All posts by 3 churches

Christ the King bidding prayers, 8th Sunday (2 March 2014)

bidding prayers, Christ the King,

Note to Reader : Please PAUSE as directed and read the response through with the congregation

Priest. Today our readings tell us again of Our Father’s love and compassion for us. Therefore, let us place our petitions before Him with confidence

Reader.  Our response today is : Your mercy is our hope

Reader.  We pray for the Church in the world remembering our recently elevated Cardinals asking for them the gifts of leadership, wisdom and courage to deal with the many challenges which lie ahead

PAUSE

Reader. We pray

Lord your mercy is our hope

Reader. We hear daily of the plight of those who now rely on Food Banks to feed themselves and their families and thank the Lord for those of those who organise and operate them and at the same time we  remember our own responsibility to feed the hungry

PAUSE

Reader. We pray

Lord your mercy is our hope

Reader. Let us think about St David our patron saint whose feast day we celebrate(d)  today/ yesterday and be inspired by his exhortation to “ Be joyful and do the little things you have seen me do”

PAUSE

Reader. We pray

Lord your mercy is our hope

Reader. In the coming season of Lent we ask the Lord to bring us closer to Him in whatever way we need His special guidance.  We ask also for the success of forthcoming Lenten Discussion Group Programme

PAUSE

Reader. We pray

Lord your mercy is our hope

Reader. Let us remember the unemployed, the sick, the bereaved and the worried of our community and pray that the Lord to hear and comfort them

PAUSE

Reader.  We pray

Lord your mercy is our hope

Reader. In the quiet of our hearts let us listen for a few moments to the voice of our Father

LONGER PAUSE

Reader. We ask Mary, the Mother of Our Lord to join us in our prayer

Hail Mary…etc

 

Priest.  Father, we ask You to hear our petitions and grant them through Jesus your Son who lives in glory forever  with you and the Holy Spirit

AMEN

Christ the King bidding prayers, 7th Sunday (23 February 2014)

bidding prayers, Christ the King,

CELEBRANT: Brothers and sisters, the psalm tells us that the Lord heals every one of your ills, so we can be sure our petitions will be answered.

READER: The response is: We hope in Your mercy.

READER: Let us pray for the church. May we walk out like lambs in the Lord, proclaiming the Good News with joy.

…….. (PAUSE)……….. Lord ..…. We hope in Your mercy.

READER: For those who lead us. May they avoid the wisdom of the world but find the wisdom of the gospel to love all those for whom they are responsible.

…… (PAUSE)…… Lord ..…. We hope in Your mercy.

READER:  We pray for all those who suffer in Syria, those who have been killed or bereaved or have no food or home. Let us also pray for the Ukraine, Southern Sudan and other areas of conflict.  May there be renewed dialogue and less fighting.

 …. (PAUSE)…… Lord..…. We hope in Your mercy.

READER:   For those trapped in slavery we pray for an end to their oppression.

. (PAUSE)…… Lord..…. We hope in Your mercy.

READER:  Next Friday Katharine Jane Dirks and Daniel James Thomas are to be married in our church. May their union bring them lifelong joy as they deepen their love for each other. PAUSE)…… Lord .…. We hope in Your mercy.

READER:  Let us think of our own needs and worries and present them to the Lord.…. (Long Pause)…. Let us ask the intercession of the Blessed Virgin, Mary : Hail Mary, full of grace, etc.

After a short pause the Celebrant will conclude the prayer.

CELEBRANT: Father, You crown us with love and compassion; in Your mercy hear our prayers and grant them through Your Son, Jesus Christ in union with the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever Amen.

The priest, the mass, and love

priests

Every so often you come across a thought or some words that remind you about what’s really going on and what’s important. We all need that grounding from time to time – to get things in perspective, and stop us taking things for granted. And that includes priests. Our most common “activity”, indeed the occasion when parishioners see us most often, is when we are celebrating the Mass. How easy it could be to think that we’ve “got it”, that we totally understand what it’s all about.

So here is the great Cistercian monk Thomas Merton offering an awesome and humbling thought about what is really going on each time we approach the altar…

If you are afraid to love,
never become a priest, never say Mass.
The Mass will draw down upon your soul
a torrent of interior suffering which has only one function: to break you wide open
and let everybody in the world into your heart.
For when you begin to say Mass,
the Spirit of God awakens like a giant inside you and bursts the locks of your private sanctuary.

If you say Mass,
you condemn your soul to the torrent of a love
that is so vast and insatiable
that you will never be able to bear it alone.
That love is the love of the Heart of Jesus, burning within your own heart
and bringing down upon you the huge weight
of His compassion for all the sinners of the world. 

Fr Matthew