by Trevor Thompson
Director of Pastoral Ministries
The Ascension of the Lord
As we hear in the reading today from Acts of the Apostles, all baptized into the Gospel way of life are called to be “witnesses” to the ends of the earth. Each of us is given spiritual gifts or charisms by the Holy Spirit to be powerful channels of God’s love and redeeming presence in the world – to be witnesses. Many of our Pastoral Ministries are focused on outreach – helping those in need through direct service, but today I want to highlight some ministries for those amongst us who feel particularly called to exercise their spiritual gifts through INTERCESSORY PRAYER.
Many different kinds of prayer have been practiced and taught by devout Catholics throughout the centuries. Much prayer is focused inwardly (see Centering Prayer in the “Good News” to the left), but there is also a form of prayer known as intercessory prayer which is directed primarily to the needs of the world. See some of our intercessory prayer ministries below and consider joining one as you bear witness to love of God in your life.
In praying the Rosary, this ministry meditates on principal events or mysteries of our Christian salvation and includes the petitions and intentions of our parishioners, the ministries of our parish, and the prayers of our community and world. The Rosary Ministry meets every Monday from 7:30 to 8:30pm in St. Mary of the Angels Chapel and on Saturdays from 5:00 to 5:25pm (just before 5:30pm mass) in Room 404. If you would like information about this ministry, please contact Chris Cherry at 848-1707
This ministry weaves prayers and yarn into shawls. These shawls are then presented to those people in our community experiencing difficult situations with the hope that they will gain strength from the prayers that surround them in the form of the Prayer Shawl. The ministry meets the 1st and 3rd Thursday from 12:30pm to 2:00pm, in Clare Hall Room 202. If you would like more information about this ministry, know of someone in need of a prayer shawl, or you would like to volunteer, contact Regina Sisinni at (919) 841-5866 or Cindy Cardello at (919) 846-8825.
This ministry lifts up in intercessory prayer the confidential and often anonymous special intentions of our parishioners. If you would like to volunteer to pray for those in need or ever have a special intention you would like our community to pray for, please leave a voicemail or message by phone, by email, through the parish website, or a written request in the Prayer Line box in the Parish Stewardship Center: 919-847-8205, *497
