Prayerful Concerns of Our Parish Community – 2nd Sunday of Lent

We hope these Prayers of the Faithful from the Second Sunday of Lent (March 4-5, 2023) are helpful to you this week – and beyond – in your reflections and prayer life.

God, the words of Scripture this week speak of your promises and blessings. For us, the shadows and difficulties of life can make it hard to see hope. We ask for the ability to hope as we pray today…

Lord, your Church seems divided and at odds with itself, Catholic people and clergy disagreeing with and opposing Catholics; Anglicans and Methodists are split and others struggle. Help us to seek to advance not our own agendas but with honesty and humility to seek the guidance of the Holy Spirit in our actions and thinking. We pray to the Lord.

Bless those who are preparing for Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation this Easter. In our community we pray for Jon, Matthew, Tyler and Michael preparing for all the sacraments and Owen for preparing for Confirmation and for our younger children who will receive Confirmation and Eucharist on Pentecost Day. We pray to the Lord.

Bless those for whom hope is difficult or beyond their ability to imagine: those bearing the burdens of illness of mind, body, or spirit; those whose lands and cultures have been destroyed by war, occupation, or injustice, people who have been abandoned by those they trusted and needed, all who see no future. Bless them, Lord and inspire in us ways to reach out to them, we pray to the Lord.

For the healing of relationships, healing which will not make things “nice” but will make things possible: for a mending of love which has been fractured, for the cherishing of all of us, for the holding in brokenness of those for whom love has been undermined, we pray to the Lord.

In thanksgiving for moments that bring hope and joy: the celebration of high school sports and drama and other accomplishments of our young people, for a kind word offered or smile given to a stranger, for hot soup on a cold, snowy day. For these we give thanks and pray to the Lord.

We entrust to you God, our beloved family and friends who have died. Tell them we love them. Let them be the first to greet us when it is our turn to arrive to eternal life. At this liturgy we especially remember:

4:30 PM John O’Brien by John & Eileen Munroe

7:30 AM Toni Muro by Judith Baldi

9:30 AM Charles O’Reilly by Barbara DeCoste

5:00 PM  The People of the Parish both Living & Deceased

We pray to the Lord.

God you have called us into being. You give us Jesus as savior and friend. Surround us with your blessing. May angels and friends share our journey. May we be wise and strong and creative. May we celebrate life and hope. May your image grow within us. May the gospel of life sustain us, all the days of our journey home. We ask these things through Christ our Lord. Amen.

The celebrant then leads the congregation in praying the prayers of the Novena of Grace.