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DAY ONE
Special request: An increase of faith and our urgent human
needs.
Background
St. Paul knew people in Rome and he mentions them in his Letter
to the Romans. At the time of the writing of this epistle, he
had not yet visited the city. This Letter was an introduction to
people who had heard of Paul but by and large had not met him
personally. He used this inspired letter to explain his faith
and to strengthen the belief of the Christians in Rome. Reading
this Letter can also make us wiser today then we were yesterday
and wiser still tomorrow.
St. Paul’s Prayers and Thoughts:
Romans 1:8-11 “First of all, I give thanks to my God through
Jesus Christ for all of you, because of your faith that is being
proclaimed throughout the world. God is my witness – Whom I
serve with my spirit by proclaiming the good news of his Son –
that I continually mention you in my prayers and ask that
somehow by God’s will I’ll finally manage to come to you and to
share with you some spiritual gift in order to strengthen you,
that is so we may be mutually encouraged by one another’s faith,
both yours and mine.”
Romans: 15:13 “May God, the source of hope, fill you with
all joy and peace through your belief in Him, so that you will
overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.”
Romans 15:30-33 “I beg you, my brothers, by our Lord Jesus
Christ and the love of the Spirit, to join me in my struggle so
that I may be delivered from unbelievers … and that my service
in Jerusalem will be acceptable to the saints so that God
willing, I’ll come to you full of joy and find rest with you.
May God who gives peace be with you all. Amen.”
Prayer
St. Paul from your place in heaven we ask you continually to
pray for us in the manner you prayed for the Romans. May our
faith and love of the Gospel bring light into our families,
parishes, community and the entire world. May our witness even
be a cause for increasing the joy of the angels and saints who
surround you. We, however, are surrounded by unbelievers and are
assailed on every side. May you come to us with some spiritual
gift in order to strengthen us. May we on earth encourage one
another in the faith. May we be strong even though we feel so
weak and inadequate. So often we know the right thing to do but
find ourselves doing just the opposite (Rom
7:20) yet you assure us that ultimately nothing can separate
us from Christ (Rom
8:35). When you were in this world you sought to address the
human as well as the spiritual needs of people. You aided the
poor of Jerusalem in powerful and practical ways knowing the
physical aid you brought them would make it easier for them to
have faith and trust in the God of love. With confidence we ask
you to help us with our urgent natural obligations and our needs
of food, shelter, clothing and health. More then that, however,
we ask you to draw us closer to Jesus, crucified and risen who
is the way, truth and life for the world. In this way, we will
be filled with peace, joy and that hope that comes from God,
which the world can never understand or destroy. Amen.
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory Be
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DAY 2
Special request: Achieving and maintaining peace in our families
and communities.
Background
Paul wrote the Epistle to the Ephesians to help them focus on
heavenly matters and at the same time he addressed practical
ways for a person to grow in the love of God and neighbor. While
in Ephesus Paul performed many miracles, won many converts,
overcame demons, and caused the pagans to riot as they saw the
source of their temple income begin to dry up.
St. Paul’s Prayers and Thoughts:
Ephesians 1:16-19 “I give unceasing thanks and mention you
in my prayers that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the
glorious Father may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation
by which you’ll come to a knowledge of Him. May the eyes of your
hearts be enlightened so you’ll come to know what the hope is to
which He calls you, how rich the glorious heritage which will be
shared among the saints, and how extraordinary is his great
power for us who believe.”
Ephesians 3:13-19 “Therefore I ask you not to lose heart
because of the afflictions I’m suffering on your behalf – this
is your glory.”
“Because of this I bend my knees to the Father. From him every
family in the heavens and on earth is named, so that from the
riches of his glory He may grant you inner strength and power
through His Spirit. May Christ dwell in your hearts through
faith, firmly rooted and established in love, so that with all
the saints you may be able to understand the breath, the height,
and the depth, and know Christ’s love which surpasses all
knowledge so that you may be filled with God’s fullness. Now to
Him, Who is able to do so much more than we can ask for or
imagine, by the power of the work in us, to Him be glory in the
Church in Christ Jesus for all generations forever and ever,
Amen.”
