For Vocations

God our Father, in baptism you called us by name and made us members of your people, the Church. We praise you for your goodness, we thank you for your gifts. Father, bless your Church with love. Raise up dedicated and generous leaders from our families and from our friends who will serve as priests, deacons, sisters and brothers. Send your Spirit to guide and strengthen those you are calling to serve your people, following the example of your Son, Jesus Christ, in whose name we offer this prayer. Amen.

For Vocations

O God, You sent Your Son, Jesus, to bring eternal life to those who believe. I join Him in praying for laborers for Your harvest. May Your Holy Spirit inspire men and women to continue His mission through Your priesthood, diaconate, the religious life and lay ministry. May this same Spirit make known Your will for my life.

I make this prayer through the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

For Vocations by Pope John Paul II
41st World Youth Day, May 2, 2004

To you, Lord, we turn with trust! Son of God, sent from the Father to all men of all times in all parts of the world. We pray to You through the intercession of Mary, Your Mother and ours too: let there be no lack of vocations in the Church, especially those of special dedication for Your Kingdom.

Jesus, the only Savior of man. We pray to You for our brothers and sisters who have answered yes to Your call to the priesthood, to the consecrated life, and to the mission. Let their existence be renewed from day to day and become a living Gospel.

Merciful and holy Lord, continue to send new workers into he harvest of Your Kingdom. Help those who You call to follow You in our times. In contemplating Your face, let them respond with joy to the wonderful mission which You entrust to them for the good of Your People and of all men. You who are God and live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

For Vocations by Joseph Cardinal Bernardin

Lord, your word finds a home in our hearts. Call us into community and invite us to generous service of the human family. Bless with courage and spirit your priestly people, called to full participation in the one Body of Christ. May many choose to respond in public service to your call offered in Jesus' name. Amen.

For Vocations by Rev. Brian Fischer
Priesthoot Convocation, 1999

JESUS OUR SHEPHERD, CHRIST OUR HIGH PRIEST, You taught us that to be great in this world is to be a servant. Lord, call priests to your Church who desire not to be served, but to serve. Provide for your Church, Lord, priests of your mercy and healing. May they be alert to the wonders of the universe, sensitive to the sufferings of the world and servants of the banquet of your Body and Blood. Lord Jesus, call us priests who will nurture the call of all disciples to follow you with love and gladness toward the kingdom that you promised, where you intercede for us still, priests and Lord, for ever and ever. Amen.

Prayer for Priests by Bishop John F. Kinney
Imprimatur, March 19, 2002

Praise to you, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for in your infinite love you care for your people by the ministry of priests.

May their faithful service bring lasting good to your Church and great happiness to them. Help them to do what is right, that by their teaching and living we my grow in the knowledge of your love.

As our priests instruct your people, enlighten them with the wisdom of Christ the Teacher. As they preach your Word and celebrate the sacraments, sanctify them with the holiness of Christ the High Priest.

As they face weakness, suffering and discouragement, strengthen them with the grace of Christ the Life-Giver. As they work for peace, unity and healing in your Church, uphold them with the courage of Christ the Reconciler.

Giver of all good gifts, Make the ministry of our priests a spiritual offering pleasing to you, through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Prayer to the Blessed Virgin Mary

God our Father,
You chose the Blessed Virgin Mary
To become the Mother of your son our
Savior;
Grant the we who call to mind
her great faith and love
may in all things seek to do your will
and always rejoice in your salvation.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord
Born of the Virgin Mary.

Amen.

The Blessed Sacrament Prayer

Lord Jesus Christ,
You gave us the Eucharist
As the memorial of your suffering and death.
May our worship of this sacrament of your Body and blood
Help us to experience the salvation you have won For us
And the peace of the kingdom,
Where you live with the Father and Holy Spirit,
One God, for ever and ever.

Amen.

Prayer for Doing God's Will by St. Ignatius of Loyola

Teach us to be generous, Good Lord;
Teach us to serve You
As You deserve;
To give and not to
Count the cost,
To fight and not
To heed the wounds,
To toil and not to seek for rest,
To labor and not
To ask for any reward
Save that knowing we do
Your will.

Amen.

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of your Faithful
And kindle in them the fire of your divine Love.

When you send forth your Spirit, they are Created,
And you renew the face of the earth.

O God,
On the first Pentecost you instructed the hearts
Of those who believed in you
By the light of the Holy Spirit.
Under the inspiration of the same Spirit,
Give us a taste for what is right and true,
And a continuing sense of his joy-bringing
Presence and power,
Through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Amen.

Prayer for Catholic School Communities by Patricia Dougherty
Catholic Schools Week

Thank you, God, for people at our school who give of themselves and paint a tapestry of love and generosity that reaches far into unseen places. Blessed be their gentle spirits.

Thank you, Lord, for teachers whose dedication is unsurpassed, whose lights burn long into the night, whose faces are pale from tiredness, who stretch themselves past comprehension. Blessed be their sense of mission.

Thank you, dear God, for sisters who are compassionate and kind, whose calm steady service speaks profoundly and eloquently to the people in the community and far beyond. Blessed be their simple vows in a complex world.

Thank you, Father, for priests who listened to your call and chose to love and re-love again the flock that sometimes chooses to go in every direction but the same one. Blessed be their tenacious grip on the vision of your kingdom that is to come.

Thank you, God, for students whose smiles and curiosity are the spark by which we measure our days, whose lives are the foundation for your church in the future. Blessed be their eagerness in all things that they do, for it is that spirit that will carry us on.

Thank you, Lord, for cooks and janitors who work hardest in the quiet hours of the day, whose knowledge and skills are legion, proclaimed by the easy running of things. Blessed be their multitude of skills.

Thank you, dear God, for secretaries who somehow get things done, for they are the glue that binds operations, plans, and visions. Vastly competent, always patient, and sometimes confessors and confidants. Blessed be these architects, for they are the builders of what is to be done.

Thank you, Father, for people who volunteer, whose willingness surfaces during our greatest times of need and whose presence enables many tasks to see the light of completion. Blessed be their consistent efforts, for they smooth that way.

Thank you, Lord, for parents who bring us the gift of themselves, ever present in the liveliness of their children. They are the warp and weave in the fabric by which we bind ourselves to tradition. Blessed be these instruments of artistry that breathe the breath of life into our school and parish, for they are the givers of life.

Thank you, God, for principals whose cadence of days is marked by the random and steady rhythms of people that twine and twist the weak and the strong bonds of the school community. Blessed be their deft fingers as they pull and press thick and thin, even and uneven cords into a unique symbol of love for God.

Thank you, heavenly Father, for the great people who take part in this celebration for they are the threads by which this rich tapestry is woven. They are the canvases on which the story of Catholicism is painted. Blessed be our lived and common threads. They are our gifts back to you. Amen.