Day 7 Hope in Hard Times: A Novena with Dorothy Day

admin • Apr 19, 2020

The Dorothy Day Guild asks its members and others to “spiritually gather” (in the words of Pope Francis) to pray a novena for solidarity and compassion in this challenging time. It is tempting to become immobilized by feelings of grief, of helplessness. It is tempting to roll back the stone in front of Christ’s tomb. Today, let us pray for our faith communities, that as we regather after the pandemic has abated, our faith, hope, and charity be rekindled in response to God’s enduring love.

“In the face of world events, in the face of the mystery of suffering, of evil in the world, it is a good time to read the Book of Job, and then to go on reading the Psalms, looking for comfort—that is, strength to endure. Also to remember the importunate widow, the importunate friend. Both are stories which Jesus told. Then to pray without ceasing, as Paul urged. And just as there was that interpolation in Job—that triumphant cry—‘I know that my Redeemer liveth,’ so we, too, can know that help will come, that even from evil, God can bring great good, that indeed the good will triumph. Bitter though it is today with ice and sleet, the sap will soon be rising in those bare trees down the street from us.”
–Dorothy Day, The Catholic Worker , February 1971

Let us pray…Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be OR the Holy Rosary

Prayer for the Canonization of Servant of God Dorothy Day (1897 – 1980)

God our Father,
Your servant Dorothy Day exemplified
the Catholic faith by her life
of prayer, voluntary poverty,
works of mercy, and
witness to the justice and peace
of the Gospel of Jesus.
May her life inspire your people
to turn to Christ as their Savior,
to see His face in the world’s poor, and
to raise their voices for the justice
of God’s kingdom.
I pray that her holiness may be recognized by your Church
And that you grant the following favor that I humbly ask through her intercession:
(here mention your request)
I ask this through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

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