Prayer
St. Paul, as you stand before the Father and the Lord Jesus in
eternity, pray for us unceasingly just as you prayed for the
Ephesians when you were on Earth. Pray that we gain wisdom and
knowledge. Enlighten the eyes of our hearts so we can see the
world as God sees it. As you bend your knees before the Father
in heaven, pray for our families here on earth that we may live
in harmony as we grow in the humility, gentleness, patience and
the love (Eph
4:1) that comes from the Holy Spirit. If we are angry let it
be without sin and never let the sun go down on our anger (Eph
4:26). St Paul, beloved apostle pray that we be delivered
from “all bitterness, wrath, angry shouting slander and malice”
(Eph
4:31) If we are frightened by the powers of darkness and sin
help us put on the armor of Christ (Eph
6:14-17). When we are afflicted may we unite our sufferings
to Christ just as you did but, if it is God’s will, deliver us
quickly from our sorrows so that they might never crush us, who
are so weak, and we might sing the praises of God for his mercy
towards us. Help us to be rooted and established in love so that
we can gain some understanding of the height, breath and depth
of Christ’s love for us that surpasses our imagination. When we
feel alone, misunderstood and even abandoned it will be this
knowledge that will give us inner strength and power so that we
might walk in love (Eph
5:2) all the days of our lives. Amen.
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory Be
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DAY 3
Special request: Leading lives of joy and generosity while
receiving the help we need.
Background
Paul loved the Philippians and they supported him in his
mission. In his letter to them we see the joy that Paul had in
serving the Lord and his desire that others might share in his
delight. Even though he was under arrest at the time of his
writing the letter even his chains could not dampen his
enthusiasm for the Gospel.
St. Paul’s Prayers and Thoughts:
Philippians 1: 3-11 “I give thanks to my God every time I
think of you. Whenever I pray for you I pray joyfully, because
of your partnership in the good news from the first day to the
present. Of this I am convinced, that the one who began the good
work in you will bring it to completion on the Day of Jesus
Christ. It is right that I should feel this way about you
because I have you in my heart, and because you all share my
grace, both in my imprisonment and in the defense and
confirmation of the good news. For God is my witness that I long
for all of you with the affection of Jesus Christ. My prayer is
that your love will increase more and more with knowledge and
every manner of insight so that you will be able to discover
what’s best and may be pure and blameless for the day of Christ,
filled with the fruit of the righteousness that comes through
Jesus Christ, to the glory and praise of God.”
Prayer
Beloved St. Paul, help us live our lives with such integrity,
purity and innocence that you will rejoice before the throne of
God as you remember us in your prayers. Deepen our love, broaden
our knowledge and sharpen our insight. May your prayers aid us
in the work God has begun in us so that we may grow in grace day
by day and share with our fellow believers a partnership in
spreading the news of God’s love on Earth. When we feel trapped
by the hardships and limitations this life imposes upon us, may
we remember how you handled your own imprisonment and suffering.
Help us to face the difficult challenges in our lives with a
sense of divine confidence. We understand that all true
righteousness comes from Jesus, our Lord and Savior. On the
bases of His power we hope to be found blameless on the day we
meet Christ in eternity for our own judgment. We know that you
have an affection for us similar to the one you had for the
Philippians. Help us return your love and live in the intense
way that you did serving God and neighbor. May you rejoice in us
as we live and act with one mind and spirit (Phil
2:2). We stand in the midst of a twisted and perverted
generation (Phil
2:14-15) but by the grace of the Christ, whom you served so
well, we are confident that we will be able to live our lives in
such a way that we will be like stars in the midst of the
darkness. When you were hungry and imprisoned, the Philippians
came to your aid (Phil
4:12-14). You in turn prayed that all of their needs would
be filled from the fullness of the riches of Christ (Phil
4:19). May we learn to help those in need around us and may
you petition the Lord of life to send people into our midst to
help us with the our spiritual and physical needs. Pour out the
riches of Christ upon us so that we may share them with others.
