Listening to the Holy Spirit Praying through Lent with Pope Francis
Introduction The election of Pope Francis surprised both the Church and the world. As we all have become more familiar with him, what is most evident is his genuinely pastoral manner. In his weekly papal audiences, he has often reminded us of the meaning of Jesus gospel message for today inviting all to share Jesus company, explaining in clear and simple ways what God wants of us, and especially reminding us that God is close to the brokenhearted, the poor and the oppressed. Pope Francis encourages us to pray every day to the Holy Spirit that he open our heart to Jesus because the Holy Spirit teaches us to see with the eyes of Christ, to live life as Christ lived, to understand life as Christ understood it. This little Lenten booklet of daily prayers that are adapted from his weekly audiences helps us to connect the teachings of Pope Francis with corresponding passages of Scripture and to show how deeply the Pope s words echo the gospel message. In this way we can begin to do as the Pope asks: Let us hear the Holy Spirit, let us listen to the Holy Spirit and may we move forward on the path of love, mercy and forgiveness. We must listen to the Holy Spirit who is within us. Steve Mueller Editor 2
Being in Christ ASH WEDNESDAY GALATIANS 2:20 Jesus, being a Christian is not just obeying orders but means being in you, thinking like you, acting like you, loving like you. It means letting you take possession of my life to change it, transform it and free it from the darkness of evil and sin. You Are Near THURSDAY AFTER ASH WEDNESDAY PSALM 73:28 God, you are patient with me because you love me, and those who love are able to understand, to hope, to not give up and to forgive. Help me remember that in my life as a Christian you always wait for me, even when I have left you behind! You are never far from me and if I return to you, you are ready to embrace me. Jesus, My Friend FRIDAY AFTER ASH WEDNESDAY JOHN 15:15 Jesus, enter my life. I welcome you as a friend, with trust. You are life! If up till now I have kept you at a distance, I now step forward. Receive me with open arms. If I have been indifferent, now I take a risk. I know I won t be disappointed. I Am Not Afraid SATURDAY AFTER ASH WEDNESDAY ISAIAH 41:10 Jesus, following you seems difficult, but I am not afraid. I trust you and am confident that you are close to me. You are with me and will give me the peace I am looking for and the strength to live as you would want me to. 3
God Dwells in God s People 1ST SUNDAY OF LENT COLOSSIANS 1:27 O God, where can I meet you? Where can I enter into communion with you through Christ? Where can I find the light of the Holy Spirit to light up my life? The answer is: in your people, among those who are the Church. It is here that I will encounter you, Jesus and the Holy Spirit. We Are the Body of Christ MONDAY, WEEK 1 1 CORINTHIANS 12:27 God, I ask you to help me to be a member of the Body of the Church, ever more deeply united to Christ. Help me not to cause the Body of the Church to suffer through my conflicts, my divisions, my selfishness. Help me to be a living limb bound to the others by that unique force, love, which the Holy Spirit pours into my heart. All Are Welcome TUESDAY, WEEK 1 ROMANS 15:7 Jesus, may your Church be a place of God s mercy and hope, where all feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged to live according to the good life of the Gospel. Help me to make others feel welcomed, loved, forgiven and encouraged, to open the Church doors wide so that all may enter and then go out through these doors to proclaim the Gospel. 4
You Are Salt and Light WEDNESDAY, WEEK 1 MATTHEW 5:13-14 Jesus, help me to bring the hope and salvation of God to the world; to be a sign of the love of God who calls everyone to friendship with him; to be the leaven that makes the dough rise, the salt that gives flavor and preserves from corruption, and a light that enlightens everyone. Don t Be Far from Me THURSDAY, WEEK 1 PSALM 22:11 O God, I seem to be losing my attitude of wonder, of contemplation, of listening to creation and thus no longer recognizing the rhythm of the love-story between you and humanity. Why does this happen? Why do I think and live horizontally? I have drifted away from you and no longer read your signs. Waste Nothing FRIDAY, WEEK 1 LUKE 9:17 Jesus, you remind us that whenever food is thrown out it is as if it were stolen from the table of the poor, from the hungry! You fed the multitude with five loaves and two fish and asked the disciples to waste nothing. Help us to make the serious commitment to respect and care for creation, to pay attention to every person, to combat the culture of waste so as to foster a culture of solidarity. God Is Love SATURDAY, WEEK 1 1 JOHN 4:16 Holy Spirit, guide me and let me listen as you speak to my heart and say: God is love, God is waiting for you, 5
