We hope that these Prayers of the Faithful for this 6th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Feb 11-12, 2023 are helpful to you in your own reflections and prayers.

God, your Word today invites us to look into our hearts. Let your Spirit be with us as we look at ourselves and pray for one another, for your invitation is always to growth and renewal and deeper trust in your love.  

For our brothers and sisters who have died in Turkey and Syria this week and those suffering injury and loss of their possessions. We pray also for all suffering pain or the loss of their homes or safety due to natural disasters and changes in the climate caused by human actions. We pray to the Lord…

For those who find these winter months difficult financially, emotionally, or physically. Help us to notice our neighbors who could use our help and inspire us to reach out to them. For those who support and staff shelters and other organizations seeking to help. We pray to the Lord…

This week many celebrate Valentine’s Day. We rejoice in all people who find they are made for one another and Covenant to live together in love, living the gift of their sexuality according to the way they were created. We pray for those of mixed gender who, like all of us, Lord, need your sustaining love for them, to be expressed by us in friendship. We pray to the Lord.

We rejoice in those who, through choice or ‘in the run of the play’ enlarge life for themselves and others as good friends and neighbors, expressing a different fullness of being which enriches their community. We pray for all of us when we struggle in relationships, in times of awkwardness, loneliness and pain. We pray to the Lord.

As we begin a new legislative year we pray for the grace of civility in our public life. At a time of great stress for your people, the prophet Isaiah said “come let us reason together.” Give us the grace and graciousness to listen and reason, even with those with whom we disagree. We pray to the Lord.

God, your ancient wisdom invites us to pray for those whom we find difficult, those who cause us pain. Help us to do that and in this way be delivered from our hurtful feelings and fear and, with your help, even come to a compassionate understanding of these people, we pray to the Lord.

That the goodness of God is a source of eternal life for our friends and neighbors and all who have died. At this liturgy we especially remember:

4:30 PM  Helen Polito by Roberta Platts
7:30 AM Anthony Caiazzo by Jim & Elizabeth Merrill
9:30 AM For The People of the Parish, both Living & Deceased
5:00 PM  Edward F. Dudar by the Dudar Miller Families
We pray to the Lord.

God of love, whose Son walked on water, hear these prayers and those carried in our hearts. Guide us to lives of grace and love, whatever the character of our relationships; may your risk-taking with us may prove to be justified and our sensitiveness to one another play its part in the coming of your kingdom and the doing of your will on earth as in heaven. We make these prayers through Christ our Lord.

We offer these Prayers of the Faithful from the 5th Sunday in Ordinary Time (Feb 4-5, 2023) with the hope that they are helpful to you in your own reflections and prayers this week.

God of the Hebrew prophets, of Jesus, of all creation, this week you invite us to be not only hearers of the word but to be “doers” of the word, to share our gifts and lives in making your dream of justice, mercy, welcome and forgiveness alive and real in our world.

Help us to be confident in the gifts you have given each of us and our community. Inspire us to recognize the gifts in our neighbors, friends, people sitting in the same pew with us. We pray that we may not be held back by false humility, but may have the courage to use what you have given us for the good of others, we pray to the Lord.

We pray that your church acknowledge its failings, and hear the voice of the Spirit speaking in people’s hearts and in the signs of the times in today’s world. We pray to the Lord.

That public officials will prioritize feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, and will show the way to removing false accusations and hateful speech from the life of our nation and communities, we pray to the Lord.

That our Congress may act in wisdom and courage in responding to the problems we face and that people who have been given much in terms of wealth and power be willing to give their fair share so that all may live better lives, especially those with the least resources among us. We pray to the Lord.

Bless Pope Francis and all who raise their voices to affirm the human dignity of all people, particularly those who are made not welcome by some in our society and church: refugees, people living in poverty, the LGBTQ community, individuals who are divorced and separated in our church. We pray to the Lord.

For our neighbors who are poor and homeless, those struggling with drugs here in Maine, especially those who are dying in our communities. We pray to the Lord.