Amen
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory be
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DAY 4
Special request: Persevering in prayer in times of struggle and
hardship.
Background
Paul had never been to Collossae but had heard about the faith
community there and rejoiced in its growth. However, it was
experiencing controversies and disputes about the true meaning
of the Gospel. In response to these difficulties he wrote this
inspired letter.
St. Paul’s Prayers and Thoughts:
Colossians 1:3-14 “When we pray for you we gives thanks
through the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ because we’ve heard
of your faith in Christ Jesus and your love for all the saints
which comes from the hope stored up for you in heaven …
Therefore, from the day we heard of you we haven’t ceased
praying for you. May God fill you with the knowledge of His will
through wisdom and all manner of spiritual understanding that
you might conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the Lord and
fully pleasing to him—fruitful in every type of good work and
increasing in knowledge of God. We pray that you will be
strengthened with all the power of His glorious might so that
your steadfastness and patience will be perfected and you may
joyfully give thanks to the Father Who made you worthy to share
in the portion of the saints in light. He has rescued us from
the power of darkness and has brought us into the kingdom of his
Son by whom we are redeemed and our sins forgiven.”
Prayer
St. Paul, please never cease praying for us, who are in such
dire need. Through your intercession may we grow in wisdom and
all manner of spiritual understanding so that we may conduct
ourselves in a manner worthy of the Lord. Multiply our good
works and help us be steadfast in our resolve to live and love
the way the Lord has taught us. More then anything else we, too,
want to share in the light of the saints both now in this
darkened world and eventually with you in eternity. May we not
be misled by empty philosophies or mere human traditions (Col
2:8). May we avoid being confused by spurious visionaries
but cling to sound doctrine (Col
2:18). May we be free from a scrupulosity that would fill
our lives with endless rules and regulations and rob us of joy (Col
2:21-23). However, let us recognize the evil of sin and
avoid fornication, evil desires, malice, greed, wrath, obscene
language and slander. (Col
3:5 & 8). May we be clothed in compassion, humility,
patience, gentleness and the capacity to forgive others and bear
with one another (Col
3:12). Above all else through your intercession may we be
clothed in love. Help us, persevere in prayer with a sense of
thanksgiving even in hard times. When you were chained and
imprisoned you were able to bless your persecutors and sing the
praises of God. From your prison cell you were able to teach
people how to be truly free. Give us this freedom and aid us in
those everyday struggles that might wear us down. Help us so
that we will be in a position to help others. Amen.
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory Be
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DAY 5
Special request: Finding and maintaining gainful employment and
comforting us in time of grief.
Background
The First Letter to the Thessalonians is the earliest inspired
writing of the New Testament. It dates from around the year
50AD. The events surrounding the letter can be found in Acts
16:6 to 18:5. The letter is very moving and St. Paul’s
affectionate nature is apparent throughout. He loved and was
loved by the believing community in Thessalonica.
St. Paul’s Prayers and Thoughts:
1 Thessalonians 1:2 “We always give thanks to God for all of
you and mention you in our prayers, constantly calling to mind
before our God and Father your active faith, your loving labors
and your steadfast hope in the Lord Jesus.”
1 Thessalonians 5:23 “May the God of peace himself sanctify
you completely, and may your spirit, soul and body be kept sound
and blameless for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who
calls us is faithful and He will do it! Brothers pray for us
too!”
2 Thessalonians 1:11-12 “We pray always that this will come
to pass for you, that God will consider you worthy of his call,
and that by his power He will fulfill every desire for goodness
and every work of faith, so that the name of the Lord Jesus will
be glorified in you, and you in it, in accordance with the grace
of our God and Lord Jesus Christ.”
