Weekly Prayers
Monday 25 February 2019.
In fulfilling each of our callings in life, it’s okay if we are scared or nervous. However, the overarching theme to our life has to be saying yes to God’s call. It means trusting in what we don’t know, embracing the opportunities and gifts He gives us, and putting faith in His promises to us. Thankfully, Mary said yes to God’s call for her, and because she did, salvation came to the entire world.
In some way, we are all like the Virgin Mary; God has asked each of us to allow Him to take up residence in us. He has asked each of us to honour Him with our lives, and to spread His word by our example. So today we should strive once more to follow Mary’s example, and say yes to God’s will.
Hail Mary……
Tuesday 26 February 2019.
Today, we pray for an increase in vocations.
Lord, I thank you for the gifts You have given me, especially for life, love, family and friends.
Help me to know myself better and to know my talents, as I pray, study and decide on my life’s work.
Help me to see and understand the path you open for me. Help me choose a life’s work which will be in response to my potential and your love for me.
If I am being invited to follow you as a priest, brother or sister, give me a generous heart to respond to your challenging call and the strength to follow You wherever You lead me.
Hail Mary….
Wednesday 27 February 2019.
Morning Mass is celebrated every Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and every morning, during Lent, in the Oratory at 8.25am. Some people may question why going to mass is important. When giving a retreat for teenagers, Bishop Sheen gave a talk on the meaning of mass, he said “If you don’t get anything out of Mass, it’s because you don’t bring the right expectations to it.” The Mass is not entertainment, he said. It is worship of God who made us and saves us. It is an opportunity to praise God and thank Him for all that He has done for us. Bishop Sheen went on to say that if we have the correct understanding of Mass it will become more meaningful and we will want to go to Mass.
The Year of Faith. We should all try to celebrate Mass as often as we can and encourage our friends and peers to also come to Mass. Today we pray for young people and that they have the strength in their own faith.
Hail Mary…
Thursday 28 February 2019.
St. Peter Damian must be numbered among the greatest of the Church’s reformers in the Middle Ages, yes, even among the truly extraordinary persons of all times. In Damian the scholar, men admire wealth of wisdom: in Damian the preacher of God’s word, apostolic zeal; in Damian the monk, austerity and self-denial; in Damian the priest, piety and zeal for souls; in Damian the cardinal, loyalty and submission to the Holy See together with generous enthusiasm and devotion for the good of Mother Church. He was a personal friend of Pope Gregory VII. He died in 1072 at the age of 65.
St. Peter Damian was a great reformer, often prescribing penances and fasting to lax religious. Choose a day every week, most appropriately Friday, on which you will fast and offer penances for specific intentions.
We pray together.
Our Father…
Friday 1 March 2019.
Agnes Bojaxhui was born in 1910. Her older brother and sister’s nickname for her was “flower bud”. Her family life was happy: her father was a successful businessman and the only Catholic member of the local council. He often invited local poor people to share meals at his house. Agnes often ate in the company of people who were – at least for the first meal – strangers to her.
The girl called Agnes remembered the example set by her father and mother: to pray for and to help those people less fortunate than themselves.
Despite suffering from malaria and whooping cough and having a foot impairment, Agnes was to spend the rest of her life working to serve the poor. Today Agnes is better known as Saint Mother Teresa. In her diary she wrote:
“Today I learned a good lesson.
When I was going until my
legs and arms were paining,
I was thinking how the poor
have to suffer to get food and shelter.”
Is there a lesson for you in the words of Agnes?
Our Father ……..
