Third Sunday of Advent, December 13, 2020
On this Gaudete Sunday, we present our needs to the Father as we wait in joyful hope for the Lord who is near and draws ever closer.
- That in celebrating his 84th birthday this week, Pope Francis may be blessed with health, energy, wisdom, and peace as he labors to bring glad tidings to the poor, healing to the brokenhearted, and release to those imprisoned by evil. We pray to the Lord.
- That world leaders may be wrapped in mantles of justice shunning wars that destroy the land so that the earth may bring forth its plants to feed the hungry, bring lush beauty to parched lands, and provide shade to those with no shelter from the sun. We pray to the Lord.
- That despite the pandemic that sows isolation, sickness, death, and depression we may rejoice always, pray without ceasing, and in all circumstances give thanks. We pray to the Lord.
- That our parish may be renewed as “an environment for hearing God’s word, for growth in the Christian life, for dialogue, proclamation, charitable outreach, worship, and celebration”[1]. We pray to the Lord.
- That during this proclaimed Year of St. Joseph, we will be better able to follow his example of setting aside our own ideas in order to accept and embrace the course of events in our lives, mysterious and unexpected as they may be.[2] We pray to the Lord.
- That our care for others and the priorities of our lives may be responsive to Isaiah’s proclamation and John the Baptist’s cry to “make straight the way of the Lord.” We pray to the Lord.
- That when we are challenged for our faith, and whenever Christians face persecution, we may have the courage of John the Baptist to testify to the light so that all might believe. We pray to the Lord.
- That despite the difficulties he has endured, Fr. Christopher may know he has been anointed as a priest by the Lord to raise his voice joyfully, crying out in the desert, enabling those who doubt to recognize the Lord who came, who comes, and who will come again. We pray to the Lord.
- That during this Advent season, may the God of peace make us perfectly holy, preserve us blameless, and give us the grace to refrain from every kind of evil as we await the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. We pray to the Lord.
- That those who labor selflessly for the well-being of others in science professions, service industries, and as aid workers may be spared illness, violence, exhaustion, and discouragement as they rejoice in God our savior. We pray to the Lord.
- That those who are ill may be granted healing, strength, courage, and peace knowing that God is the joy of their souls. We pray to the Lord.
- That those who have died will be clothed with a robe of salvation in the eternal light and abundant joy of heaven. We pray to the Lord.
O God, may our souls always proclaim your greatness; and may our spirits rejoice for all the great things you have done for us. As we seek your will for our lives, we ask for your mercy on our generation promised to all who reverence and obey you. We make this prayer through Christ our Lord. Amen.
[1] Apostolic Exhortation Evangelii Gaudium of the Holy Father Francis on the Proclamation of the Gospel in Today’s World, November 24, 2013, Paragraph 28.
[2] Apostolic Letter Patris Corde of the Holy Father Francis on the 150th Anniversary of the Proclamation of Saint Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church, December 8, 2020, Section 4.
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