Posts Tagged ‘grace’

Grace and Confidence -1

December 13, 2009

Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. Hebrews 4:16

Lord as we approach the celebration of your birth, help us to embrace your message of hope, joy, forgiveness and peace. Help us to see the many opportunities we have around us to experience and share that message – the hope that comes with change; the joy in simply being alive; the opportunity to accept and be accepted by those who love us;  the peace of a quiet moment, a good meal, a warm bed.  Give us the confidence to move forward, one step at a time, as we work to fix our economy, to help those who are longing to work, feed those who are hungry, and to care for all who are sick.  Forgive us our faults,  — our shortsightedness, self righteousness, anger, fear, and denial — that stall our progress.  Help us to accept that progress is incremental and that in seeking a world that is more fair and just, we must often seek hope in the unseen. Let us find confidence in your mercy and grace, and follow the promise of your love.   Amen

Charity In Truth – 2

September 27, 2009

[Note: this prayer, like last week’s prayer, reflects and quotes from the Encyclical Letter Caritas In Veritate given by Pope Benedict XVI on June 29, 2009.  Quotes from the letter are identified by paragraph number.]

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 1 Cor. 13:6

Lord, your love is the truth you ask us to accept and share with others.  (John 15:12).  Help us to follow your command as we work to reform our economy and allocate our resources.  As the Encyclical Letter states: “The economy needs ethics in order to function correctly —not any ethics whatsoever, but an ethics which is peopled-centred.”  (Encycl. Ltr, par 45).  Do not let us be misled by blind faith in “markets”.  Instead, give us the political will to set the boundaries needed to ensure that our markets function in ways to that do not unjustly enrich the few at the cost of impoverishing many.  The Encyclical Letter also warns that:

The risk of our time is that the de facto interdependence of people and nations is not matched by ethical interaction of consciences and minds that would give rise to truly human development.  Only in charity, illumined by the light of reason and faith, is it possible to pursue development goals that possess a more humane and humanizing value.  (Encycl. Ltr, par. 9).

Do not let us be misled again by undue reliance on the science of economics and mathematical calculations that fail to account for human fears and costs.  Help us instead to identify and analyze what would best promote the common good, and to accept responsibility for improving the lives of those who have suffered greatly as a result of our past failures, both economic and political.  Help us to recognize our interdependence and accept that each of our fates – whether rich or poor or in between — are intertwined.  Let us recognize that our wealth as individuals and as a nation depends on our genuinely caring for and helping each other, especially those who now struggle day to day simply to survive. Guide us O Lord, and move us forward.

Amen