Suffering, Sacrificial Prayer, and Praying for Priests

The Members of the Sacred Priesthood of Jesus Christ need your prayers and sacrifices, now more than ever before.

 

Material for the following article was obtained from The Value of Prayer and Sacrifice for Priests by Servant of God, Fr. John A. Hardon, S.J.

THE CATHOLIC PRIESTHOOD NEEDS PRAYER AND SACRIFICE NOW MORE THAN EVER BEFORE

Whose responsibility is it to pray for priests?  It is the responsibility of every single Catholic.

And so many Catholics don't even know it.     

Every one of us must support our priests, and there are many, many ways this can be accomplished, practically and also heroically, each and every single day. 

PRAY UNREMITTINGLY 

“No words I can use would be too strong to state that the Catholic Priesthood needs prayer and sacrifice as never before since Calvary... 

"Every Catholic Church from the smallest Chapel to the Cathedral of Notre Dame or St. Peter’s in Rome.  These are all, we believe, literally houses of God.  Jesus Christ, the Son of God who became the Son of Mary really dwells.  But without the priesthood, Jesus Christ would not be on earth.  That is our Catholic faith.”  ~ Servant of God, Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

How humble our Lord is to come to us through His creatures;  how much our priests need to be loved and nurtured and supported by the devout faithful.  The giving and receiving must be mutual as our Fathers sacrifice and suffer much for their flocks.  We must fight the battles as a team;  together, we make up the Mystical Body of Christ and every single member is not only vital but irreplacable.

“Why do priests need special graces from God? They need special graces because they have extraordinary responsibilities before God.  They are to be more than ordinarily holy, more generous, more zealous, more patient.  In a word, those who are responsible for Christ’s presence on earth they are to be, of all people, most Christ-like.  They are to be patterns of what Christ wants all of us to be.

“Count all of the grave crises in the Church over the centuries.  Every single one of them, somehow at heart, was due to the fact that priests had failed the people of God. 

“It is no overstretch of language to say as the priesthood goes, so goes the Church.

“One saint after another has declared that the devil’s principle target on earth is the Catholic priest.  Stands to demonic reason – if the devil can deceive and delude a Catholic priest and draw him away from Christ, what happens?  What happens is what we see happening in our world today.  Priests are subject to extraordinary temptations from the devil, first and mainly, but also from the world.

“We should pray for priests and bishops because this has been the practice of the Church since apostolic times.  It’s a matter of revealed truth.  It is a divine mandate.”  ~ Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

Father Hardon gave the following example: "Whatever we find, certainly in the Scriptures of the apostolic age, we believe has been revealed by God.  In the Acts of the Apostles, we are told Herod had James the Apostle beheaded.  He then put Peter in prison.  Then says Saint Luke, I quote, 'All the time Peter was under guard the Church prayed for him unremittingly.'  I like that adverb, unremittingly.  As a priest, may I beg you to pray unremittingly for Christ’s unworthy servants whom He ordained as priests."

Every army needs commanding officers, and God’s army is not being sufficiently trained to support its priests.  This must change;  so many needed graces are being lost every single hour because people do not know they are to, and how they are to, pray and suffer for our priests. 

GRACES PRIESTS NEED MOST

“There is no doubt in my mind that the one grace that the priest most needs is to embrace the Cross.  His union with Christ Crucified is the priest’s key to an effective priesthood.  His power as a priest comes from the Cross as he identifies himself with the Crucified Lord.”  ~ Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

This also goes for the rest of us, by the way.  Each one of us must embrace the Cross. When we do so, we can offer so much more to God for our priests, who travel each day along the Way of Sacrificial Love for the benefit of humanity.

"A priest who is penetrated with the spirit of his priesthood, is a man of sorrows.  He bears the burden of other souls, their troubles, faults and needs.  To become a priest is to be chosen by the Holy Ghost to follow Christ in His agony in the garden, to rise up with the Divine Master and to climb in His steps, up the Mount of Calvary..."  ~ Dom Pius de Hemptinne

“…The priest must be willing and able to have happen to him what happened to his Master in Palastine.  As I’ve told so many priests and by now have so often told myself, I am only as much a priest and genuinely priestly as I am ready and willing, like Jesus Christ, to suffer for souls.” ~ Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

THE PRINCIPLE CROSS PRIESTS EXPERIENCE TODAY

According to Father John A. Hardon, S.J., the principle cross which priests in our age experience is “the suffering they feel with the situation in the Church today.”  

That one needs no further explanation. 

WHY PRAY FOR PRIESTS?

I remember running into two acquaintances at a Home Depot years ago, a husband and wife;  they mentioned that a priest friend of theirs had encountered a problem and they were very concerned for his welfare. 

There was much to be concerned about;  a rumor began among the faithful that the circumstances involved a little girl, which was absolutely untrue.  Someone had shared the rumor with me as if it was true, and because I trusted the couple, told them there was at least one person who was saying that publicly, apparently to whoever would listen.  It was horrifying.