May the light of God shine brightly on our loved ones and all who have died. At this liturgy we especially remember:
4:30 PM For Both Living & Deceased Alumni of Boston College
7:30 AM Rev. Calvin Goodwin, FSSP by Mary Campbell
9:30 AM Bartley T. Mulkern by John & Rita Griffin
5:00 PM For The People of the Parish both Living & Deceased
We pray to the Lord.

God of all people, Jesus calls us to love and share and to shine for him. Sometimes we flicker, sometimes our light gets blown out. When this happens, come, through friends and strangers, come and love us. Re-light our candle, our flame, our hope, our love and joy. We make these and all the prayers we hold in our hearts in the name of Jesus our Lord.

We hope these Prayers of the Faithful for the 4th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Jan 28-29, 2023, are helpful to you in your personal prayer life. Some friends have shared that they have chosen one intention each day to sit with, in reflection. Perhaps that’s an idea for you, too!

Today Matthew gives us Jesus’ path to peace and health, a path that is different from the thinking and practice of many. We ask for the ears to hear Jesus’ call and the eyes to follow his path. And we pray:

That your church embrace your path, a path that risks failure because it seeks love and healing, because it follows a path that leads to reconciliation, wholeness, and inclusion, not safety or certitude….we pray to the Lord.

This week, we celebrate Catholic Schools Week and our own School, St. Brigid. We pray blessings on the ministry of education and on our school. Lead its families, teachers, and administrators in ways of justice, integrity, and caring. May we rejoice in forming young people alive with faith and hope and a personal knowledge of your Son. We pray to the Lord.

Lord, how kind we are to animals, but when it comes to human beings, often we turn away, unable to cope with facing up to others’ needs. Help us to know how we can help. Take away the fear that so often stops us from reaching out. We pray to the Lord.

That those elected or chosen to make hard decisions have the courage and wisdom to make those choices in ways that actually solve problems – in ways that are fair and honest and not based on personal or partisan gain. We pray to the Lord.

That those who are burdened by discouragement, guilt, or depression be given healing and hope, and that people to listen to them and care for them. We pray to the Lord.

That our deceased brothers and sisters be given the disciple’s reward for following Jesus’ way of living. At this liturgy we especially remember:
4:30 PM  Paul Hayes by Natalie Baltos
7:30 AM  For The People of the Parish both Living & Deceased
9:30 AM Catherine I. Banks by Daughter, Cathy
5:00 PM  Priest Intention
5:00 PM at St. Pius X to kick-off Catholic Schools Week: For the well-being of our School and students and their families.
We pray to the Lord.

We entrust these prayers to your care. And we ask that you turn us around God, around into your way of thinking, your way of loving. Turn us around, God and let us meet Jesus, face to face in our brothers and sisters. Baptize our fears with your joy. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen.

We share this week’s Prayers of the Faithful, which is the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity,  Jan 21-22, 2023 trusting that they will be helpful in your own prayer life and reflection.
Today St. Paul urges us to be united in the same mind and same purpose and to put aside rivalries. We pray: 

In this week of prayer for Christian unity, God, help us see clearly the divisions in our churches and to be willing to engage in honest dialogue with those whose ideas and traditions differ from our own. Help us to seek out and find ways our local churches can work together and share our resources with those in need, we pray to the Lord.

For enough courage, wisdom and compassion to enable us to heal the divisions that are harming both our own Catholic Church and our nation, we pray to the Lord.

For those whose faces and stories we have seen on the news this week: for those who live in places of fear and war, for those who are homeless and for those whose decisions affect the lives of nations, we pray to the Lord.

For healing and honesty where there are divisions and hurt within our families, we pray to the Lord

For courage to follow Jesus’ call to love with radical hospitality, to live a different way, to be able to see him wherever we go, we pray to the Lord.

For our brothers and sisters in California and other places of extreme, dangerous and damaging weather, for safety, and blessings on those who are suffering and those who have died. We pray to the Lord.

For fulfillment of all the promises of eternal life for all who have died, our loved ones, and particularly those we remember in our liturgy today:

4:30 PM Bernard Deschanes by his wife Yvette.