Prayer
Beloved Apostle Paul may our faith, labor and hope be a cause
for you to give thanks to God in eternity. Like the
Thessalonians, we desperately need your prayers so that we can
be kept sound in body, soul and spirit and face the day of the
Lord with a clean conscience. We know that God will always
remain faithful but we fear our own weakness and inconstancy.
You rejoiced because the Thessalonians accepted you as a brother
and adopted you as one of their own and you in turn were as
gentle with them as a mother nursing her infant (1
Thes. 2:7). We sincerely invite you into our families and
our lives so that you can nurture us with the Gospel. You urged
the Thessalonians to live quiet lives of productive labor
supporting themselves and their families (1
Thes 4:11-21). Help us do the same. When unemployed, help us
find work. When working help us share what we can with others.
Assist us and our family members in overcoming the vice of
laziness (1
Thes. 5: 14) and every other evil that tempts us. Help us
especially carry out the works of faith so that God can be made
manifest in our lives. St. Paul pray for us that we may prove
worthy of the call God has given us even in times of sorrow and
grief. When we are heartbroken because we have lost someone in
death, pray for us and console us with the truth of the
resurrection just as you comforted the Thessalonians when you
were on earth (1
Thes. 4:13-18). This consolation will help us be constant in
hope and steadfast in our faith. This is the faith that gives us
a peace that the world can never understand or grasp. Through
our faith in the resurrected Lord Jesus we hope one day to be
with you in eternity praising the God who loves us beyond
anything we can imagine. Amen
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory be
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DAY 6
Special request: A prayer for political leaders to be just and
Church leaders to be holy.
Background
Some scholars affirm that the letter to Timothy was written
after Paul’s death and is not authentically Pauline. Others
however believe that it was written between the writing of One
and Two Corinthians. The intent of the letter is clear. The
author wanted to strengthen the Church in its structure and its
charity and this was something that St. Paul always strove to
do.
St. Paul’s Prayers and Thoughts:
1 Timothy 2:1-2 “First of all I urge that supplications,
prayers, intercessions, and thanksgiving be made for all men –
for the kings and all those in positions of authority—that we
may lead a peaceful quiet life, holy and respectable in every
way.”
Prayer
St. Paul, you taught, strengthened and encouraged Timothy by
word and example. You formed him into an effective leader and
servant of the Church. Your wisdom was an indispensable aid to
him as you supported him in his vocation. You reminded him of
his primary duty to be a person of prayer. His prayer was not
only to be for the flock he tended but for all of humanity and
especially the leaders and those in authority in this world.
Only through such a life of prayer can we hope to experience the
peace we all long for. St. Paul, pray with us for the political
leaders whose power and responsibility is so great. Pray for the
diplomats so that they can find ways to resolve conflict without
war. Pray for the leaders of democracies so that they can act in
the long term interest of their people rather then think only of
short term political gain. Pray for the dictators of the world
so their hearts of stone will be softened and they will learn
how to share power with their people and pave the way for more
humane ways of organizing society. We pray with you, St. Paul,
that theocracies may allow minority religions to exist in peace
and have authentic freedom to worship and speech. We pray that
political leaders will fight corruption, check crime, and
provide genuine security for their lands. We understand that a
stable just society is the responsibility of every person and
ultimately must be supported by a sense of justice that is truly
Godly and life affirming. You reminded Timothy that the love of
money is the root of so much evil in the world (1
Tim 6:10) and you urged those who were wealthy to use their
riches to perform good deeds (1
Tim 6:12-19). St. Paul, help us use our influence and
resources well and wisely. However, often we do not have the
temptations that come from having excessive wealth but are
struggling to just get by from day to day. Aid us in our
struggles so we will not succumb to temptation and despair. St.
