This weekend, we continue our look at the different forms of prayer by looking at prayers of intercession. My guess that this is one of the most familiar prayers that many of us pray. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says that, “Intercession is a prayer of petition which leads us to pray as Jesus did,” (2634). Praying for the living and the dead is also a spiritual work of mercy. We offer prayers of intercession every day and every week at Mass.

This week I wanted to start with adoration, simply because it comes first in alphabetical order. In prayers of adoration, we adore the greatness of God and our dependence upon Him for everything. Prayers of adoration also remind us of our own hu- mility. When we take time to focus on how great our God is and all that He is and all that He’s done for us we come to realize just how great our need for God is..

All-too-often we are confronted in our country, but also in our world, with terrible acts of hatred and violence. In recent weeks that list has grown to include places like Buffalo, New York and Uvalde, Texas. When tragedy and violence strike, one of our natural reactions is to offer our thoughts and prayers to those whose lives have been impacted. Certainly, as people of faith, that is what we’re called to do, bringing before our God the needs of people throughout our world. We must keep praying!

St. Medardus is a Saint who is popular in the northern regions of France, so chances are pretty good that here in the northern regions of Ohio, we’ve never heard of him. Medardus was born into a noble French family around the year 456 and from his youngest years, he displayed a deep care for the poor.

Our country and society seem to be becoming more divided and more hostile by the day, if not by the hour. As we see all this taking place, we certainly want to stand form in the truths of our faith and what God has revealed to us, but how do we do that in the face of a society that in so many ways doesn’t want to hear what we have to say? How do we enter into these dialogues and conversations?