Night One – November 7, 2024

Prayer for the Synod – Adsumus Sancte Spiritus
Rendered in Expansive Language by Mary Jean Ferry, BVM

You are with us, Holy Spirit,
as we gather together in Your name.
As You guide us,
Make Yourself at home in our hearts.
Teach us the way to go and how to follow Your guidance.
We are attentive and ready. Help us to promote hope and peace.
Holy Wisdom, lead us in a love that influences our actions.
Let us find in You our unity
as we journey together in light.
All this we ask of You,
who are at work in every place and time.
Glory to You, Source of All Being, Eternal Word, and Holy Spirit. Amen

A Non-Traditional Blessing
By Ruth Fox, OSB

May God bless you with discontent with easy answers, half-truths, superficial relationships, so that you will live from deep within your heart.

May God bless you with anger at injustice, oppression, abuse, and exploitation of people, so that you will work for justice, equality, and peace. 

May God bless you with tears to shed for those who suffer from pain, rejection, starvation and war, so that you will reach out your hand to comfort them and to change their pain to joy.

May God bless you with the foolishness to think you can make a difference in this world, so that you will do the things which others tell you cannot be done.

If you have the courage to accept these blessings, then God will also bless you with:

happiness—because you will know that you have made life better for others
inner peace—because you will have worked to secure an outer peace for others
laughter—because your heart will be light
faithful friends—because they will recognize your worth as a person.

These blessings are yours—not for the asking, but for the giving—from One who wants to be your companion, our God, who lives and reigns, forever and ever. Amen.

Night Two – November 14, 2024

For Prophets and Truth Tellers
By Russ Petrus

We give you thanks, O God,
that in every generation,
You raise up prophets and truth tellers.

Their voices call us as Church and society
to conversation and conversion
to reconciliation and restoration.

You have given their words power:

power to move us from ignorance to awareness,
from hard-heartedness to compassion,
from exclusion to inclusion,
from despair to hope,
from fear to courage,
…from death to new life.

And so we pray:

Make us attentive to the challenges they pose, the dreams they share;
Help us to discern the possibilities and obstacles in our midst;
And open our hearts and our imaginations
to love a new Church, a new world into being.

From Pope Francis’ Address Opening the Synod on Synodality
By Pope Francis

Come, Holy Spirit!
You inspire new tongues and place words of life on our lips:
keep us from becoming a “museum Church”,
beautiful but mute, with much past and little future.
Come among us,
so that in this synodal experience we will not lose our enthusiasm,
dilute the power of prophecy,
or descend into useless and unproductive discussions.
Come, Spirit of love, open our hearts to your voice!
Come, Holy Spirit of holiness, renew the holy and faithful People of God!
Come, Creator Spirit, renew the face of the earth!