All posts by 3 churches

Christ the King bidding prayers, 18 May 2014

bidding prayers, Christ the King,

Prayer of the Faithful – 5th Sunday of Easter  May 17/18

Priest  We lay our prayers before the Lord as we ask for hope and strength  to follow in His Way.

The response is ……..fill the earth with your love

We pray for wisdom for those in the Church in positions of authority.  May they exercise their powers with justice and right.   (Pause)

Lord…………fill the earth with your love.

St Peter told us that we are a chosen people.  So we pray that men and women will be found to spread the word and to build up the church.

(Pause)

Lord ………..fill the earth with your love

We pray for the children making their first communion this weekend and for their parents who are their first teachers    (Pause)

Lord…………fill the earth with your love

Like Thomas we do not always know the way.  We ask to be guided along the path of truth and life.      (Pause)

Lord ……….fill the earth with your love.

In a quiet moment we ask the Lord to hear our unspoken needs

( Longer pause)

Let us remember in this month of May that all generations call Mary blessed as we say

Hail Mary ………….

Priest    Father God we make our prayers to you trusting in your Son and with the Holy Spirit for ever Amen

Christ the King bidding prayers, 1 June 2014

bidding prayers, Christ the King,

PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL – Solemnity of The Ascension of the Lord – Year A

CELEBRANT: O God,we come before you upon this anniversary of the Ascension of our Saviour to offer our petitions, confident that you will hear our prayers                   ……………………………..

READER: The response is:     Hear our prayer.

READER: Let us pray for the work Pope Francis is doing in the cause of world-wide peace so that all may share in your bounty………

(PAUSE)……………In your mercy Lord……..Hear our prayer.

READER: Let us pray for the church throughout the world as we pray and work in the cause of peace in our own parishes and families wherever we live.

(PAUSE)……………. In your mercy Lord……..Hear our prayer.

READER:  Let us ask our loving Father to watch over the young people of St. Brigid’s and Paul’s  and Christ the King as they celebrate their confirmation.   May they gather wisdom from above as they grow in faith, knowing that the Holy Spirit is always with them as they tread their paths of life.

(PAUSE)……………..In your mercy Lord,……..Hear our prayer.

READER:   Let us remember in our prayers Patrick Michael James Wood and Logan John Ollin and their parents and god-parents, as they are presented for baptism this week-end. (PAUSE)……In your mercy Lord, …….Hear our prayer.

READER: Let us pray for the sick and suffering, from whatever cause, so that they may find respite and peace.

(PAUSE)……….…In your mercy Lord…….Hear our prayer.

 

READER:  Let us pray for Roderick Forest, husband of Anna whose funeral takes place on Friday, 6th June.  And, also, let us pray for all our loved ones who have departed.   May they rest in Your peace which passeth all understanding.

(PAUSE)……….….In your mercy Lord…….Hear our prayer.

READER:  For a few moments, let us open our hearts to the Lord             ….(Long Pause)….

Let us join with the mother of our church as we say:      Hail Mary…………..

……………………….….

After a short pause the Celebrant will conclude the prayer.

CELEBRANT: Heavenly Father, we praise You and give You thanks for Your ever-present mercy and care.   In the name of your son, our Saviour,  Jesus Christ, Our Lord.                           Amen.

From Jerusalem to Cardiff

3 churches

We are at the end of the Easter season. The final acts of the divine drama unfold today as we witness the return of the Son to the Father at the Ascension. Where he has gone, we hope to follow. The apostles and Our Lady now had to stay together and at prayer, to await the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, that we commemorate next week at Pentecost. After that, fisherman Peter will preach conversion to a few thousand, heal the sick and raise the dead. The world would never be the same again. The Church would start its incredible journey through history charged by our Founder with the words we hear in today’s Gospel :“Go make disciples of all nations.”

This week a successor of those very same apostles, Archbishop George Stack comes to confirm many of our young people. “Be sealed with the gift of the Holy Spirit”, he will say to each as he anoints them. Yes, the gift of the very same Holy Spirit will be available to each and every one of them, as it was to all of us at our Confirmation.

What have we done with that gift? Is it still in its “confirmation wrapping”? As we join our young people in celebrating, let’s make sure that we have grasped our confirmation, allowed the Spirit to melt us and mould us, fill us and use us. No holding back! Our current Sunday evening gatherings are one way of making sure that we are opening to the Spirit as much as we can.

The Church journeys on. From those gatherings after the Resurrection, at the Ascension and at Pentecost, the People of God have spread out across the globe, God’s world. May the young people of this part of Cardiff fully take up and play their part in the next chapter of the Church’s history. And may we all be truly awake in the Lord!

Fr Matthew