Paul, pray to the Lord to send into our midst religious sisters
and brothers, deacons, priests and bishops who like Timothy will
be above reproach, temperate, sensible, peaceful, gentle, sober,
sound in doctrine and humble (1
Tim 3:1-6). Pray with us St. Paul, that our Church may truly
be holy and our civil society truly just. Amen.
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory Be
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DAY 7
Special request: Prayer for freedom in the midst of an unjust
oppressive world.
Background
The Letter to Philemon is a short but moving piece. Paul while
in prison meets a runaway slave who has converted to the faith.
Although he is serving Paul in critical ways, Paul sends him
back to his master Philemon recommending he be treated as a
brother in Christ.
St. Paul’s Prayers and Thoughts:
Philemon 1:3 I always give thanks to God when I mention you
in my prayers, for I hear the faith and love you have for the
Lord Jesus in all the Saints, and I pray that the fellowship in
the faith may serve to lead you to a deeper understanding of all
the good that we have in Christ. Your love has been a great joy
and comfort to me because the hearts of the saints have been
refreshed through you, my brother.
Prayer
St Paul in your heavenly glory you are completely free. Chains
can never bind you. Pray, however, for our freedom. First of all
pray that we be delivered from the slavery of sin and vice. Next
we ask you to intercede for so that we might obtain the freedom
that comes from faith, hope, charity, courage, prudence,
temperance and a knowledge of justice. Finally, give us a prayer
life that embraces the entire world and goes beyond our own
immediate needs. Unite our prayers with yours, as together, we
plead for an enslaved and struggling humanity. St. Paul,
remember those who are forced into literal slave labor of one
form or another. Pray with us for those who are sexually
exploited and abused and moved like commodities around the
nation and the world to fulfill the evil desires of men. Paul
you labored with your hands so as not to be a burden to anyone,
but remember in your prayers those individuals working long
hours in unsafe factories, sweatshops and mines around the world
just to survive. Pray, St. Paul that the migrant workers be
treated fairly and with respect as they move from place to place
to support their families. May we pray for those unjustly
imprisoned, victims of war, crime, civil strife and racism. St.
Paul, pray with us for victims of famine, pestilence, floods,
fires and other natural disasters. In a special way St. Paul
remember all the parents of this world who are at this moment
are watching their children die of illness and starvation. We
know that Jesus our Divine Master hears the cry of the poor and
the desperate prayers coming from billions of people around the
world. In love we want to offer our prayers along with yours,
St. Paul, to the Savior who sets us free. In doing this we are
confident that the Father and Son together will send the Holy
Spirit into our lives to meet the challenges that we face which
are important to us but in the greater scheme of things are
relatively minor. Amen.
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory Be
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DAY 8
Special request: Prayer for a generous spirit and unity of
heart.
Background
In Luke’s Acts of the Apostles we clearly see how much the
Christian community loved Paul and how deep his affection was
for people Luke the beloved physician captures this reality in
the farewell passage at Miletus:
Luke’s Account:
Acts
20:31 “So stay awake; remember that for three years, both
day and night, I didn’t cease exhorting each one of you with
tears. And now I commend you to God and His word of grace which
can build you up and give you an inheritance among all His holy
ones. …. In every possible way I have shown you that we must
help the weak by working hard like this, mindful of the word of
the Lord Jesus Himself, ‘It’s more blessed to give then to
receive.’
After saying this he got on his knees and prayed with them all.
They all wept a great deal and embraced Paul and kissed him
because they were especially pained by what he said about never
seeing his face again.”
