For the past 59 years, the Church has observed the 4th Sunday of Easter as the World Day of Prayer for Vocations. The reason for this can be found in the Gospel we hear each year on this Sunday. Although there is a three-year cycle of readings, the Gospel on this Sunday is always drawn from a section of John 10, where Jesus identifies Himself as the Good Shepherd. He invites others to share in His shepherding of the flock by calling certain members to a religious vocation as a priest, deacon, or religious brother/sister. Jesus has commanded that we pray for those called to these vocations when He said: “Pray the Lord of the harvest to send laborers into his harvest.” (Mt 9:38; Lk 10:2)
While browsing some resources for this day of prayer, I came across two prayers that stood out that I would like to share, inviting us to join in praying on this day. The first prayer is a prayer that families can pray together for vocations. What makes this prayer unique (and perhaps challenging) is that is asks for openness to a vocation within the family. I have heard stories in the past of how families are happy to commit to praying for vocations but are hesitant for that prayer to apply to their own family. Give this a shot, especially if there are still children in your family who do not yet know their vocation:
FAMILY PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS
Father, increase our family’s love for one another.
May we honor each other in times of happiness or hardship,
bearing with one another in love, just as You love us.
In a special way, help us strive for holiness in our current states of life.
Should You call some of us to the priesthood or religious life,
help us to respond with courage and joy.
Together, we make heaven our goal, and pledge, with Your grace,
to help each other on life’s journey to You.
Through the intercession of the Holy Family:
Jesus, Mary, and Joseph.
Amen
The second prayer is one that I saw a couple of weeks ago while sitting next to another priest at a training session I attended. It is a beautiful prayer for priests, the shepherds Jesus has already chosen to minister to His flock, asking His protection on them all in their various circumstances:
DAILY PRAYER FOR PRIESTS
By St. Therese of the Child Jesus
O Jesus, I pray for Your faithful and fervent priests;
for Your unfaithful and tepid priests;
for Your priests laboring at home or abroad in distant mission fields.
for Your tempted priests;
for Your lonely and desolate priest
for Your young priests;
for Your dying priests;
for the souls of Your priests in Purgatory.
But above all, I recommend to You the priests dearest to me:
the priest who baptized me;
the priests who absolved me from my sins;
the priests at whose Masses I assisted and who gave me Your Body and Blood in Holy Communion;
the priests who taught and instructed me;
all the priests to whom I am indebted in any other way.
O Jesus, keep them all close to Your heart,
and bless them abundantly in time and in eternity.
Amen.
Father Alford