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A little calendar lesson...
We're still in the 12 days of Christmas which begin on December 25 (Christmas is the "first day of Christmas) and end on January 5. Today, then, is the 10th day of Christmas. Any trace of Christmas in the commercial world is giving way to displays of Valentine's Day cards and chocolates but on the Church calendar we're still in the Christmas season which doesn't end this year until January 12 and the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. To introduce today's Pause for Prayer I offer you John Rutter's beautiful setting of the first reading from Sunday's Mass, from the Book of Numbers.
Find some quiet time, sit back, and let this blessing wash over your mind and heart as you pause for prayer today...
The Lord bless you and keep you!
The Lord let his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you!
The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace!
Bless us and keep us, Lord, all of us,
and a special blessing we pray on the poor and the homeless
and a special blessing we pray on the poor and the homeless
who struggle in the shadows of our bounty and excesses:
open our hearts in this new year
to give more generously than ever before;
to give 'til we know, too, what it is to go without;
to give until our giving makes a difference
in the lives of the poor and in our own lives as well...
in the lives of the poor and in our own lives as well...
Bless us and keep us, Lord, all of us,
but a special blessing we pray upon nations at war:
move the hearts and minds of those who govern and rule
until the thirst for power is quenched by a thirst for peace;
keep in your care the poor who so often stand in harm's way,
the innocent victims, the ones who suffer the savagery of battles
in which they take no part;
bring back all those who protect and defend us
and restore them to their families, their homeland and peace...
Bless us and keep us, Lord, all of us,
but a special blessing we pray upon the sick and the dying,
upon the chronically and incurably ill:
through the care of others and the help of medicine ease their pain;
let their faith be their strength and your presence their hope;
with compassion and mercy bless the sick
and their families and friends who suffer with them;
bring your healing to their spirits if not to their bodies
and your peace to all who stand by their side...
Bless us and keep us, Lord, all of us,
but a special blessing we pray upon the Church:
keep us faithful to your Word and your wisdom;
keep us faithful to the gospel's truth and mission;
keep us faithful in forgiving one another
as you have forgiven us...
Send your Spirit to enlighten and enliven the Church,
to lead us and guide us where you'd have us go,
to urge us to do what you call us to do,
to keep and to change as your will would have it...
Draw us closer to you and open our hearts
to your presence, your voice, your word and your way...
Make us truly contrite for the ways we have failed
and give us the grace to confess all our sins...
Let your merciful pardon be a sign to the world
that you live in our midst and your love is for all...
Let your face shine upon us
when we walk in the dark, in the shadow of death;
Let your face shine upon us
when we lose our way and look for your light;
Let your face shine upon us
when our worries and fears cloud our hope and our trust;
Let your face shine upon us
when we shut out the light and hide in our pain;
Let your face shine upon us
when so many problems darken our path to your heart;
Let your face shine upon us
when a river of grief overflows in our tears;
Let your face shine upon us
as sunrise each day, ever faithful, abiding and guiding our way;
Let your face shine upon us, Lord,
and be gracious to us and give us peace...
The Lord bless you and keep you!
The Lord let his face shine upon you, and be gracious to you!
The Lord look upon you kindly and give you peace!
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