Prayer
St. Paul, while on earth you were forced to say goodbye to those
you loved. Now you live in the kingdom where love is the only
reality and you have no more tears to shed. We ask you to be
lovingly united to us who are in the midst of the battle for
salvation in a world filled with personal sin, vice and social
injustice. We need your strength and wisdom to guide us and we
are confident that you will continually intercede for us so that
our great pilgrimage on earth may be successfully concluded one
day before the throne of God. Help the Church today to be united
in spirit and affection. May we who worship together live in
harmony and recognize, as you did, that everyone has unique
roles to play in building up the kingdom of God on earth. May
our parishes, dioceses, religious communities, and the universal
Church be united in heart as well as doctrine so that the
non-believers will say, “See how they love one another.” In your
life you faced conflicts, disagreements and misunderstandings
with your fellow saints here on Earth. Now all of you are
worshiping together before the throne of God. Help us, see the
goodness and grace that fills the believers around us and teach
us to reverence one another so that we will truly be prepared to
live with one another in eternity. St. Paul, you who now
contemplate the face of God, Father, Son and Spirit, teach us to
see that face reflected in our fellow human beings who were
created in God’s image and likeness. Help us see beyond the
disfigurement caused by sin and with the eyes of faith see in
those around us and ourselves the handiwork of God. St. Paul you
were a great sinner but the blinding, eye opening light of Jesus
transformed you into a great saint. Intercede for us so that we
too may become the children of God we are truly called to be.
May God the Father see and love in us what he sees and loves in
his Son and may we be filled with the Holy Spirit that
transforms us into one body on earth. Amen.
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory Be
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Day 9
Special request: Devout reception of the Eucharist.
Background
St. Paul converted the Corinthians by preaching Christ
Crucified. It was a large and wealthy city that was known for
its promiscuous way of life. The people had indulged in every
pleasure and were not satisfied. When Paul came to them
preaching love they were ready to hear the Good News.
St. Paul’s Prayers and Thoughts:
1 Corinthians 11:23-34 “For I received from the Lord what I
handed down to you, that on the night he was betrayed the Lord
took bread and after blessing it he broke it and said, “this is
my body which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me! In the
same way he took the cup after he had eaten and said, “This cup
is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, whenever you drink it,
in remembrance of me!” For whenever you eat this bread and drink
this cup you proclaim the death of the Lord, until he comes.
Therefore, if anyone eats the bread or drinks the cup of the
Lord unworthily, he’ll be answerable to the body and blood of
the Lord. Each of you should first examine yourself and then eat
the bread and drink from the cup, for whoever eats and drinks
without recognizing the body and drinks judgment to himself.
That is why so many of you are weak and ill, and considerable
number have died…..”
1 Cor 13:4-7 “Love is patient, love is kind, it isn’t
jealous, doesn’t boast, isn’t arrogant. Love is not
dishonorable, isn’t selfish, isn’t irritable, doesn’t keep a
record of past wrongs. Love doesn’t rejoice at injustice but
rejoices in the truth. Love endures all things, love has
complete faith and steadfast hope, love bears with everything.”
Prayer
St. Paul you reminded the Corinthians of the reality of the
Eucharist and all that it truly is. You urged them to remember
that they should examine themselves carefully and then approach
the reception of the body and blood of the Lord with the
greatest reverence possible. Help our parishes and religious
communities always come together in love. Pray that we be
patient with one another and endure each other’s shortcomings.
But most of all help us approach the agape meal, the Mass with a
sense of awe knowing that as we eat Christ’s body we are gaining
eternal life (Jn
6:47-58) and if we fail to recognize what we are doing we
will be eating and drinking our own condemnation. We rely on the
forgiveness of Christ that comes from the sacrament of
reconciliation and also the plea for mercy that is an essential
part of the Eucharistic Celebration from “Lord Have Mercy” to
“Lord I am not worthy.” We trust, however, in the Lord our
Savior whose word is able to heal us. In the celebration of the
liturgy, St. Paul, we invite you and all the angels and the
saints to join us. As we approach the altar we will remember
that this great gift of the Eucharist was handed down to us
through the Apostles and their successors We pray that the
priests and bishops of the Church will be holy in their service
to us and that all of us together will one day join with the
Lamb of God and all the saints in that feast that will never
end. Amen.
Our Father
Hail Mary
Glory Be
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