Praying at Home Today: Friday 4 June 2021
Praying at home today:
Opening the windows of the Church
A warm welcome to PrayingAtHome.com, where you can find worship resources for praying at home today or wherever you are.
We hope these readings, prayers, music and the short reflection will help you stay in touch with the Church and to sustain you on your journey through life.
If this is your first visit to this website, then you might like to read about the common elements and the suggested structure for each day’s prayer.
Everything’s optional!
Opening to the Word
You can spend a few moments in silence,
focussing on your breathing
to become more mindful of the present moment
and to open yourself more fully
to God’s presence within you.
Short reading
I wait for the Lord, my soul waits,
and in God’s word I hope.Sustinuit anima mea in verbo ejus:
speravit anima mea in Domino.J’espère en l’Eternel de toute mon âme
et je m’attends à sa promesse.
Psalm 129(130):5
The Liturgy of the Word
Here are today’s Bible readings.
You can read just one, or all three if you have time.
One link to all three readings
Separate links to each reading
Short Reflection
It is generally understood that John XXIII was elected pope as a stop-gap measure. An old man, he would keep the show on the road until a younger man could be found to lead the Catholic Church.
Almost immediately, however, he surprised everyone by announcing a reform of the Church’s 1917 Code of Canon Law and an ecumenical council, Vatican II.
The aim was to open the windows of the Church and let in the Holy Spirit.
The previous Council had been abandoned in 1869 with Vatican City under siege in the Franco-Prussian War, and attempts had been made by Pope John’s predecessors to reinstigate a Council.
Depending on your point of view, the Council was either a complete disaster for the Catholic Church, causing all the issues it faces, or it was a fresh reawakening for the Church, enabling it to face the modern world.
Ecumenically, it made huge strides in the search for Christian unity and indeed in helping relationships with other religions and with secular society.
Other Churches have also opened up, enabling their members to identify more closely with the challenges and opportunities presented by the modern world.
In a sense, we are still experiencing the beginnings of the fruits of the Council for which we give thanks.
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Music for reflection
Prayer Suggestions
As the Church celebrates John XXIII (Bishop of Rome, Reformer 1963),
we pray at home today for the needs of our world.
- that we may grow ever more aware of God’s many gifts to the Church
- for Church and religious leaders
that they may continue to grow in love and understanding.
(In Holy Trinity, Stirling, we invite you to pray today
for Pope Francis.)
For all who have asked for our prayers.
a moment of silence
Pray for us all
Amen.
Prayer for Palestine and Israel
O God the creator of all life,
we bring before you all the people who call Israel and Palestine home.
We particularly remember those living in Jerusalem and Gaza
whose lives are marred by restrictions to their freedom,
the threat of eviction from their homes
and the constant fear of armed conflict.
We ask your forgiveness for the anger, hatred and violence
that all of us have the potential to carry within us.
We beseech you to soften hearts and open minds
so that the sanctity of life is always protected,
the right to freedom of worship upheld
and the security of a safe home defended.
We pray that justice will flow like rivers,
that human dignity will be respected
and that each of us may strive
to do justice, love mercy and walk humbly with you our God.
Amen.
Embrace the Middle East
The Lord’s Prayer
We can say the Lord’s Prayer in any language or version we choose.
Here it is, in English, Latin and French.
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
Your Kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins,
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
Lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom,
the power and the glory are yours,
now and for ever.
Amen.
Pater noster, qui es in cælis;
sanctificetur nomen tuum:
adveniat regnum tuum;
fiat voluntas tua,
sicut in cælo, et in terra.
Panem nostrum cotidianum da nobis hodie:
et dimitte nobis debita nostra,
sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris:
et ne nos inducas in tentationem:
sed libera nos a malo.
Quia tuum est regnum,
et potestas, et gloria, in saecula.
Amen.
Notre Père, qui es aux cieux,
que ton nom soit sanctifié,
que ton règne vienne,
que ta volonté soit faite sur la terre comme au ciel.
Donne-nous aujourd’hui notre pain de ce jour.
Pardonne-nous nos offenses,
comme nous pardonnons aussi à ceux qui nous ont offensés.
Et ne nous laisse pas entrer en tentation
mais délivre-nous du Mal.
Car c’est à toi qu’appartiennent le règne,
la puissance et la gloire
pour les siècles des siècles. Amen.
Concluding prayer
O God, our hope and strength,
the source and end of all our prayers:
because our mortal nature is weak
we can do nothing good without your help;
support us with your grace,
that in keeping your commandments,
we may ever remain in your love;
through Jesus Christ, our Lord,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, world without end.
Amen.
Returning to the world
Let us bless the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
Benedicamus Domino.
Deo gratias.
Thank you for joining us in praying at home.
Oremus pro invicem.
In these strange times, we are called to trust
* You can find more organ music from Holy Trinity Church, Stirling
on Alistair Warwick‘s website and on SoundCloud
There are several books by Brother Roger of the Taizé Community from many booksellers.
You can buy The Complete Chronicles of Narnia at Bookshop.org
Other worship resources
Praying at Home Today: Acknowledgements
The lectionary for weekdays is taken from the Vanderbilt Divinity Library.
In that lectionary, the readings are in the following order: Old Testament reading, Psalm, New Testament reading; we have changed the order to the more usual OT, Psalm and NT.
English Bible texts are usually from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Anglicised Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993, 1995 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Latin Bible texts are from Biblia Sacra Vulgata, and are in the Public Domain.
French Bible texts are usually from Version Segond 21, copyright © 2007 Société Biblique de Genève by Société Biblique de Genève.
Images, unless otherwise stated, are from lockdown in Scotland, by Alistair Warwick.
Music engraved by The Art of Music.
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