God is Father, who loves you as a true father loves. Help me listen to you and move forward on this Lenten path of love, mercy and forgiveness. God Will Not Abandon Us 2ND SUNDAY OF LENT PSALM 94:14 O God, you created us so that we might live in a profound relationship of friendship with you, and even when sin broke off this relationship with you, with others and with creation, you did not abandon us. The entire history of salvation is the story of your seeking out human beings, offering them your love and welcoming them. May We Be One MONDAY, WEEK 2 JOHN 17:21 O God, you desire to make of us all a single family of your children, in which each person feels that you are close and feels loved by you and feels the warmth of being your family. Help us to ensure that your Church is a community in which each one feels welcome and understood, feels your mercy and love. Nourishing My Relationship TUESDAY, WEEK 2 2 TIMOTHY 1:14 God, help me understand that my relationship with you is not like a treasure that I keep in a corner of my life but it must be increased. Help me nourish it every day with listening to your Word, with prayer, with participation 6
in the sacraments, especially Reconciliation and the Eucharist, and with love. Joseph My Example WEDNESDAY, WEEK 2 MATTHEW 1:19-21 Jesus, help me like St. Joseph to be a protector of Mary, you and the Church by being constantly attentive to God, open to the signs of God s presence and receptive to God s plans and not simply to my own. Proclaim the Gospel THURSDAY, WEEK 2 2 TIMOTHY 4:2 Holy Spirit, you release an ever new energy for mission, new ways in which to proclaim the message of salvation, new courage for evangelizing. Let me never close myself to this action! Let me live the Gospel humbly and courageously! You Are My Witness FRIDAY, WEEK 2 ACTS 1:8 Jesus, help me witness to the newness, hope and joy that you bring to life. Let me feel within me the delightful and comforting joy of proclaiming you, which brings joy and removes the egoism that makes me bitter, sad, and depressed. Help Spread the Good News SATURDAY, WEEK 2 2 CORINTHIANS 5:20 Holy Spirit, who guides and brings to life the proclamation of the Gospel, help me to spread the Gospel and proclaim and live the reconciliation, forgiveness, peace, unity and love which you give us. 7
Give Me Your Living Water 3RD SUNDAY OF LENT JOHN 4:15 Jesus, I am like a traveler who, crossing the deserts of life, thirsts for the living water gushing and fresh, capable of quenching my deep desire for light, love, beauty and peace. I feel this desire! Give me this living water the Holy Spirit. My Need for Prayer MONDAY, WEEK 3 EPHESIANS 6:18 God, help me realize that only a faithful and intense relationship with you makes it possible to get out of my own closedness and proclaim the Gospel with confidence. Without prayer my acts are empty, my proclamation has no soul and it is not inspired by your Spirit. Say Yes to God TUESDAY, WEEK 3 LUKE 1:38 Jesus, help me learn from Mary and relive her yes, her unreserved readiness to receive the you into her life, which was transformed from that moment. Through the Holy Spirit and with the Father, take up your abode with me so I might live in God and of God. Pray with the Spirit WEDNESDAY, WEEK 3 1 CORINTHIANS 14:15 Holy Spirit, lead me into the truth of God, who is the one Lord of my life. Help me take some steps to know you and the truth of faith better by reading and meditating on Sacred Scripture, by studying the Catechism and by receiving the sacraments regularly. 8
