PRAYER The Pope’s monthly themes
Listening with Pope Francis In the Apostleship of Prayer, Christians unite their prayers and lives to the mission of the universal Church, through the Pope’s monthly prayer themes.
MORNING PRAYER God, our Father, I offer You my day. I offer you my prayers, thoughts, words, actions, joys and sufferings in union with the Heart of Jesus, who continues to offer Himself in the Eucharist for the salvation of the world. May the Holy Spirit,Who guided Jesus, be my guide and my strength today so that I may witness to your love.With Mary, the mother of our Lord and the Church, I pray for all Apostles of Prayer and for the prayer intentions proposed by the Holy Father this month. Amen.
October: That those feeling so crushed by life that they wish to end it may sense the nearness of God’s love. That the celebration of World Mission Day may help all Christians realize that we are not only receivers but proclaimers of God’s Word.
August: That parents and teachers may help the new generation to grow in upright conscience and life. That the local Church in Africa, faithfully proclaiming the Gospel, may promote peace and justice.
September: That people today, often
November: That priests who experience difficulties may find comfort in their suffering, support in their doubts, and confirmation in their fidelity. That as fruit of the continental mission, Latin American Churches may send missionaries to other Churches.
School Chaplain, Fr Michael Beattie SJ reflects on two of the prayer themes for this autumn.
as follows: “With Simeon and Anna in the temple whose wisdom allowed them to recognise Jesus (Luke 2, 22-38), let us give of ourselves with wisdom to the youth, like good wine that improves with age, let us give the youth the wisdom of our lives”. Part of that wisdom is to be silent, with electronic machinery switched off, to be able to listen not only in the classroom and at home but to have an open ear to the words of the Lord Jesus.
In a world that is saturated with noise, Pope Francis – in the very first instance of his pontificate on the balcony of St Peter’s – reminded us of the need for silence and prayer. Time and again in the Gospels, we are exhorted to listen to the Word of God: “This is my Son, the Chosen One, listen to him” (Luke 9, 36). Similarly, on the day of his election, Pope Francis spoke to the assembled cardinals
overwhelmed by noise, may rediscover the value of silence and listen to the voice of God and their brothers and sisters. That Christians suffering persecution in many parts of the world may by their witness be prophets of Christ’s love.
Pope Francis would totally identify himself with the thrust of our prayer for the month of September: “That people today often overwhelmed by noise, may discover the value of silence and listen to the voice of God and their brothers and sisters”. Can we really listen if we are continually surrounded by noise? Mobile phones, I-pads, television, car radios; they are all wonderful inventions of modern times, but they need to be used judiciously. Continuous
noise can act as an anaesthetic, as a dulling of one of the greatest human gifts we possess, the capacity to reflect, to think and to pray. I reside at Mount St Mary’s College, a Jesuit school full of young people who are all computer literate and for whom gadgets are seen as an essential part of daily living. Parents and teachers in their duty of formation must offer the young the wisdom of experience. Our prayer intention for August is directed to the formation of young people. In his inauguration homily, our new Pope described the role of St Joseph, guiding and protecting the Holy Family. “Discreetly, humbly and silently, but with an unfailing presence and utter fidelity, even when he finds it hard to understand”. Is there a lesson here for parents and teachers, religious brothers and sisters and all who are called upon to form the men and women of tomorrow? With listening ears and open hearts, we commend all these things to the Lord. l