Weekly Prayers of the Faithful

Second Sunday of Easter, April 27, 2025

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Second Sunday of Easter, April 27, 2025

On this joyful Easter day, this Sunday of Thomas and Sunday of Divine Mercy, we come to the Father offering our prayers in thanksgiving for the wisdom of Pope Francis that has graced our lives.

  1. That in rejoicing at the life of Pope Francis, the Church may be docile “to the Holy Spirit, to that Spirit who comes to us and moves us forward on the way of holiness.”[1]  We pray to the Lord.
  2. That people of warring nations and who seek peace may cry out, “Turn to us, O Lord, and have mercy on us because we are sad, we are in anguish.  See our misery and our pain and forgive all our sins [that have led to hatred and division]”.[2]  We pray to the Lord.
  3. On this Divine Mercy Sunday, may we know that “Jesus came for us sinners, and this is beautiful.  Let’s look into the merciful eyes of Jesus, celebrate, and keep the memory of this salvation.”[3] We pray to the Lord.
  4. That our “faith in God [may lead] us to an attitude of hope, a strong hope built on the strength and courage to entrust [ourselves] to the Lord.[4]  We pray to the Lord.
  5. In moments of despair, may we recall “that because Jesus rose from the dead, we know that He has the words of eternal life, that His Word has the power to touch every heart, to conquer evil, and to change and redeem the world.”[5]  We pray to the Lord.
  6. That we may see “Jesus’ wounds visible today on the bodies of all our brothers and sisters who are hungry, thirsty, naked, humiliated or slaves, in prison and hospital.  By touching and caressing these wounds [may we be like Thomas and] adore God alive in our midst.”[6]  We pray to the Lord.
  7. That we will respond to Pope Francis’ exhortation “not to give in to narratives … that cause unnecessary suffering to our migrant brothers and sisters [but instead will] live in solidarity and fraternity, build bridges that bring us ever closer together, avoid walls of ignominy, and learn to give our lives as Jesus Christ gave his for the salvation of all.”[7]  We pray to the Lord.
  8. That in all the actions of our lives, we may praise God. “For when human beings claim to take God’s place, they become their own worst enemies.”[8]  We pray to the Lord
  9. That the terminally ill may “ask for the grace to die in the Church; ask for the grace of dying in hope, with hope; and ask for the grace of leaving behind a wonderful inheritance, a human inheritance, an inheritance built on the testimony of Christian life.”[9] We pray to the Lord.
  10. That Pope Francis may be received with great joy by all the angels and saints and rest forever in the arms of the Lord whom he served so long and so well.  We pray to the Lord.

God, our Father, on this day as we mourn the death of our Holy Father Francis, we come to you with Easter joy in sure knowledge that the resurrection of your Son overcomes all death, gives us life, and assures us that you answer all our needs.  Amen.

[1] From homily of Pope Francis, April 16, 2013.

[2] From homily of Pope Francis, June 2, 2013.

[3] From homily of Pope Francis, July 5, 2013.

[4] From homily of Pope Francis, January 10, 2014.

[5] Address of Pope Francis, August 15, 2014.

[6] Morning Meditation in the Chapel of the Domus Sanctae Marthae, Touching the Wounds of Jesus, July 3, 2013

[7] From the Letter of the Holy Father Francis to the Bishops of the United States of America, February 10, 2025.

[8] From Apostolic Exhortation Laudate Deum of the Holy Father Francis to All People of Good Will on the Climate Crisis, October 4, 2023. 

[9] From homily of Pope Francis, February 6, 2014.

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