Be a Full-time Christian THURSDAY, WEEK 3 LUKE 9:23 Jesus, help me to ensure that faith governs the whole of my existence. I cannot be a Christian part-time, only at certain moments, in certain circumstances, in certain decisions. Help me to be a Christian all the time! Totally! Teach Me Jesus Words FRIDAY, WEEK 3 JOHN 14:26 Holy Spirit, recall and impress in my heart the words Jesus spoke. Through these words, engrave God s law in my heart so it becomes within me a criterion for evaluation in decisions and for guidance in my daily actions and a principle to live by. We Are All God s Children SATURDAY, WEEK 3 1 JOHN 3:2 O God, your wish to call all people to communion with you, to friendship with you, indeed, to share in your divine life as your sons and daughters makes us Church. You convoke us, you impel us to come out of our individualism, from our tendency to close ourselves into ourselves, and you call us to belong to your family. Rejoice in the Lord 4TH SUNDAY OF LENT PHILIPPIANS 4:4 Jesus, help us as Christians not to be men and women of sadness. May we never give way to discouragement but let us learn that ours is not a joy born of having many possessions, but from having encountered a person, you, in our midst. 9
You Are with Me MONDAY, WEEK 4 DEUTERONOMY 31:8 Jesus, in you I am never alone, even at difficult moments, even when my life s journey comes up against problems and obstacles that seem insurmountable, and there are so many of them! I accompany you, I follow you, but above all I know that you accompany me and carry me on your shoulders. This is my joy, this is the hope that I must bring to this world. Call on the Spirit TUESDAY, WEEK 4 PSALM 86:5 Jesus, may your truth, which the Holy Spirit teaches us and gives to us, always and totally affect my daily life. Help me call on the Spirit more often, even every day, so that he may guide me on the path of your disciples and in this way bring me closer to you. Guide Me, Lord WEDNESDAY, WEEK 4 ISAIAH 58:11 Jesus, I want my life to be guided by God, to be moved by God, to be nourished by God. I want to be a better Christian: a spiritual being who thinks and acts in accordance with God, in accordance with the Holy Spirit. God s Spirit Dwells in You THURSDAY, WEEK 4 1 CORINTHIANS 3:16 Holy Spirit, come now to dwell in me, to purify me, to illuminate me, to renew me, to transform me and make 10
me a participant in the very life of God that is love and so introduce me to divine life. The Gospel for Everyone FRIDAY, WEEK 4 2 CORINTHIANS 5:18-19 Holy Spirit, guide me in such a way that my life and my witness of faith is both in unity and communion with you. Help me convey the word of reconciliation and of love, which is the Gospel, to the milieus in which I live. To Be Like Jesus SATURDAY, WEEK 4 MATTHEW 13:16 Jesus, teach me to see with the your eyes, to live life as you lived, to understand life as you understood it. Give me a new perception of others, close and far, seen always as brothers and sisters in you to be respected and loved. Lead Me, Holy Spirit 5TH SUNDAY OF LENT PSALM 143:10 Holy Spirit, help me to open myself to you, without being afraid of what you ask of me or where you lead me. I entrust myself to you! Enable me to live out and bear witness to my faith, and illuminate the heart of those I meet. Listen to Jesus MONDAY, WEEK 5 LUKE 9:35 Jesus, help me listen to you and learn to contemplate, to feel your constant presence in my life and stop and converse with you, give you space in prayer. Teach me to feel that the friendship and the love of God accompanies me. Let me remember you more in my daily life! 11
Treasuring Your Word TUESDAY, WEEK 5 LUKE 2:19 Jesus, help me to contemplate your mysteries, to reflect on the key moments of your life, so that you are the center of my thoughts, my attention and my actions. Teach me to be faithful to my daily tasks, to live my faith in the actions of everyday life and to give more space to you in my life, to pause to contemplate your face. Hope in God WEDNESDAY, WEEK 5 ROMANS 5:5 O God, help me not to lose hope. In my moments of difficulty, help me not to lose faith and to overcome them, in the certainty that you never abandon me. Help me not to be afraid of commitment and sacrifice, and not to view the future with fear. Ready to Meet Jesus THURSDAY, WEEK 5 LUKE 12:40 Jesus, help me be ready for an encounter with you, which means being able to see the signs of your presence, keeping my faith alive with prayer, with the sacraments, and taking care not to forget about God. Use Your Gifts FRIDAY, WEEK 5 1 CORINTHIANS 14:12 O God, now is the time for me to bring your gifts to fruition, not for myself but for you, for the Church, for others. Help me always increase goodness in the world and not to turn in on myself, burying my own talents, 12
