Chionodoxa ~ Glory of the Snow
Pope Francis has added the Feast of Sts Martha,/ Mary and Lazarus/ friends of Jesus,/ to the Roman Calendar./ Bless the people who are our friends,/ and may our idea of friendship grow and expand,/personally,/ but also as church and nation./ May we see the child in the womb,/ and children everywhere, / as friend./ We pray to the Lord.
We are living in times of crisis:/ coronavirus,/ unemployment,/ people falling into poverty./ But there is also a great spiritual crisis of the heart,/ the growth of anger,/ anti-semitism,/ false patriotism/ even the spread of neo-naziism and white supremacy./ May we re-discover transformative light and gratitude./ We pray to the Lord.
We pray gratefully for the many people who work to normalize life during the coronavirus pandemic and winter storms./ For those whose lives are painfully disrupted./ We pray to the Lord.
We ask for the restoration of calm and balance/ where life has become burdensome and hard,/ where there's sickness,/ menace,/ heartache,/ where we feel overwhelmed and unnerved./ We pray to the Lord.
Lent begins in eleven days./ May our approach be a positive one,/ by which we would see ourselves more rightly,/ that we would come to Easter somehow more whole and alive./ We pray to the Lord.
For world governments/ and for our own new administration./ Heal party strife/ and bless every effort to improve the lives of citizens./ We pray to the Lord.
