The BreadCast

O patron of youth whose innocence was unsurpassed, whose desire to give yourself to the Lord in poverty and purity led you to relinquish your wealth in this world at a tender age that you might embrace Jesus fully – pray for the youth of our day and the child in each of our souls, that all might turn away from the temptations which surround and threaten to enter and enslave; let all turn toward the love of the Lord and His heavenly call, a call to a kingdom that surpasses everything of this earth and brings the joy known only in breathing and speaking His holy Name.

O sign of perfect solitude who heeded so well the Lord’s command to enter into your closet in order to pray, whose great measure of self-denial led you to the peak of contemplation in God’s holy presence, whose only desire was that souls might draw close to Him – pray all who seek the Lord may approach Him with a whole heart, a heart set on Him alone, that in such perfect devotion all might find Him present in their souls, in their spirits, and be elevated in their lowliness to His indescribable divine love, to His peace which passes all our understanding but draws us ever closer to His wounded side.

O gentle preacher of the Word, the fire of the Holy Spirit upon your soul for the conversion of heretics and the leading of all   to God – hold us in your arms even as the infant Jesus who appeared to you along the way, and pray that the Word may be instilled in our hearts even as it was in your own, that we shall never go astray but always have the consolation of the Spirit of God and His love and innocence to lead us through this life till we find ourselves at home in the Father’s arms, where you dwell in peace with all His blessed saints. Pray for us, our teacher and brother, this day.

O son of encouragement and of consolation in the Holy Spirit, you who were filled with faith and lived that faith for the Lord, giving up all things to bring His Name forth to the ends of the earth, calling all souls and confirming them in the truth by the authority of the risen Son – whose footsteps go forth today as did yours upon the birth of the Church; what souls are so blessed to be set apart by the Spirit to perform His works in this dying world, to bring His light to those who sit in darkness? Pray the Lord shall indeed send out laborers into His vineyard and they shall with the same faith be an encouragement to all, a consolation to Christian souls.

(Sir.36:1,5-6,10-17; Ps.79:8-9,11,13; Mk.10:32-35) "Take pity on your holy city, Jerusalem, your dwelling place." The prayer of the wise man is good, but I see that the same answer the Lord gave James and John when they asked to sit "one at [His] right hand and the other at [His] left" in His glory, could be given to Sirach: "You do not know what you are asking." For neither knows the implication of their request – neither can see that it will only be fulfilled in a painful death. In our gospel Jesus is leading the disciples "on the road going up to Jerusalem," a crowd following behind. There He will "fulfill the prophecies spoken in [His] name." There He will "fill Zion with His majesty, [His] temple with [His] glory." But the keepers of the keys of the temple "will condemn Him to death"; they will thereby destroy the Temple itself. In this way only will the "prophets be proved true." In this way only He will "deliver us and pardon our sins." In this way only will He "with [His] great power free those doomed to death." For the prophets have said that the Servant must suffer. The prophets have said that the Son must die. There is no other way that "three days later He will rise." There is no other way for Him to redeem those condemned to die. This must sink into our hearts; this we must understand, we who run so freely from the cross, who think it is a facile thing to "inherit the land." The Lord will indeed have pity on our souls; He will indeed answer "the prisoners' sighing" and forget "the iniquities of the past." But Heaven is attained only by those who drink from His cup; the glory of God is known only by those who share in Jesus' "bath of pain." No other way will we be cleansed of our sins. No other way will we be made ready. The cross is the path to the New Jerusalem, and we must walk it with our Lord. And so, be not lazy about the work He has set before you; fail not to "serve the needs of all." If you think of yourself and some vain reward, you will never find the blessing which awaits "those for whom it has been reserved." His "compassion come[s] quickly to us" if we but share in His blood. ******* O LORD, your Son has come to die that we might be freed from the death of sin; on this path of sacrifice let us join Him. YHWH, you are the eternal God. We are but sinful men. And so, how shall we come into your kingdom? Only by the bath of pain, only by drinking from the chalice of your Son – only by His death on the Cross. He will be condemned to death. He will be spit upon and mocked. He will indeed be crucified. It is we who lead Him there, we who by our sin and selfishness push Him along the road to Calvary. O LORD, have mercy on our souls! Hear our sighing in this dark prison; let us live in exile no more. Bring us back to your holy dwelling place… your glory may we somehow know. We call out to you from the ends of the earth, LORD; have compassion on our cries. Your prophets will be proved true: your Servant will suffer a terrible death. Give us the courage to walk with Him, LORD, to share in the sacrifice He makes.

O humble soul whom the Lord blessed with mystical elevations to His heavenly presence, you who remained so faithful through all trials and encouraged others to seek such perfection as well – pray that this proud age which leans so distinctly from the truth, from the love of God, will be consumed as you were by the Holy Spirit, by desire for the Lord’s overtaking of our lives, that all souls will turn from the false gods at their hands, idols that overshadow their spirits, and toward the humility known only in our Savior’s blood. Only in Him is life eternal; pray all souls will come to His love.

O Shepherd and Father, defender of the faith and of holy MotherChurch against those who would rob her of her freedom, those who would rape her, stealing away her purity, those who would deny her singleness in the sight of God as the House which He has founded – those who would destroy the faith and bring to naught the Church, our Mother, and Peter, our Holy Father, do not relent in their efforts… and so we need still your prayers and your courage to aid us in standing strong against the tide the evil one stirs up in this world. Pray indeed, O Father, that all our shepherds and all God’s people will tirelessly defend the truth in love.

O learned master whose life itself was as a monastery, consumed as you were by study and teaching and writing and prayer, who till the very end spoke the name of the Lord in all your words and deeds – pray that the incense of your life will rise unto the throne of God and intercede for us here below who are so far from His presence, from knowledge of His providence and remembrance of His sacrifice. How will we find ourselves one with the Lord of Creation and ascend to His glory if you do not pray for us, O blessed soul so united to His will, so held within His Hand and breathing forth His name?

O missionary shepherd whose love for the truth was a love for Christ and a desire for your flock to know Him and the way to glorify God, you who gave yourself for the Truth that is Christ and for His Church on earth, through whom He teaches all men and brings them into His fold – may we, too, lay down our lives and work as hard as you have done in the name of Jesus, that all our lives and the lives of all His flock might be in accord with the will of the Lord and faithful to the Mother He has left for our care; let all that is not of God be cast from our midst by the Spirit of Truth this day.

O righteous man called by God to be foster-father of His only Son and protector of His Mother, you who were obedient to the Spirit, who took Jesus by the hand and led Him from the temple in Jerusalem to the home in Nazareth where Mary made a place for Him – pray that we shall be built into the house of Abraham, the man of faith, into the house of David, your father, into the House the Holy Spirit builds for the faithful even this day, where our Mother waits for us with you and all the saints; pray that we too shall hear the words spoken over you by the Lord: “Well done, good and faithful servant; enter into the joy of your Master.” Pray we shall be righteous as you.