Vatican II at 50 - The Prayer of the Faithful

“Pray for me.”  How often we hear these words or see them in emails or on facebook.   Though we see or hear these words all the time, it is significant that others ask us to pray for them.  It means they trust that God will hear us. When we pray for someone, we exercise the power of our baptism. For through baptism, we are made priest, prophet and king.  Praying for others means sharing in the priesthood of Christ, who intercedes for us at God’s right hand.  In the liturgy, this is most fully expressed in the General Intercessions, which were restored by the Second Vatican Council:

Especially on Sundays and feasts of obligation there is to be restored, after the Gospel and the homily, "the common prayer" or "the prayer of the faithful." By this prayer, in which the people are to take part, intercession will be made for holy Church, for the civil authorities, for those oppressed by various needs, for all mankind, and for the salvation of the entire world. Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy #53

Though the Church tells us for whom to pray, it doesn’t get into specifics.  We are to pray “for,” not necessarily “that.”  The Church prays first for itself, recognizing its need for God’s presence.  We pray for those charged with the responsibilities of civic leadership.  We pray for those who long to be liberated from various burdens such as those suffering from illness, addictions or poverty.  We pray for the unity and peace of the entire human race.  Praying in such a broad way makes us aware of persons we might not otherwise think about.  It’s another way the Church embraces the world with God’s love.  Though we don’t pray specifically for your Aunt Mary who is ill, she is included in the prayer for all the sick.
It is no accident that the Prayer of the Faithful takes place in the middle of the liturgy.  Empowered by God’s word, we await God’s response to our prayers as we anticipate God’s reconciling love in the Eucharist.  Ultimately, praying these prayers reminds us and the world of our radical dependence on God’s grace.  Amen!