O Jesus/ our great High Priest/ hear my humble prayers
on behalf of your priests.
Give them a deep faith/ a bright and firm hope/
and a burning love/ which will ever increase/
in the course of their priestly life.
In their loneliness/ comfort them/
In their sorrows/ strengthen them/
In their frustrations/ point out to them that it is through
suffering/ that the soul is purified/ and show them
that they are needed by the Church/ they are needed
by souls/ they are needed for the work of redemption.
O Loving Mother Mary/ Mother of Priests/ take to
your heart your sons who are close to you/ because
of their priestly ordination/ and because of the power
which they have received/ to carry on the work of
Christ/ in a world which needs them so much.
Be their comfort/ be their joy/ be their strength/ and
especially help them/ to live and to defend the ideals
of consecrated celibacy. Amen.
+John Joseph Cardinal Carberry
Archbishop of St. Louis
Technorati Cosmos: other blogs commenting on this post