As soon as those words hit the air I began hearing demons sneering (they howl when they are being defeated) because they were behind the rumor, and their goal was to take that priest out.  Oh, how many people help the demons in their destructive mission to accomplish this!  

How much we can contribute to our own moral corruption, God have mercy on us, and to our own demise!  How easily, and severely, we can harm our Fathers when we are not very careful what we say to others when it comes to speaking, and also writing, about our priests.  

Oh, how the devil trains us to speak, or type, without giving matters careful consideration!  We must train ourselves to pray and sacrifice for our priests more, and not only when trouble starts, but always.

May what we say to them be always helpful, generous, kind, supportive, gentle, and understanding.  If we must correct our dear Fathers, Lord please help us to do it appropriately and charitably, in imitation of Christ and Blessed Mother. 

VERY POWERFUL WAYS TO PRAY FOR PRIESTS

“Why, then, pray for priests?  Because through prayer we gain graces for them which otherwise they would not obtain.  If we all need the help of one another, and we do to receive the graces we need, how much more should we pray for priests from whom we have received Jesus Christ in the Eucharist – and by whom we have been so often absolved form our sins.  I don’t want to even think of the state of soul I would be in except for the absolutions that over the years I have received from priests.  As fellow members of the Mystical Body priests need, desperately need, our help and in no way more urgently than to obtain through the prayers we offer for them the graces from God of which, in my judgment, no one stands in greater need than do priests.” ~ Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

MEDITATE DAILY ON CHRIST’S PASSION

Father Hardon recommended that a most effective way of praying for priests is by making the Way of the Cross, praying the Stations of the Cross. “To make the Way of the Cross, uniting oneself with Jesus Christ, no longer suffering in His physical body, but suffering in His Mystical Body, which is the Church.”

Meditate on Christ’s Sacred Passion every single day.  To learn more, visit:  Meditating on Christ's Passion

OFFER AT LEAST ONE PRAYER A DAY FOR PRIESTS

Father John A. Hardon, S.J. also recommended that the faithful offer at least one prayer for all priests every day,  especially for those who have done the most for them in their lives.  

Father said that throughout his life he tried ”to remember at Mass every day the priest who baptized me, the priest who heard my first Confession, who gave me my First Holy Communion, the bishop who ordained me, the bishop who confirmed me.  I recommend, therefore, that all the faithful daily in a special and concrete way, pray for priests.” 

How often do you pray for priests?  How often do you pray for the priests who have done the most for you in your life, and for the priests who are most in need of your support. 

OFFER THE MOST DIFFICULT SACRIFICE OF YOUR DAY FOR PRIESTS

”I further strongly recommend that all the faithful offer up each day some sacrifice.  I am tempted to say some little sacrifice.  NO!  I suggest it be the most difficult sacrifice of the day for priests.” ~ Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

SACRIFICIAL PRAYER

“Why sacrifice for priests?  Our prayer for priests should be joined with sacrifice.  In other words, our prayer should be united with the practice of patience, selfless charity and mortification.  Why?  Because the most effective prayer is the prayer that costs – costly prayer, otherwise known as sacrificial prayer.  How powerfully before the throne of God are the sufferings of the sick, the lonely, the abandoned, the poor, the crushed offered up to God for our purpose, when offered up for priests.”

Father Hardon told hundreds of priests, “Fathers you are not only to offer the Mass, you are to live the Mass.

“But if priests are to be truly priestly, they need, how they need, to have the faithful to offer their own trials and temptations to obtain from the great High Priest, Jesus Christ, the light and strength that the priesthood demands.”  ~ Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

BE AN EXAMPLE OF HOLINESS 

Live a sacramental life and work hard at growing in sanctity.  Through our holiness, humility, and obedience God uses us as very powerful channels of grace for others, including all priests.  They are powerful channels of grace for us, and so we must also be for them! 

EUCHARISTIC ADORATION

Praying before the Blessed Sacrament is  an ideal, powerful, and very suitable way to pray for our priests. 

Mary Peterson, coordinator of the Saint Kateri Perpetual Adoration Chapel at Saint Rene Goupil Catholic Church  in Sterling Heights, Michigan, U.S.A., reminds us that “Eucharistic Adoration itself is a sacrifice, and Father Hardon has called us to sacrificial prayer.”

MORE VERY POWERFUL SUGGESTIONS

Assisting at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass as often as possible, praying the Holy Rosary, fasting, mortification, praying the Chaplet of Divine Mercy daily...and listening to the most beautiful inspirations of our most loving Lord in this regard are all powerful things we can do to help our Fathers.

Don't take anything for granted;  even things that seem small or insignificant are very important actions that we must take for our Fathers, and they also help us grow in sanctity in the process.  

