The BreadCast

O successor to Peter, Shepherd of God’s Church, Father of all the churches in the Body of Christ, these you instructed well; these you gave a shepherd’s care… for these and for the Lord you shed your blood – pray for God’s Church even this day, that she shall remain united under her one Lord and Savior, each member serving the good of all as wholly as you have done. Pray we all work together in Jesus’ name and in His blood to do the Father’s will and so become as holy as He, as holy as you were blessed to become. Pray the teaching of the apostles ever ring in our ears that we shall never forget the way the Christ marks out for us, the way of truth that leads to life.

O holy virgin and martyr, you sang a song of love to Jesus, a song that could not be dimmed, could not be taken away, for you were protected by an angel of the Lord and willing to give your life to maintain your love for Him – pray for us poor souls of this day and age from whom purity is so far removed, who need deep conversion to believe, to see the angel at your side, to know the path to which the Lord calls us, the Cross which is every Christian’s song. So far removed, so far removed are we, and so impassible is the way to Him… inspire in our souls, dear saint, the desire for the incorruptible that beat in your heart, that we too might sing a song to Jesus pleasing to His ears.

O holy Temple of the Lord, preeminent member of His Church, you who were destined from all ages to bear the Son of God, to be His chosen dwelling place… you were weaned into His Temple; there you ever remained, becoming yourself the House of God, where He now ever stays – pray we be built into His Temple; pray we become sons and daughters unto you. In you let us make our home, dear Mother, that the holiness of Jesus we shall ever share. We cannot live in Him if apart from you; we cannot be as Christ’s Body, blessed by the Holy Spirit and doing the Father’s will on earth, if you are not our Mother, if you are not the Temple in which we dwell. Pray our holiness mirror your own.

O woman who prayed always and had great mercy on souls, whose missionary zeal led you across the ocean, thousands of miles from your home, to educate the poor and care for the sick, to bring the love of Jesus to those most in need – pray we too shall have a heart set on service of the Lord and remembrance of His presence, that our concern for those apart from Christ will drive us to great ends, even to the ends of the earth, where certainly He dwells. Pray we shall have your courage in facing the unknown, in calling all home to the Heart of God; and through all we do for Him let us remain in prayer, knowing His Heaven here on earth.

O charitable soul who gave all you owned for the sake of the Gospel, though endowed with great riches you embraced lady poverty that you might serve the Lord with a heart beating for the poor. With your own hands you tended the sickest; into your own home you welcomed the most destitute – pray that in our small way we too may follow in the footsteps of Christ and give our lives to the poor whom He loves and to prayer in His presence. Pray our hearts, too, may know His tender care for souls and our own souls meditate upon Him night and day; pray we too shall give up all to find His holy kingdom.

O holy priest who bore the wounds of Christ in your hands and in your ministry, who served the Lord so greatly in casting out many demons in your confessional, and whom He thus blessed with miracles of the Spirit – pray for us of lukewarm faith who falter day to day in following our dear Jesus’ path. So close to Him you were in His suffering and His love; so far are we from His Cross and so His grace. Pray we shall be strengthened to approach Him and find healing for our weakness, the frailty of our souls which keeps us from knowing the Christ and laying down our lives for Him as He calls, as you have done… O pray His blood be upon us!

O faithful apostle who so readily answered the call of the Lord, leaving your station in this world to follow in His footsteps and so find your place in Heaven, who even with these first steps brought others to the Christ as you opened your heart as well as your home to Him and to the least of His brothers – pray, dear brother through whom the Spirit has spoken, that we too shall follow Jesus and so find His grace and mercy, and so find our way to the Father. Pray our hearts will ever be so open to hear His voice and invite Him in to our table, where He may eat and speak with us, feeding us with His presence. And pray we may be blessed as you in drawing others to the Word, our God, till all are one in His Body.

O blessed, holy martyrs who won for yourselves the crown of salvation by your undying faith in God, who cherished well the prize of persecution the Lord offered your souls, who stood fast despite the death that raged around you – pray we shall know as you that all the hairs of our head are numbered by God and in His all-embracing providence He has care over us all, that we might stand as strong in our little trials and sufferings as you did before the face of the executioner. To all people be a witness to the faith that reaches ever unto Heaven.

O protector of your sheep, you laid down your life for them, giving your blood for the service of souls that all might witness the surpassing love of the Lord and the glory that awaits those who die in Him – pray for shepherds who feed their sheep, not lording it over them or seeking what gain they might find for themselves, taking the milk and wool of their flock and leaving them naked and lifeless… but living the call of Christ as you, dear shepherd, have done. Pray those who govern God’s Church will be ready even to die for Him and the people they serve. Let all be protected by the blood of the Lamb.

O wise doctor whose intellect served well in defense of the Church and her teachings, who bore well the light yoke of Christ that leads to eternal life and shepherded your flock in following you along this path of our Lord – speak to us this day your words of grace that the souls of all within the Church’s gates might be founded well on the truths of the faith and on the love of God. Pray we shall be wise as you in knowing the way the Lord marks out for His sons; pray we shall have shepherds so blessed with His light that all shall be saved from the wolves about and remain secure in the Father’s arms.