Prayer Celebration Directions

GATHERING SONG
GATHERING PRAYER
Leader		We begin our prayer in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
All		Amen.
Leader		Hail Mary, full of grace; the Lord is with you. Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
All		Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen.
READING
Reader		A reading from the Gospel of Luke. (Read Luke 3:41–52) The Gospel of the Lord.
All		Praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ.
RESPONSE
Leader		The Lord’s grace is with us because God has blessed each of us through the sacrament of Baptism. But because we are human, we sometimes choose to sin instead of do good. We ask Mary to pray for us always. She is the Mother of God and we ask her to intercede with God on our behalf.
All		Mary, Mother of God, pray for us.
Reader		Blessed Mary, help us when we limit our friendship to only a few people and ignore or are unkind to others. Ask God to help us live as a community united by our faith in Christ.
All		Mary, Mother of God, pray for us.
MEDITATION
Leader		Quietly meditate about Mary’s love for all people. Open your hearts and minds. Sit with your feet on the floor and your eyes closed. Listen carefully to this meditation. (Play instrumental background music.) Remember when you were little? Your whole life depended on your parents or guardians. Mary cared for Jesus that way. When he was a baby, he needed total care, too. Mary was there for him. She fed Jesus, put him down for naps, dressed, played with, and loved him. Jesus grew up confidant that he was loved and cared about. Mary is our Mother, too. She loves and cares for each one of us. We can always call on her to listen to us. We can ask her to intercede for us with God when we are in need. We are not alone.
CLOSING SONG