Will you pray for the Synod Fathers?
1 December 2014
Voice of the Family prayer appeal
Please join us and families across the world in daily prayer for the Synod Fathers as they prepare for the Ordinary Synod on the Family in October 2015.
Our intention is not to keep count of your prayers or a publish a register of prayers said. We simply want to form the most powerful support for the Synod Fathers, upon whose voice our families can confidently rely.
In the “How I will pray” box, please specify how you could support the Synod Fathers with prayer as they prepare for the Synod on the Family. For example:
– by remembering their intentions at daily Mass
– by remembering their intentions in daily Rosary
– by participating in Eucharistic Adoration
– by praying one of the recommended prayers daily
– by fasting
– by praying with my whole family.
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Our prayer intentions:
+ We pray that in the course of this year many bishops will find renewed strength to be uncompromising guardians of sacramental marriage, the strongest protector of children, both born and unborn.
+ We pray that many bishops will uphold chastity, which provides protection against the contraceptive mentality, the most powerful catalyst of the culture of death.
+ We pray that the voice of many bishops will be heard in defence of parents as the primary educators of their children.
+ We pray that many bishops will offer leadership in prayers of atonement for sins against family and marriage.
See below for recommended daily prayers.
Why prayer for the Synod is crucial:
Advent, which marks the beginning of a new year in the Church’s calendar, is a time of deep anticipation of the birth of Our Saviour into the world and into our hearts. This Advent is also the beginning of the year which will lead to the Synod on Family in October 2015. This is a time to pray unceasingly for our families and the family of families, the Church. The architects of the recently concluded Extraordinary Synod are responsible for increasing the moral confusion which has been ravaging families since the sexual revolution of the 1960s. Voice of the Family now looks to those courageous pastors who sought, throughout this Synod, to defend our faith and our families, praying that their leadership will dispel the moral confusion which currently reigns so widely in the Church.
The stakes are high, since every attack on the fundamental value of the family is an attack on the true good of humanity. Pope Saint John Paul II emphasised in his landmark encyclical letter Evangelium Vitae: “The family has a special role to play throughout the life of its members, from birth to death. It is truly ‘the sanctuary of life: the place in which life – the gift of God – can be properly welcomed and protected against the many attacks to which it is exposed, and can develop in accordance with what constitutes authentic human growth’ . Consequently the role of the family in building a culture of life is decisive and irreplaceable. “ Voice of the Family recognises that the Synod provides an important opportunity to take concrete steps to address the attacks on family and crisis in the Church by giving a renewed impetus to the “New Evangelisation”. If the Synod is to be effective it is essential that the teaching of the Church is affirmed clearly and without ambiguity.
“The Future of Humanity passes by way of the Family” (Familiaris Consortio, 86)
Some recommendations for prayers to be said daily:
For our bishops:
O God, who hast appointed Thine only-begotten Son to be the eternal High Priest for the glory of Thy Majesty and the salvation of mankind; grant that they whom He hath chosen to be His ministers and the stewards of His mysteries, may be found faithful in the fulfilment of the ministry which they have received. Through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.
For our families:
O eternal Spirit of Love, Bond of unity in the Holy Trinity, preserve love, unity and peace in our home. Make of it a faithful reproduction of the Holy House of Nazareth, upon which Thou didst look with such kindness. Bind us all together, not merely by worldly ties, but by the golden bonds of charity, prayer, and mutual service. By the gift of piety, help us to forgive and forget the little grievances which the events of life and diversity of character may foster among us. Whatsoever duty may call us, let us never bring dishonour upon our home and family. Ward off from our home the spirit of pride, irreligion and worldliness. Allow not the lax principles and perverse maxims of the world to take root among us. Teach us to love and respect that Christian modesty which reigned supreme in the Holy Family. As by Thy help we live in unity here below, give us, we beseech Thee, the grace of final perseverance, that together we may praise Thee and love Thee through a happy eternity. Amen.
For the enemies of the Church:
Arise, O Lord, and let Your enemies be scattered, and let those that hate You flee before Your Face. (Psalm 68 v 1)
Prayer to St Michael the Archangel:
St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle; be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the Devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray, and do Thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the power of God, cast into Hell, Satan and all the other evil spirits, who wander throughout the world, seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.
The “Golden Arrow” prayer:
The Golden Arrow is an important prayer that Jesus gave to Sister Mary of St. Peter, a Carmelite nun in France, in August of 1843. Sister Mary called it “an Act of Praise that our Lord Himself dictated to me, notwithstanding my unworthiness, for the reparation of Blasphemy [insulting or disrespectful thoughts or behavior] against His Holy Name.”
May the most holy, most sacred, most adorable, most incomprehensible and unutterable Name of God be always praised, blessed, loved, adored and glorified in Heaven, on earth, and under the earth, by all the creatures of God, and by the Sacred Heart of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in the Most Holy Sacrament of the Altar. Amen.
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