PRAYER
✥ INTENTIONS
Prayers of the Week
Saturday, March 22 – Prayer for the Dead
God our Father, Your power brings us to birth, Your providence guides our lives, and by Your command we return to dust. Lord, those who die still live in Your presence, their lives change but do not end. I pray in hope for my family, relatives and friends, and for all the dead known to You alone. In company with Christ, Who died and now lives, may they rejoice in Your kingdom, where all our tears are wiped away. Unite us together again in one family, to sing Your praise forever and ever. Amen.
Sunday, March 23 – Prayer of Thanks for People
God of Love, I thank You for the people in my life who are easy to love. I thank You for my family and friends who understand my actions, who support me in my decisions, and whose presence can lift the burden of a thorny day. Help me with those who are difficult to love. When they come at me with criticism and wild expectations, when they ignore me or try to bend me to their will, let me recognize their flaws and their dangers. But then let me remember your attitude toward them, and lead me to see them in the light of Your love. Amen.
Monday, March 24 – Prayer to the Holy Spirit
Come, Holy Spirit, fill my heart with Your holy gifts. Let my weakness be penetrated with Your strength this very day that I may fulfill all the duties of my state conscientiously, that I may do what is right and just. Let my charity be such as to offend no one, and hurt no one’s feelings; so generous as to pardon sincerely any wrong done to me. Assist me, O Holy Spirit, in all my trials of life, enlighten me in my ignorance, advise me in my doubts, strengthen me in my weakness, help me in all my needs, protect me in temptations and console me in afflictions. Graciously hear me, O Holy Spirit, and pour Your light into my heart, my soul, and my mind. Assist me to live a holy life and to grow in goodness and grace. Amen.
Tuesday, March 25 – Saint Anthony, Performer of Miracles
Dear St. Anthony, your prayers obtained miracles during your lifetime. You still seem to move at ease in the realm of minor and major miracles. St. Anthony, Performer of Miracles, please obtain for me the blessings God holds in reserve who serve Him. Pray that I may be worthy of the promises my Lord Jesus attaches to confident prayer. (Mention your special intentions.)
Wednesday, March 26 – Prayer before Confession
Receive my confession, O most loving and gracious Lord Jesus Christ, only hope for the salvation of my soul. Grant to me true contrition of soul, so that day and night I may by penance make satisfaction for my many sins. Savior of the world, O good Jesus, Who gave Yourself to the death of the Cross to save sinners, look upon me, most wretched of all sinners; have pity on me, and give me the light to know my sins, true sorrow for them, and a firm purpose of never committing them again. O gracious Virgin Mary, Immaculate Mother of Jesus, I implore you to obtain for me by your powerful intercession these graces from your Divine Son. St. Joseph, pray for me.
Thursday, March 27 – Prayer for a Sick Person
Dear Jesus, Divine Physician and Healer of the Sick, we turn to You in this time of illness. O dearest Comforter of the Troubled, alleviate our worry and sorrow with Your gentle love, and grant us the grace and strength to accept this burden. Dear God, we place our worries in Your hands. We ask that You restore Your servant to health again. Above all, grant us the grace to acknowledge Your holy will and know that whatsoever You do, You do for the love of us. Amen.
Friday, March 28 – Prayer to Serve God Well
Father of Mercy, forgive my failings, keep me in Your Grace, and lead me in the way of salvation. Give me strength in serving You as a follower of Christ. May the Eucharist bring me Your Forgiveness and give me freedom to serve You all my life. May it help me to remain faithful and give me the grace I need in Your service. May it teach me the way to eternal life.
Saturday, March 29 – Prayer for the Sick
Dear Jesus, Divine Physician and Healer of the sick, we turn to you in this time of illness. O dearest comforter of the troubled, alleviate our worry and sorrow with your gentle love, and grant us the grace and strength to accept this burden. Dear God, we place our worries in your hands. We place our sick under your care and humbly ask that you restore your servant to health again. Above all, grant us the grace to acknowledge your will and know that whatever you do, you do for the love of us. Amen.
INTENTIONS OF POPE FRANCIS ~ MARCH 2025
Let us pray that broken families might discover the cure for their wounds through forgiveness, rediscovering each other’s gifts, even in their differences.
PRAYER ABOUT SAINT PATRICK
God our Father,
you sent Saint Patrick to preach
your glory to the people of Ireland.
