Covid-19: A Prayer of Solidarity

For all who have contracted coronavirus,
     We pray for care and healing.

For those who are particularly vulnerable,
     We pray for safety and protection.

For all who experience fear or anxiety,
     We pray for peace of mind and spirit.

For affected families who are facing difficult decisions between food on the table or public safety,
     We pray for policies that recognize their plight.

For those who do not have adequate health insurance,
     We pray that no family will face financial burdens alone.

For those who are afraid to access care due to immigration status,
     We pray for recognition of the God-given dignity of all.

For our brothers and sisters around the world,
     We pray for shared solidarity.

For public officials and decision-makers,
     We pray for wisdom and guidance.

Father, during this time may your Church be a sign of hope, comfort and love to all.
     Grant peace.
     Grant comfort.
     Grant healing.
     Be with us, Lord.

Amen.

To be prayed for nine consecutive days

[Novenas are an ancient tradition of prayer in times of great need.  The practice traces its origin to when the apostles prayed for nine days between the Ascension of Jesus and  Pentecost, the feast of the descent of the Holy Spirit.]

O Mary, full of grace, patroness of this nation and Mother of the Church, in this time of worldwide illness we ask your intercession for the human family before your Son’s throne of grace and mercy.  We ask for strength in adversity, health in weakness, and comfort in sorrow.  We pray for all who have lost jobs or security in this time.  May your Son watch over all who are sick and their caretakers, bring heaven all who have died, and give wisdom to all who are seeking a cure to the Coronavirus.

[Mention your own intentions.]

Saint Damien of Molokai, minister to lepers, pray for us.

Saint Anthony the Great, who healed infectious diseases, pray for us.

Saint Edmund, patron of victims of pandemics, pray for us.

Saint Frances Cabrini, foundress of hospitals, pray for us.

Saint Agatha, patron of nurses, pray for us.

Saint Luke, patron of doctors, pray for us.

Saint Joseph, patron of the dying, pray for us.

All you holy angels and saints, pray for us.

Help us, O Blessed Mother, to be filled with confidence in the tender compassion of our God.  Calm our fears and help us to trust in the Divine Physician.  We ask this through Christ, our Lord.  Amen.

Spiritual Communion Prayer
Click here.

For Families With School Aged Children

1. Holy Heroes is a Catholic website that has a free section loaded with videos for children on various Catholic topics, e.g., Lent. These videos are being made free at this time.
2. My Catholic Kids is a website that uses fun and imaginative ways to teach their children about the Catholic faith. They have a number of videos about the Mass. It too is currently free to all.
3.  Diocese of Sacramento – Office of Family and Family. The Sacramento Diocese has a number of faith formation resources as well as practical everyday ideas for the challenge of at-home schooling your children at this time. There are even sample schedules for the day! Take a look.

Websites That Celebrate Mass Daily

• EWTN Eternal Word Television Network
• Catholic TV
• Salt and Light Media Canadian Daily TV on You Tube.

Additionally, Sunday Mass is also shown locally on ch. 40 (KTXL) 5:30-6:00 am and ch. 58 (KQCA) 8:00-8:30 am.

Daily Meditations on the Readings of Mass

• The University of Notre Dame offers daily meditations on the Mass readings for every day. Find that at faith.nd.edu
• Creighton University, a Jesuit Catholic University in Nebraska, has an exceptional Daily Prayer website here.
• The University of St Louis has a brilliant website exploring the depths of Sunday readings. Explore historical cultural context, thoughts from the early church, scripture in depth, and other areas of significant import. Find it at liturgy.slu.edu Click the link Go on to “Select a Sunday” in the top right corner of that page.
• Word on Fire is Bishop Barron’s website which is extremely popular. Bishop Barron explains the Sunday readings each week. The site has numerous videos, homilies, and other Catholic resources.
• USCCB.ORG The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops website offer the daily Mass readings with audio and video reflections. The reflections are very thought provoking.

 

Sacred Scripture: Word Of God              

Read the Readings of the day for each each day, not just Sunday. You can find the readings for each day at the US Bishops website here. You will see a calendar off to the right on this home page. Click on the date and it will open to the readings for that day.

Read or watch the gospels. The film The Gospel of John runs about 3 hours.
 
Read and pray the Psalms.

Daily Prayer Books

Personal Prayer Books
There are a number of monthly prayer books available for Catholics. There is a monthly subscription price. They make wonderful presents. Give one to friends and family as well as yourself! All of these are providing free access online during the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic. 

1. Give Us This Day is distributed by Liturgical Press.
2. Magnificat.
3. The Word Among Us

 

Videos And Movies

1. Catholic Social Teaching 101 is a collaborative 7-part video and discussion guide series presented by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Relief Services on Catholic social teaching. The videos bring the themes of Catholic social teaching to life and inspire us to put our faith into action. The series also includes downloadable posters and handouts for adults and kids. 
2. Joseph an animated movie based on the book of Genesis, chapters 37-50, telling the story of Joseph. 
3. The Greatest Story Ever Told on Amazon video. A 1965 classic film of the life of Jesus.
4. The story of the 20th century American icon, Dorothy Day, is portrayed in this recent movie Revolution of the Heart: the Dorothy Day Story. During the visit of Pope Francis to the US in 2015 he mentioned the names of only four Americans in his speech to the Senate: Abraham Lincoln, Martin Luther King, Rev. Thomas Merton and Dorothy Day.

 

Sister Rose Pacette. If you are a movie fan, read the recommendations of Sr. Rose Pacatte. She even has a “Questions for Kids” guide to movies. Her background in media studies, along with the principles of Catholic Social Teaching, rooted in Scripture and Church teaching, provide her the inspiration to write and speak about cinema—inspiration, she says “practically erupts through whatever screen I am watching.” LTP website.