Mary the Mother of God: The Universal Prayer / Bidding Prayers / Intercessions / Prayer of the Faithful

Mary the Mother of God (January 1st)

Priest.
God has adopted us. He is truly our Father so we make our petitions with childlike trust.

Reader:
For Our Holy Father Pope Benedict, Archbishop Bernard, our auxiliary bishops, and all priests, deacons, religious and people of the diocese; may this holy season bring us closer to the Lord in prayer, in hope and in joy.
Lord, hear us..

May each of one us make this New Year a new beginning by modelling ourselves on Our Lady, in our love and obedience of God and our mercy and compassion for one another. 
Lord, hear us..

That God may grant the poor, the sick, the unemployed relief from their hardships.
Lord, hear us..

For all who have died in the last year, both family and friends and members of our parish and for all those who no one remembers; may the Christ Child welcome them into his heavenly kingdom. Lord, hear us..

Let us ask Mary the Mother of God and Mother of the Church to join her prayers to ours as we pray Hail Mary …

Now let us pray for a moment in silence. 

Priest:
Abba, Father, grant that during this coming year, we may, under Mary's guidance, grow in wisdom and in favour with you and our neighbour. We ask this through Jesus Christ your Son.

Feast of the Holy Family: The Universal Prayer / Bidding Prayers / Intercessions / Prayer of the Faithful

Feast of the Holy Family

Priest
On this feast of the Holy Family we bring our requests to God our loving father.

Reader:
For the church. May its teaching and action always reflect the example of the Holy Family Lord hear us

For parents; that in a spirit of generosity and love, they may be strengthened in their vocation, Lord hear us

For friends, family, and the strangers in our midst, may we reach out to them and remember them, not only at Christmas but throughout the year. Lord hear us

For refugees in all parts of the world who, like the Holy Family, cannot return home for fear of death or repression. May they be received with kindness in foreign lands and supported in their endeavours to build a new life. Lord hear us.

For those who have died and whose anniversaries occur at this time, May they be blessed with God’s welcome into his presence. Lord hear us.

Let us ask Mary, loving wife and mother to pray for us as we say. Hail Mary …

In silence we thank God for our blessings and ask him to hear our personal prayers.

Priest:
Father we ask you to hear and answer all our prayers which we bring to you in faith and love through our Lord Jesus your Son.  Amen

Happy Christmas to all my readers!

I’ve been doing this Bidding Prayers blog for - it seems - about 12 years now, and over the years seem to have built up something of a following. The blog is currently getting more than 7,500 hits each month, and as I am not exactly regular at posting bidding prayers, it seems most of you are using prayers from earlier years. You are using them, adapting them (I hope!) and correcting the many typos and grammatical errors which creep in from time to time. I am humbled that you consider them useful. 

For several years the prayers were a joint effort, written (many years ago now) by Margaret Saunders, a parishioner in Hanley, and more recently by Deacon Tony Davies, recently retired, Deacon at Our Lady’s, Fenton. For the past three years it has been just me who has edited, redrafted and composed anew, as the circumstances required. 

Many of you have found this simple work helpful. On occasion, I have had fellow priests say to me - “Are you the Peter Weatherby who does the bidding prayers?”. Once someone came up to me in a supermarket and thanked me for them, and just the other day I was immensely touched to receive a Christmas Card from users in Salisbury! Recently a friend suggested I look into publishing the prayers, and so raising a few funds for the parish from what just began as a way of sharing something I thought might be helpful to others. Well - if I ever get myself organised it might just happen! 

A very happy and blessed Christmas to you all!! 

Fr Peter

Christmas Day : The Universal Prayer / Bidding Prayers / Intercessions / Prayer of the Faithful

Christmas Day

Priest:
In Christmas joy and hope, let us present all our needs to God with confidence.

Reader:
For the church, for all deacons, priests and bishops: bless them and strengthen them for your service, that they may faithfully proclaim the Good News of salvation Lord, hear us.

For all those serving our country in the armed services at home and abroad. We pray also for peace in the world that nations may resolve their conflicts by giving themselves over to Christ, the Prince of Peace. Lord, hear us.

For all those who are travelling at this time that they may arrive safely to join their families, loved ones and friends to celebrate the birth of our Saviour. Lord, hear us.

