PRAYER FOR THIS MORNING (WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 23)

Saint Pius of Pietrelcina

Prayer for the Morning

He was pierced for our offenses:

let us give thanks and praise!

Glory to the Father, and to the Son,

and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning,

is now, and will be for ever. Amen. Alleluia!

HYMN

When I survey the wondrous cross

On which the Prince of glory died,

My richest gain I count but loss

And pour contempt on all my pride.

See, from his head, his hands, his feet,

Sorrow and love flow mingled down.

Did e’er such love and sorrow meet

Or thorns compose so rich a crown?

Were the whole realm of nature mine

That were a tribute far too small;

Love so amazing, so divine,

Demands my soul, my life, my all.

CANTICLE OF ISAIAH  (52:13-15; 53:2-5)

We who live are constantly being given up to death for the sake of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may be manifested in our mortal flesh. (2 Cor 4:11)

Padre Pio was a man of sorrows. He participated daily in the physical suffering of the wounded Christ, in the humiliation and rejection of the spurned Christ, and in the endless labors of the servant Christ, for the sake of those whom Christ redeemed through the cross. And his reward was to rejoice in the triumph of the cross.

See, my servant shall prosper,

he shall be raised high and greatly exalted.

Even as many were amazed at him—

so marred was his look beyond that of man,

and his appearance beyond that of mortals—

So shall he startle many nations,

because of him kings shall stand speechless;

For those who have not been told shall see,

those who have not heard shall ponder it.

He grew up like a sapling before him,

like a shoot from the parched earth;

There was in him no stately bearing to make us

look at him,

nor appearance that would attract us to him.

He was spurned and avoided by men,

a man of suffering, accustomed to infirmity,

One of those from whom men hide their faces,

spurned, and we held him in no esteem.

Yet it was our infirmities that he bore,

our sufferings that he endured,

While we thought of him as stricken,

as one smitten by God and afflicted.

But he was pierced for our offenses,

crushed for our sins,

Upon him was the chastisement that makes us whole,

by his stripes we were healed.

Glory to the Father….

Word of God (Galatians 2:19b-20)

I have been crucified with Christ; yet I live, no longer I, but Christ lives in me; insofar as I now live in the flesh, I live by faith in the Son of God who has loved me and given himself up for me.

Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh I am filling up what is lacking

in the afflictions of Christ on behalf of his body,

which is the church. (Col 1:24)

CANTICLE OF ZECHARIAH 

From now on, let no one make troubles for me; for I bear the marks of Jesus on my body. (Gal 6:17)

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;

he has come to his people and set them free.

He has raised up for us a mighty savior,

born of the house of his servant David.

Through his holy prophets he promised of old

that he would save us from our enemies,

from the hands of all who hate us.

He promised to show mercy to our fathers

and to remember his holy covenant.

This was the oath he swore to our father Abraham:

to set us free from the hands of our enemies,

free to worship him without fear,

holy and righteous in his sight

all the days of our life.

You, my child, shall be called the prophet

of the Most High;

for you will go before the Lord to prepare his way,

to give his people knowledge of salvation

by the forgiveness of their sins.

In the tender compassion of our God

the dawn from on high shall break upon us,

to shine on those who dwell in darkness

and the shadow of death,

and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Glory to the Father…

INTERCESSIONS

With confidence in the mercy of the Crucified, let us pray through the intercession of Saint Pius:

R/Lord, have mercy.

For those who give their lives to the mystery of the cross for the sake of others:

– grant them the courage of their vocation: R/

For those who suffer without understanding the value of their suffering:

– teach them to put their hope in the cross: R/

For those who reject suffering:

– let the suffering of others enlighten them: R/

(Personal intentions)

Our Father….

God of mercy and of love, you called your servant Padre Pio to extend the mystery of the cross visibly into the lives of sinners and sufferers, that they might be converted and believe in the Gospel. Through his intercession, strengthen all believers in willingness to take up the cross daily and follow our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.