Prayers and Resources
Prayer for the world
In the morning:
Take some coloured paper.
Cut it into strips.
Write the name of a country on each strip of paper.
Put them in a bag and mix them up.
Invite everyone to take a piece of paper and, during the day,
find three reasons why they want to pray for that country.
At the end of the day:
Light a candle and place it in the middle of a table.
Make the Sign of the Cross.
Invite those participating to say the name of their country and give their three reasons for prayer.
Take a moment of quiet.
Then pray the Our Father together.
You might want to finish with this prayer:
God our loving Father,
thank you for this great and wonderful world you have given us.
Look after each country we have prayed for and all the others too
and bring them peace and freedom.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Pope Francis' five finger prayer
The Pope has given us a very easy format for prayer during these days.
Light a candle.
Make the sign of the cross.
If possible, put on some quiet music and ask everyone to close their eyes and be still for a moment.
Then tell everyone what the theme is.
Ask if anyone would like to say who or what they want to pray for.
Thumb
The thumb is closest finger to you.
So, start praying for those who are closest to you.
They are the persons easiest to remember.
God our loving Father,
we thank you for all the people you have given us,
for our family and our friends.
Keep them safe and well until we see them again
and provide for all their needs.
Through Christ our Lord.
Index
The next finger is the index.
Pray for those who teach you,
instruct you and heal you.
They need the support and wisdom
to show direction to others.
Always keep them in your prayers.
God our loving Father,
we thank you for all the people
you put into our lives to help us,
heal us and guide us.
Give them all the gifts they need
to continue doing this
in the best way that they can.
Through Christ our Lord.
Middle
The following finger is the tallest.
It reminds us of our leaders,
the governors and those who have authority.
They need God’s guidance.
God our loving Father,
we pray for all those who lead our country
and all the countries in the world.
We pray at this time they might show
deep love for all their people
and the courage they need
to lead us to safer times
Through Christ our Lord.
Ring
The fourth finger is the ring finger.
Even though it may surprise you,
it is our weakest finger.
It should remind us to pray for the weakest,
the sick or those plagued by problems.
They need your prayers.
God our loving Father,
we pray for all those who are sick
and in need at this time
particularly those suffering from coronavirus.
We ask that you send them the help
and healing they need.
Through Christ our Lord.
Pinkie
Finally, we have our smallest finger,
the smallest of all.
Your pinkie should remind you to pray for yourself.
When you are done praying for the other four groups,
you will be able to see your own needs
but in the proper perspective,
and also you will be able to pray
for your own needs in a better way.
God our loving Father,
we pray for ourselves that you would meet our needs,
free us from our fear and help us
to know that you are with us always.
Through Christ our Lord.