Saturday, April 11, 2009

Pray for Vocations to the Priesthood and Consecrated Life

Today as we celebrate Holy Saturday, our Lord asked St. Faustina to pray in the Novena of Divine Mercy for the souls of priests and religious:
"Today bring me the souls of Priests and Religious, and immerse them in My unfathomable mercy. It was they who gave me strength to endure My bitter Passion. Through them as through channels My mercy flows out upon mankind."
And thus we pray:
Most Merciful Jesus, from whom comes all that is good, increase Your grace in men and women consecrated to Your service,* that they may perform worthy works of mercy; and that all who see them may glorify the Father of Mercy who is in heaven.Eternal Father, turn Your merciful gaze upon the company of chosen ones in Your vineyard -- upon the souls of priests and religious; and endow them with the strength of Your blessing. For the love of the Heart of Your Son in which they are enfolded, impart to them Your power and light, that they may be able to guide others in the way of salvation and with one voice sing praise to Your boundless mercy for ages without end. Amen.
* In the original text, Saint Faustina uses the pronoun "us" since she was offering this prayer as a consecrated religious sister. The wording adapted here is intended to make the prayer suitable for universal use.
This prayer is a great preparation for the upcoming world day of prayer for vocations to the priesthood and consecrated life to be celebrated on May 3rd. Here is the text of the Holy Father for that day:
http://www.zenit.org/article-25529?l=english

2 comments:

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  2. time to write your post about Divine Mercy Sunday father! :) like a review of your retreat or something

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