Pope Francis wants to change the Lord Prayer

Pope Francis has proposed changing the text of the Lord's Prayer to make it a little less confusing for some. The change has already caught on.

October 2017 Prayer Intentions ~ Pope Francis

Workers and the Unemployed ~ That all workers may receive respect and protection of their rights, and that the unemployed may receive the opportunity to contribute to the common good.

Acts 20:35 �In every way I have shown you that by hard work of that sort we must help the weak, and keep in mind the words of the Lord Jesus who himself said, �It is more blessed to give than to receive.��

In any case we clearly see, and on this there is general agreement, that some opportune remedy must be found quickly for the misery and wretchedness pressing so unjustly on the majority of the working class.... 

source: RERUM NOVARUM, Encyclicals of Pope Leo XIII on Capitol and Labor

Pope Francis' prayer for Fatima's 100th Anniversary

The pope composed a special prayer for for Fatima's 100th Anniversary, which he recited at the Little Chapel of the Apparitions on 12 May, 2017 during his visit to Portugal for the 100th anniversary of the Fatima apparitions. Below is the prayer.

Prayer

Hail Queen,

Blessed Virgin of Fatima,

lady of the Immaculate Heart,

refuge and path that leads to God!

Pilgrim of the Light that radiates from your hands,

I give thanks to God the Father who,

at all times and in all places,

acts within human history;

pilgrim of the peace that you announce in this place,

I praise Christ, our peace,

and I pray for harmony

among all peoples in this world;

pilgrim of the hope that the Spirit encourages,

I want to be a prophet and messenger to wash the feet of all,

at the same table that unites us.

Hail o clement, hail o loving! 

Hail Queen of the Rosary of Fatima. 

Hail o clement, o loving, o sweet Virgin Mary.

Hail Mother of Mercy,

lady dressed in white!

In this place where, 100 years ago,

you showed us all

the plans of mercy of our God,

I look at your garment of light

and, as a bishop dressed in white,

I remember all those who,

dressed in their white baptismal robes,

want to live in God

and pray the mysteries of Christ

to achieve peace.

Hail o clement, hail o loving! 

Hail Queen of the Rosary of Fatima. 

Hail o clement, o loving, o sweet Virgin Mary.

Hail, our life and sweetness,

Hail, our hope,

o pilgrim Virgin, o universal Queen!

From the depths of your being,

in your immaculate heart,

you see the joys of human beings

when they journey toward the heavenly homeland.

From the depths of your being,

in your immaculate heart,

you see the sorrow of the human family

that mourns and weeps in this valley of tears.

From the depths of your being,

in your immaculate heart,

adorn us with the radiance

of all the jewels in your crown and make us pilgrims as you were a pilgrim.

With your virginal smile,

strengthen the joy of Christ's church.

With your sweet gaze,

strengthen the hope of God's children.

With your prayerful hands that you raise to the Lord,

unite us all into one human family.

Hail o clement, hail o loving! 

Hail Queen of the Rosary of Fatima. 

Hail o clement, o loving, o sweet Virgin Mary.

O clement, o loving,

o sweet Virgin Mary,

Queen of the Rosary of Fatima!

Help us follow the example of

Blessed Francisco and Blessed Jacinta,

and all those who give themselves

for the Gospel message.

Thus, we will travel all the roads,

we will be pilgrims on all paths,

we will tear down all walls

and overcome all boundaries,

going to all peripheries,

there revealing God's justice and peace.

We will be, in the joy of the Gospel,

a church dressed in white,

in whitened robes washed in the blood of the Lamb

still pouring out in all the wars

that destroy the world in which we live.

And thus, we will be like you,

the image of the luminous pillar

that lights the paths of the world,

showing to all that God exists,

that God is here,

that God dwells in the midst of the poor

yesterday, today and for all eternity.

Hail o clement, hail o loving! 

Hail Queen of the Rosary of Fatima. 

Hail o clement, o loving, o sweet Virgin Mary.