For those who will find it difficult to celebrate Christmas: those who are suffering from or battling against severe weather, the poor, the sick, the depressed, prisoners, seafarers and other migrant workers and all who are separated from their families at this time Lord, hear us.

For those who have died and all those for whom Christmas sharpens the loss of loved ones Lord, hear us.

Let us ask Mary, the Mother of our Saviour, to pray with us as we say -
Hail Mary ...

We now pray in silence for a few moments to God our Father who is always ready to hear our prayers.

Priest:
Father, the birth of your Son renews our hope.
As you answer all our prayers,
give us grace always to bear witness to him
before the world.
For he is Lord forever and ever.  Amen.

Fourth Sunday in Advent (C) : The Universal Prayer / Bidding Prayers / Intercessions / Prayer of the Faithful

Fourth Sunday in Advent
Why should I be honoured with a visit from the mother of my Lord? (Luke 1:43)

Priest:
As we draw close to the birth of our Saviour, Our Lady draws close to us, visiting us with his love and his mercy and his promise of salvation. Mindful of her great hope and trust, and in union with her prayers, let us now present our needs to God.

Reader:
For our Holy Father Pope Francis, for all bishops, priests and deacons; that they may effectively proclaim to the world the joyful news that God is with us.
Lord, hear us.

For all expectant mothers and for the children growing within them,
for the babies being born today, and for those children who are suffering from neglect or abuse, that all children may be loved, cherished and protected.
Lord, hear us.

For fathers, that following the example of St. Joseph, they may be strengthened in love for their wives, and zealous in the protection of their children, born and unborn.
Lord, hear us.

For those who have died in the peace of Christ
that they may find eternal rest with God
Lord, hear us. .

We ask Mary, the Mother of Jesus, to pray with us and for us as we say:
Hail Mary …

We now pray for a few moments in silence.

Priest:
Father, we rejoice at the closeness of the Feast of our Saviour’s birth. May we find in Him the fulfilment of all our desires. We ask this through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.

Advent 3 : The Universal Prayer / Bidding Prayers / Intercessions / Prayer of the Faithful

Advent 3

Priest:
Trusting in the promise of God our Father to be faithful, let us approach him with all our cares and concerns.

Reader:
For Archbishop Bernard, our auxiliary bishops, all priests, deacons and people of the diocese; may this holy season bring us closer to the Lord in prayer, in hope and in joy. Lord, hear us.

Let us pray for all Christians,
for those who are imprisoned or persecuted for their faith; for the lapsed and the doubting; for the newly converted and for all Godparents; that they may know the sovereignty of God in all areas of life. Lord, hear us.

Let us pray for the world of commerce and trade,
for advertising companies, for those who work for television, radio or the press; that they may be channels for enlightenment and discernment, and instruments for good in our society. Lord, hear us.

Let us pray for our families and ourselves as we prepare for Christmas,
that we may grow in patience and faith, and that our material preparations may not blind us to God's love, but that he may be central to our celebrations. Lord, hear us.

For the sick and those who care for them, that the Lord may be always near to them. Lord, hear us.

For those departed this life,
that they may come to share in the glory of the heavenly kingdom.
Lord, hear us.

We unite our prayers with those of Our Lady as we say Hail Mary ..

The Priest:
Lord,
we ask you to hear these prayers
for the sake of Jesus, our Saviour. Amen.

Advent 2 (C) : The Universal Prayer / Bidding Prayers / Intercessions / Prayer of the Faithful

Advent 2 (C)
“Prepare a way for the Lord!” (Luke 3:4)

Priest:
The Lord is coming! Let us ask God for the grace to change our lives so that we may be better prepared to greet him.

Reader:
For all world leaders, governments and their advisers;
that they may be inspired to lead their people wisely and fairly, with understanding and sensitivity. Lord, hear us.

For our own families and loved ones; especially for any from whom we are separated;
that we may learn to see the image Christ in every face, and serve him in caring for one another. Lord, hear us.

For the sick and those who care for them;
May they find hope and strength in Christ. Lord, hear us.

For those who have died,
that when the Lord Jesus comes again, we may be reunited with them in his everlasting Kingdom. Lord, hear us.

Now let us ask Mary to join her prayers to ours as we say. Hail Mary…

Now let us pray in a moment of silence.

Priest:
Heavenly Father, strengthened by this Eucharist, may we become pure and blameless, so that our lives may redound to your glory. Amen.