7:30 AM For The People of the Parish both Living & Deceased

9:30 AM Aline Ruch Frank by The Williams Family

5:00 PM John Hogan and Mary Lou Bivens by Lynn and Judy Bivens
We pray to the Lord

We entrust to your care today these prayers and those we hold in our hearts. We acknowledge that we love the familiar, the church ways and places we have long known, but you call us through our baptism and the Eucharist to step to a future to which Christ is leading us. Give us the grace and will to follow you into this future. We make these prayers through Christ our Lord.  Amen.

We offer these Prayers of the Faithful from the 2nd Sunday in Ordinary Time ( January 14-15, 2023) in the hopes that they are helpful to you in your own prayerful reflections this week. Lord, hear our prayers:

The promise of Jesus and the prophets is that the love of God embraces all peoples and God’s kindness and mercy know no limits. Trusting in that welcome, we pray: 

That our Church and leaders be guided by the Holy Spirit, a Spirit of hope, courage, integrity and mercy, and that these gifts be shown in our words and deeds, we pray to the Lord.

This week, as we remember Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, may the Holy Spirit help us to see where racism, fear, and hatred are present in our society, its actions, and our attitudes. We pray that we all are able to love our neighbor as Jesus asks. We pray to the Lord.

Starting on Wednesday, Christian churches observe a week of prayer for Christian unity. Jesus prayed that we might all be one, not necessarily the same, but united in hearts and minds and mutual respect. May we seek those gifts and live them. For our brother and sister Christians in other churches and communities of faith, we pray to the Lord.

Where there is brokenness in relationships, loss of hope that change can happen, or where we are held back by fear, we ask the Spirit for healing, hope, vision and courage, for ourselves and our church, we pray to the Lord.

For all who are hungry or homeless here in Maine, and around the world, and for those exploited by the powerful of this world, we pray to the Lord.

For all who give of their time, their energy, ideas, and resources in our community agencies, organizations, and non-profits. Their work benefits us all. We pray to the Lord.

For all who have died and those who are dying today. At this liturgy we especially remember:

4:30 PM Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Mathieu by Yvette Deschanes

7:30 AM Edward Piderit by the Morrison Family

9:30 AM  For The People of the Parish both Living & Deceased

5:00 PM Helen Polito by Therese Flaherty & Family

We pray to the Lord.  

God of our strength, hear our prayers. May our oneness with you and each other, be the living sign of your presence in our divided world. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

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We hope that you find these Prayers of the Faithful from Mass this weekend, celebrating  Epiphany (Jan 7-8, 2023), to be helpful to you in your reflections and prayer life this week.

We celebrate the light and hope shown to us in the birth of Christ, a light meant for all people, all nations. Trusting in that light we pray:

For our church. That we might honestly recognize our failings, reach out in sincerity and humility to those who have been hurt and seek Christ’s light for the future. We pray to the Lord.

For all who, like the Magi, are seekers today. Those seeking truth and justice, those seeking a safe place to live, those seeking to begin again in recovery or new commitments, may they find the light and hope they desire. We pray to the Lord.

For those for whom the darkness is very dark: those trapped by addiction to drugs, for those who struggle to accept God’s desire to bless and forgive them, for those who have no one to show them the light of love, we pray to the Lord.

For any of us and all of us when we fear to come to God with our needs or find it impossible to believe that we can change, or the world can change. We pray to the Lord.

For people living in fear of war or domestic violence or human trafficking or the fear of facing illness or of being alone, we pray to the Lord.

For our deceased loved ones that they now be gathered on another shore and in a greater light. At this liturgy we especially entrust to God:
4:30 PM Michael William Joyce by Paulette Tidd
7:30 AM Josette LeBlanc by Rudy & Lena LeBlanc & Family
9:30 AM William & Michael Jennings by the Jennings Family
5:00 PM For the People of the Parish both Living & Deceased
We pray to the Lord.

Let us join – and welcome – all nations and peoples in adoring you, for like the Magi we find our everlasting light in your Son who dwells with us. We make these prayers in His name. Amen