Hail, Mother of the Lord,

Virgin Mary, Queen of the Rosary of Fatima!

Blessed among all women,

you are the image of the church dressed in the Easter light,

you are the honor of our people,

you are the triumph over the mark of evil.

Prophecy of the Father's merciful love,

teacher of the son's Good News,

sign of the Holy Spirit's burning fire,

teach us, in this valley of joys and sorrows,

the eternal truths

that the Father revealed to the little ones.

Show us the strength of your protective mantle.

In your immaculate heart,

be the refuge of sinners

and the path that leads to God.

United with my brothers and sisters

in faith, hope and love,

I give myself to you.

United with my brothers and sisters,

I consecrate myself to God,

O Virgin of the Rosary of Fatima.

And finally, wrapped in the light

that comes from your hands,

I will give glory to the Lord

for ever and ever.

Amen.

Hail o clement, hail o loving! 

Hail Queen of the Rosary of Fatima. 

Hail o clement, o loving, o sweet Virgin Mary.

Pope Francis saddened by 'perfect' Catholics who despise others

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- God did not choose perfect people to form his church, but rather sinners who have experienced his love and forgiveness, Pope Francis said.

The Gospel of Luke's account of Jesus forgiving the sinful woman shows how his actions went against the general mentality of his time, a way of thinking that saw a "clear separation" between the pure and impure, the pope said Aug. 9 during his weekly general audience.

"There were some scribes, those who believed they were perfect," the pope said. "And I think about so many Catholics who think they are perfect and scorn others. This is sad."

Continuing his series of audience talks about Christian hope, the pope reflected on Jesus' "scandalous gesture" of forgiving the sinful woman.

The woman, he said, was one of many poor women who were visited secretly even by those who denounced them as sinful.

Although Jesus' love toward the sick and the marginalized "baffles his contemporaries," it reveals God's heart as the place where suffering men and women can find love, compassion and healing, Pope Francis said.

"How many people continue today in a wayward life because they find no one willing to look at them in a different way, with the eyes -- or better yet -- with the heart of God, meaning with hope," he said. But "Jesus sees the possibility of a resurrection even in those who have made so many wrong choices."

Oftentimes, the pope continued, Christians become accustomed to having their sins forgiven and receiving God's unconditional love while forgetting the heavy price Jesus paid by dying on the cross.

By forgiving sinners, Jesus doesn't seek to free them from a guilty conscience, but rather offers "people who have made mistakes the hope of a new life, a life marked by love," the pope said.

The church is a people formed "of sinners who have experienced the mercy and forgiveness of God," Pope Francis said. Christians are "all poor sinners" who need God's mercy, "which strengthens us and gives us hope."

source: Catholic News Service (CNS)

By Junno Arocho Esteves

Carrying out our mission with Mary, Mother of Evangelization ~ Pope Francis

Dear brothers and sisters, in carrying out our mission, let us draw inspiration from Mary, Mother of Evangelization. Moved by the Spirit, she welcomed the Word of life in the depths of her humble faith. May the Virgin Mother help us to say our own �yes�, conscious of the urgent need to make the Good News of Jesus resound in our time. May she obtain for us renewed zeal in bringing to everyone the Good News of the life that is victorious over death. May she intercede for us so that we can acquire the holy audacity needed to discover new ways to bring the gift of salvation to every man and woman.

by Pope Francis

Vatican, 4 June 2017

Solemnity of Pentecost

Prayer for the Pope ~ Pope Francis

V. Let us pray for Francis, our Pope. 

R. May the Lord preserve him, and give him life, and make him blessed upon the earth, and deliver him not up to the will of his enemies. [Psalm 40:3] 

** Say the Our Father and the Hail Mary. 

O God, Shepherd and Ruler of all Thy faithful people, look mercifully upon Thy servant Francis, whom Thou hast chosen as shepherd to preside over Thy Church. Grant him, we beseech Thee, that by his word and example, he may edify those over whom he hath charge, so that together with the flock committed to him, may he attain everlasting life. Through Christ our Lord. Amen.