Sample Intercessions for October 8, 2006

27th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year B
October 8, 2006

Things, events, and news items to keep in mind:

• Click here for the readings of the day.
• The nation reels from the recent school-shooting tragedies in Colorado and Pennsylvania.
• The victimization of young people is spotlighted by the scandal involving Representative Mark Foley.
• This week was one of the bloodiest in Iraq and Afghanistan.
• The nation celebrates Columbus Day on October 9, 2006. In some places, this day is called Indigenous Peoples Day to remember all those who were exploited by the colonization of this country.
• October 11, 2006, is the 44th anniversary of the Opening of Vatican II.

The following are just samples meant to inspire your work. Use them as ideas for your own assembly's intercessions. Read 10 Principles for Writing Intercessions and How To Write Intercessions to help you write your own.


Presider:
In humble faith, let us lift our prayers
to God, our Creator, who made heaven and earth.

Reader:
For the Church: [pause]
For the children of the kingdom,
for all who are joined together in God’s love,
for those who name God in all of creation.
We pray to the Lord.

For peace among all peoples of faith: [pause]
For lasting reconciliation among Muslims, Christians, and Jews,
for an end to war in the Middle East,
for the Spirit of forgiveness to lead us to reconciliation.
We pray to the Lord.

For all children: [pause]
For those exploited and abused,
for those killed by violence in their schools,
for the victims of the Colorado and Pennsylvania shootings,
for their classmates, teachers, friends, and families,
for safety and protection from harm for these little ones.
We pray to the Lord.

For the domestic churches: [pause]
For families that strive to bring their children to glory,
for husbands and wives who mirror the love of Christ,
for mothers and fathers who embrace and bless their children daily,
for compassion, forgiveness, patience, and generosity of spirit.
We pray to the Lord.

For the divorced: [pause]
For those who struggle with shame, guilt, and loneliness,
for peace of mind and heart,
for the wisdom and strength to know God’s will,
for family and friends who offer unconditional love.
We pray to the Lord.

For the sick and dying: [pause]
For those who bear the daily cross of illness and infirmity;
for their loved ones who care for them in their need;
and for those who are alone in their affliction;
for all who are sick, including those we now name….
We pray to the Lord.

For the dead who have gone before us in faith: [pause]
for those, a little lower than the angels, who have tasted death;
for those who sit with Christ in glory;
for the day when we will join them in the eternal banquet,
for all the dead, including those we now name….
We pray to the Lord.

Presider:
God our Father,
you created us to be your own,
naming us as good and holy,
consecrating us to each other to be one people united in you.
Yet our world is divided by sin and torn apart by violence.
Hear the prayers we place before you
and heal the wounds that keep us separated from you.
Embrace and bless your world again
that all creation may enter into your kingdom.
We ask this through Christ, our Lord. Amen.