By the help of his prayers,
may all Christians proclaim your love to all men.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
58th World Day of Prayer: March 7, 2025
World Day of Prayer is celebrated on the first Friday of March each year to encourage Christian women to engage in personal prayer and lead communal prayer within their mission auxiliaries and associations. Women have a strong sense of identification with the needs of other women and children and are better suited to provide the appropriate support.
In our area World Day of Prayer will be held on Friday, March 7 @ 2:pm,
at Valetta Presbyterian Church, 4319 Middle Line, Merlin, ON.
The month of MARCH is dedicated to St. Joseph.The entire month falls during the liturgical season of Lent which is represented by the liturgical color purple — a symbol of penance, mortification and the sorrow of a contrite heart.
ST. JOSEPH PRAYER
Hail, Guardian of the Redeemer,
spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
To you God entrusted his only Son;
in you Mary placed her trust;
with you Christ became man.
Blessed Joseph, to us too,
show yourself a father
and guide us in the path of life.
Obtain for us grace, mercy and courage,
and defend us from every evil. Amen
World Day of the Sick: February 11, 2025
Pope Francis’ message for the 2025 World Day of the Sick is “Heal relationships to heal the ill”. The message emphasizes that caring for the sick means caring for their relationships with God, family, friends, healthcare workers, and creation.
Prayer for the Sick:
God of hope and healing,
Be with those whose bodies burn with fever,
rage with pain, struggle for breath,
cry out for limbs that used to be,
or crave addictive substances.
Be with those whose minds and emotions
face the wait of a diagnosis,
wrestle with the choices for treatment,
adapt to a life altered by chronic illness,
recover from abuse,
or push against the encroaching clouds of dementia.
Be with those whose spirits are exhausted by the quest for health,
doubt the existence of love,
question the fairness of life,
or stare into the face of death.
Cool the fever, bring balm to the pain, ease the fight for air,
adapt the body for new ways to move, and calm the cravings.
Ease anxiety and fear.
Build trust in your everlasting love and care.
God of all, hear our prayer.
Amen
Prayer for the Caregiver:
God of comfort and strength,
Be with those whose backs ache with the weight of lifting,
whose hands are raw from the constant washing,
whose eyes close frequently from lack of sleep,
and whose bodies feel broken and weary.
Be with those whose anxiety cannot face one more “what if,”
whose thoughts do not dare go beyond the next moment,
whose tears have flowed until there are no more,
whose patience has worn too thin,
and whose mind and emotions have become fragile.
Be with those whose spirits are exhausted
by the demands of caring for the sick,
doubt the existence of love,
question the fairness of life,
or stare into the reality of losing a loved one to death.
Sooth the body and ease the pain.
Calm the anxiety and fear.
Build trust in your everlasting presence and love.
God of all, hear our prayer.
Amen
February Month of the HOLY FAMILY
The month of February is traditionally dedicated to the Holy Family. Between the events which marked Christmas and the beginning of Christ’s public life the Church has seen fit to recall the example of the Holy Family for the emulation of the Christian family.
The Feast of the Presentation (February 2) or Candlemas forms a fitting transition from Christmas to Easter. The small Christ-Child is still in His Mother’s arms, but already she is offering Him in sacrifice. February 21, Shrove Tuesday, will find us preparing for Ash Wednesday. The middle of the month will find us on Ash Wednesday accepting the ashes that remind us of our mortality and our need for penance.
“The Light of Revelation” shines more brightly with each successive Sunday of Ordinary Time, until its magnificence–exposing our sinfulness and need for conversion–propels us into the penitential Season of Lent. We prepare to accept the cross of blessed ashes on Ash Wednesday (February 22) and plunge ourselves into anticipating the major exercises of Lent–fasting, prayer, almsgiving–laying our thoughts and prayers on the heart of our Mother Mary. She, who offered her Son in the temple and on the Cross, will teach us how to deny ourselves, take up our cross daily, and follow after her Son.
Month of the Holy Name of Jesus
The month of January is dedicated to the Holy Name of Jesus. “In the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those that are in heaven, on earth and under the earth” (Phil 2:10). Christ’s name is chosen in heaven, and the Angel Gabriel announces it when he informs the Blessed Virgin of the incarnation: “Behold thou shalt conceive in thy womb and shalt bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus”.
Prayer:
Eternal Father, who didst give to thine incarnate Son the holy name of Jesus to be the sign of our salvation: Plant in every heart, we beseech thee, the love of him who is the Saviour of the world, even our Lord Jesus Christ; who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, in glory everlasting. Amen.