Essentially the Prayer from the Diocese of Vancouver
I commit to offering this prayer ever day before I celebrate mass as I ask you as reader to do the same. We priests are very much in need of every spiritual weapon at our disposal in these evil times.Our priests are on the front line of the faith, and a not insignificant number of them have fallen victim to the wiles of the devil, which makes them proportionally a lot like the rest of us. As shepherds of the flock, they have taken on an inordinate responsibility, one that can not be handled just with mortal strength, but which requires divine intervention and mediation for success.
It should be our privilege to pray for our priests, and so I offer you the prayer that Father Tim is praying:
“God our Father, look with mercy and love upon those your Son has chosen to be ministers of your Word and Sacraments, and ardent but gentle shepherds of your flock.
As spiritual fathers of those entrusted to their care, keep them faithful in obedient service to you. Enkindle in our priests the fire of your love, so that they will seek nothing but your greater glory and the salvation of souls.
We pray that Mary, Queen of the Holy Rosary, will wrap her mantle around our priests, draw them closer to your heart day by day and inspire many young men to answer your call.
May God’s mercy and justice be made manifest in their commitment to protect those under their care, to punish any who would betray their flock, and to minister with a shepherd's compassion those wounded in their care.
We ask this through Christ Our Lord. Amen.
St. John Vianney, pray for us.”
1 comment:
This is entirely unrelated to this beautiful prayer.
Until I read the last line of this prayer, I hadn't thought or seen the name Vianney in almost 40 years. It was back in my university days...
Vianney was a particularly passionate young history student whom I met through my then-girlfriend Rose. Rose and Vianney had attended high school together. In the end, Vianney ended up dropping out of university to travel to Brazil and build houses for displaced persons or whatever...it was the early 1970s.
It is always amazing to me how a single word can bring up visual memories and images that rival High Definition Digital Technology. I see young Vianney in my mind's eye, then up pops Rose, followed by Vianney's then-girlfriend Maire. Before I know it, the aromas and ambient aural environment of Frank's Blue Moon Cafe overwhelm me, the years fall away to reverie, and I am there again.
Startling, really. All just because of a name...
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