They include dressing appropriately for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, bowing reverently when we greet Jesus, folding our hands respectfully and reverently in prayer, receiving Jesus in the Eucharist with great respect on our tongues and while kneeling (physically if possible and within our hearts if not), assisting at Holy Mass with great love and devotion, learning more about our faith, and remaining in church after Holy Mass has ended to spend quiet time with Jesus just after having received Him in the Blessed Sacrament. 

 

TAKE ALL CONCERNS STRAIGHT TO THE HIGH PRIEST AND THE MOTHER OF ALL PRIESTS

Never, not once to this day, have I heard a person complain about a priest and then add that he or she prays for priests, nor have I heard such people ask for prayers for priests. We must take our concerns to the High Priest, to Jesus Christ, and to His most holy Mother, the Mother of all priests.
  

“Trust all things to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament and to Mary, Help of Christians, 
and you will see what miracles are.”   
~ Saint John Bosco

Intercessory prayer, sacrificial prayer, should always be our first response when there is a problem or crisis involving any of our shepherds.   Jesus Christ is always the answer, and He always knows best what we need.  Go to Him!  He is so in love with us all. 

Please, please Lord, may the devout faithful not be held accountable on judgment day for failing to adequately support our priests!

WHAT TO DO WHEN YOU HEAR ABOUT A PRIEST WHO HAS BEEN OR IS SUSPECTED OF BEING UNFAITHFUL TO HIS HIGH CALLING

"I further recommend that when we hear about a priest who has been unfaithful to his high calling, that our first and immediate reaction should be to pray for him.  I finally recommend we do everything in our power to extend and propagate the apostolate of prayer and sacrifice for priests.”   ~ Father John A. Hardon, S.J. 

PROPAGATE THE APOSTOLATE OF PRAYER AND SACRIFICE FOR PRIESTS

Our own humility is a very powerful weapon to defeat the demons that attack the members of the Sacred Priesthood of Jesus Christ.  So to help priests, work at growing in humility.  Petition our Lord often with the powerful plea, "Jesus, meek and humble of heart, make our hearts like unto Thine."

Father Hardon also encouraged the faithful to see humiliations as precious opportunities to grow in humility.  We must value them, and profit from them.  They are absolutely invaluable to us and also to others!  Offer them up for the sanctification of our priests. 

THE WORK OF REPARATION THROUGH THE DEVOTION TO THE HOLY FACE

Discover or rediscover the Work of Reparation through the Devotion to the Holy Face of Jesus, given to us personally by our Savior, Who called it "the most beautiful work under the sun."  How well do you know this powerful means of offering reparation to God and petitioning for the conversion of sinners while growing in personal sanctity? 

To learn more: Work of Reparation through the Devotion to the Holy Face 

Be sure to pray many Golden Arrow prayers throughout each day for priests.  Memorize this very powerful prayer, and launch those precious Golden Arrows while waiting for your turn in the confessional.  Pray it for your confessor, for yourself, and also for other penitents. 

Launch them before Holy Mass for the celebrant(s). 

Launch them before getting out of bed to start the day, and before retiring for the night.  Anytime is a great time to say the Golden Arrow prayer for our priests!

OUR EFFORTS ARE VITAL

Be sure to play an active role in strengthening the priesthood, not only in our time, but through all time! 

Offer your prayers, sacrifices, and good works for all priests through all time.  Our efforts are not limited to time and space and can benefit priests who have lived before us, who are to come after us, and whose lives are at risk of being lost to abortion.  Pray to save a life;  pray to save a priest!

“Needless to say, the Church of the future will not only survive, but please God in our own country, will thrive.  But that will occur only where and insofar as the priests will not only been faithful to their vocation, but have lived their priesthood how I like to say this, in a living martyrdom in union with the first martyr, Jesus Christ.  It is, therefore, no mere recommendation or exhortation as far as I can make an imperative.  Pray and sacrifice for priests.”  ~ Servant of God, Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

 

 A CLOSING PRAYER

"Lord Jesus Christ, you ordained the apostles priests at the Last Supper to continue your mission of mercy to the end of time. We believe that every Catholic priest traces his ordination to that first ordination on Holy Thursday night. We know how much you expect of your priests and we also know how weak and human they are. Inspire us, dear Jesus, to pray and sacrifice for your priests who are also our priests that by their faithfulness to you in this life they may bring countless souls to you in the life to come. Mary, mother of priests, pray for priests that they may love your Divine Son, even as you did unreservedly, all the days of their lives. Amen." ~ Father John A. Hardon, S.J.

A Prayer for our Holy Father

 Lord Jesus,
shelter our shepherd Francis under the protection of Thy Sacred Heart. 

Be Thou his light, his strength, and his consolation.

 

_______________
Source:

Father John A. Hardon, S.J., The Value of Prayer and Sacrifice for Priests, copyright © 1998 by Inter Mirifica and used with permission.

  Images taken at Ss. Cyril and Methodius Slovak Catholic Church,

Sterling Heights, Michigan, U.S.A. Parish Website

  

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