Prayers of reparation and atonement

May 2010

Fifteen Minutes on Fridays

Friday 14 May: Feast of St Matthias

Gospel of the Day: John 15: 9-17

If appropriate, light a candle.

Reflecting on the Gospel
Read the whole Gospel if time permits.
If not, you might like to focus on the following sentence:

‘You did not choose me,
no, I chose you;
and I commissioned you
to go out and bear fruit,
fruit that will last.’
 

Either:
Read the sentence very slowly – allowing each word its own weight.
Repeat this several times, noticing which words seem to stand out.
Pause when this happens and “wait on the word”.
What images does it conjure up?
What insights?

or
Reflect on what it means when Jesus chooses someone.
Think of those who were chosen and commissioned as priests, brothers,
religious sisters, lay workers – what fruit were they commissioned to bear?
Give thanks for those who have borne sound, wholesome fruit.
Now think of the fruit borne by those who have chosen to abuse those entrusted to their care. Notice your own response and honestly lay that before God.

Prayer
Jesus, rooted deep in the life of the Father,
you are the vine that bears perfect fruit.
Prune and purify branches that have borne grapes unworthy of your vine;
prune and make fruitful the branches of repentance and sorrow,
that the fruits of love, compassion and healing may be borne in abundance
and come to endure in the lives of those who dare not believe that this call belongs to them.

| Group Prayer for 14 May |

| 7 May |14 May | 21 May | 28 May |

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