Hymn: All Are Welcome
Let us build a house where love can dwell and all can safely live, a place where saints and children tell how hearts learn to forgive. Built of hopes and dreams and visions, rock of faith and vault of grace; here the love of Christ shall end divisions: All are welcome, all are welcome, all are welcome in this place.
Prayer
Leader:
In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.
Let us pray as one:
All:
Good and Gracious God, We come before you as the community of St. Margaret of Scotland, partnering together today to pray a Novena for an end to the suffering caused by the pandemic, and for renewed commitment to our mission. May our community be dedicated to the common good, to education, and to service of those in need. May we be a beacon of hope for others. May the Eucharist sustain us, guide us and be our joy and peace. Make us one: your people who share a common faith, concern and destiny. We make this prayer, filled with hope, through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Reading
From The Long Loneliness by Dorothy Day
We cannot love God unless we love each other, and to love we must know each other. We know Him in the breaking of bread, and we know each other in the breaking of bread, and we are not alone any more. Heaven is a banquet and life is a banquet, too, even with a crust, where there is companionship. We have all known the long loneliness and we have learned that the only solution is love and that love comes in community.
Response
Leader
You shall not fear the terror of the night
All
nor the arrow that flies by day;
Leader
Because you have God for your refuge
All
and have made the Most High your stronghold.
Leader
For God commands the angels with regard to you,
To guard you wherever you go,
All
With their hands they shall support you,
lest you strike your foot against a stone.
Word of God
Ephesians 4: 18b-20
Be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and playing to the Lord in your hearts, giving thanks always and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God the Father.
Petitions
Leader
Christ hears and saves all who hope in him. Let us bring him our needs.
That we at St. Margaret will demonstrate a spirit of respect for the dignity of all people, especially those with little power or influence; we pray…
R. Lord, hear our prayer.
That all whom we encounter will experience encouragement, guidance, safety, and love of community at St. Margaret of Scotland; we pray… R.
That our community, inspired by the first Christians, will grow into a model of sharing and mutuality, and become a living experience of Gospel values; we pray… R.
For whom else will you pray?
The Lord’s Prayer
Leader
As one family, let us pray in the words our Savior taught us:
All
Our Father…
Prayer of Saint Margaret of Scotland
Leader:
Let us recall our mission as together we pray:
Loving God,
you call your people to holiness
and create among them models of kindness.
We thank you for the life of St. Margaret of Scotland:
a woman of leadership and hope in a confusing world;
a wife and mother excelling in patience, dedication and love;
a teacher supported and inspired by a life of learning;
a generous friend and a loyal servant to the poor and helpless;
a model of Christian faith and constant prayerfulness.
As we build on our faith,
help us to grow rich in the values of St. Margaret:
that faith, hope and love might inspire
our presence in the city and neighborhood,
our relationships with family and friends,
our concern for the education of the young,
our care for the poor and the weak,
our community’s prayer in word and sacrament.
Bless our parish and our school;
let it be for us a community of love and sharing,
and a source of life and grace
let it be a witness to our neighbors
of your life, your presence and your love.
Through Christ, Our Lord.
Amen.
Until tomorrow when we join in prayer again, may we each see God’s holy face in those whom we encounter and know what it means to be community. AMEN