my spiritual, intellectual and material riches, everything that you have given me, but rather to open myself, to be supportive, to be attentive to others. Dream Great Things SATURDAY, WEEK 5 COLOSSIANS 3:1-4 Jesus, help me to set my sights on great ideals, ideals that enlarge my heart, the ideals of service that make my talents fruitful. You have not given me life to be jealously guarded for myself, but so that I may give it in turn. Help me not to be afraid to dream of great things! Here Is Your King PASSION/PALM SUNDAY OF LENT MATTHEW 21:5 What kind of a King are you, Jesus? You do not enter the Holy City to receive the honors reserved to earthly kings, to the powerful, to rulers. You enter to be scourged, insulted and abused, to receive a crown of thorns, a staff, a purple robe: your kingship becomes an object of derision. Help me follow your example. Embracing the Cross MONDAY HOLY WEEK 1 CORINTHIANS 1:18 Jesus, I am not ashamed of your cross! On the contrary, I embrace it, because I have understood that on the cross you knocked down the wall of enmity that divides people and nations, and you brought reconciliation and peace. 13
God s Grace Is Enough for Me TUESDAY HOLY WEEK 2 CORINTHIANS 12:8-10 O God, on my own I can do nothing. In order to bear fruit, your grace always demands my openness to you, my free and tangible response. Christ comes to bring us your saving mercy. Help me to trust in you, to respond to the gift of your love with a good life, made up of actions motivated by faith and love. Born by Your Love WEDNESDAY HOLY WEEK JOHN 19:34 Jesus, we are born as Church from your supreme act of love on the cross, from your pierced side from which flowed blood and water, a symbol of the sacrament of the Eucharist and of Baptism. Help me love you and others, all others, without distinction or reservation. I Give You an Example HOLY THURSDAY JOHN 13:15 Jesus, help me be the first to take a step towards my brothers and my sisters, especially those who are the most distant, those who are forgotten, those who are most in need of understanding, comfort and help. Help me bring them your living presence, merciful and full of love! 14
By Your Cross, We Are Saved GOOD FRIDAY JOHN 3:16-17 Jesus, on the cross you feel the whole weight of evil, and with the force of God s love you conquer it, you defeat it with your resurrection. As I embrace your cross with love lead me not to sadness, but to joy, to the joy of having been saved and of doing a little of what you did on the day of your death. Through your love, God conquered evil. I Am with You Always HOLY SATURDAY MATTHEW 28:20 Jesus, you are alive in our midst in a new way. You are no longer in a specific place in the world as you were before. You are now in the lordship of God, present in every space and time, close to each one of us. In my life I am never alone: you, my crucified and risen Lord, guide me. God s Love Has Triumphed EASTER SUNDAY 1 PETER 1:21-23 Jesus, you are is risen, so there is hope for me. You are no longer in the power of sin, of evil! Love has triumphed, mercy has been victorious! God s mercy always triumphs because God s love is stronger than evil and death itself. God s love can transform our lives too. God s love can do this! 15
Living Holy Week following Jesus means learning how to come out of ourselves to reach out to others, to go to the outskirts of existence, to be the first to move towards our brothers and sisters, especially those who are most distant, those who are forgotten, those who are most in need of understanding, consolation and help. There is so much need to bring the living presence of Jesus, merciful and full of love. Pope Francis Listening to the Holy Spirit: Praying through Lent with Pope Francis was edited by Steve Mueller and is adapted from the weekly papal audiences of Pope Francis, 2014 All Saints Press PO Box 190825, St. Louis MO 63119. AllSaintsPress.com. Printed in the USA 07-318