
Feast of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of the Society of Jesus
Today is a special feast day for the Society of Jesus, the religious order to which the popes of the last century have entrusted the work of the Apostleship of Prayer. St. Ignatius Loyola, the founder of the Jesuits, had a deep devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and begged for her help at all the critical moments of his life and in the life of his order. On this day in 1541, after receiving official papal approval of his order and being elected its first General Superior, St. Ignatius and his first companions celebrated Mass and pronounced their vows at Our Lady’s altar in the church of St. Paul Outside-the-Walls in Rome. As we pray the following three prayers to the Blessed Virgin, let us ask that all Jesuit seminarians, as well as seminarians in mission countries, may grow in holiness and zeal for souls.
Prayer of St. Ignatius Loyola to the Mediatrix:
May it please our Lady to intercede with her Son for us poor sinners and obtain this grace for us, that with the cooperation of our own toil and effort she may change our weak and sorry spirits and make them strong and faithful to praise God.
Prayer of St. Francis Xavier one of the first Jesuits and co-patron of the missions and the Apostleship of Prayer:
Mary, my Lady, Hope of Christians, Queen of angels and all the saints who are with God in heaven. I commend myself to you, my Lady, and to all the saints, now, as if I were at the hour of death, to preserve me from the world, the flesh, and the devil—the enemies who plot with all their power against my soul, and hope in their malice to cast me into hell. Prevent this, most loving Mother, I pray and beseech you. Amen.
Prayer of St. Aloysius Gonzaga, patron saint of youth:
Holy Mary, my Queen, I recommend myself to your blessed protection and special keeping, and to the bosom of your mercy, today and every day and at the hour of my death. My soul and my body I recommend to you. I entrust to you my hope and consolation, my distress and my misery, my life and its termination. Through your most holy intercession and through your merits may all my actions be directed according to your will and that of your Son. Amen.
Today’s Readings: Acts 14:19-28; Psalm 145:10-13ab, 21; John 14:27-31a
St. Anselm is a good example of someone who knew the love of God and was ready to go anywhere and do anything to spread the knowledge of that love. He was born in northern Italy, became a Benedictine monk in France where he became a great theologian, and was made Archbishop of Canterbury in England. Let us ask St. Anselm to join us today in our prayer for the seminarians of the world, and in particular for the future priests in mission countries. May they know the love of God as St. Anselm did and be willing to travel anywhere to share that love with those who do not know Jesus Christ. The following are two prayers of St. Anselm:
Today is the last day of the Holy Father’s visit to the U.S. At 9:30 AM he will visit and pray at Ground Zero, site of the terrorist attack of September 11, 2001. He will meet with families and friends who lost loved ones on that tragic day. At 2:30 PM he will celebrate Mass at Yankee Stadium and celebrate the 200th anniversary of the designation of Baltimore as an Archdiocese and the creation of the four Dioceses of Boston, New York, Bardstown (Louisville), and Philadelphia. Let us once more pray for his safety and well-being. May he bring comfort to those who lost loved ones in the terrorist attack and speak a message of reconciliation and peace to our nation. May he have a safe journey back to Rome this evening.
Today is the third anniversary of Pope Benedict’s election to the Chair of St. Peter. He will celebrate Mass at 9:15 AM with priests, deacons, and consecrated religious at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. Then at 4:30 PM he will meet with thousands of young people and hundreds of seminarians at St. Joseph Seminary in Yonkers. The following prayer is from the “Manuel of Prayers” used by the seminarians at the Pontifical North American College in Rome. It may be prayed individually or in a group.
This year we are celebrating the sixtieth anniversary of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights by the United Nations and today Pope Benedict will travel to New York City where, at 10:45 AM, he will address the world at the United Nations. As Apostles of Prayer we are committed to praying for the Holy Father and his intentions. Surely he is depending upon us in a special way at this time. Then, at 6 PM he will celebrate an ecumenical prayer service with other Christian leaders at St. Joseph’s Church in Manhattan. Joseph is Pope Benedict’s baptismal name and St. Joseph was proclaimed the Patron of the Universal Church by Pope Pius IX on December 8, 1870. Let us pray today for Pope Benedict and our Church with a prayer that was officially approved by the Church in 1885.
Pope Benedict continues his visit to the U.S. with several very important meetings and addresses today. At 10 AM he will celebrate Mass with tens of thousands of people at the new Washington Nationals Stadium. Again we pray that the words of his homily may fall like seeds on the good soil of all those who will listen to or read them. Then at 5 PM he will meet with the presidents of more than 200 Catholic colleges and universities and the superintendents of education from the 195 dioceses. This is being seen as a key opportunity for the Holy Father to address the issues facing Catholic education in our country. Finally, at 6:30 PM he will meet with Jewish, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist leaders and representatives from other religions. This will be an important address not only for inter-religious dialogue and cooperation in this country but also in the world. Given the often negative responses to the Holy Father from representatives of some of these religions, and given the lack of true religious freedom in many countries where some of these religions are a majority, his address will be closely followed by people everywhere. Let us pray that the Holy Spirit will touch the minds and hearts of all people to whom the Holy Father speaks today.
Around 4 PM (Eastern Time) Pope Benedict will arrive at Andrews Air Force Base near Washington, D.C. Thus will begin his first visit as pope to the United States. We will depart during the coming days from our usual focus on the Holy Father’s monthly intentions to pray in a special way for him, his safety and well-being during this visit, and for our nation, that we may be open to the words he brings us. As the Risen Jesus told the apostles to be at peace and opened the Scriptures to them, so may we be open to the words of the Vicar of Christ. The following prayer is from the 
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.