September 26, 2005
You may have heard this quotation from Pope Leo XIII before, but it bears repeating: “Saint Francis of Assisi was called to reform the Church not in the way other saints had done, nor only for his own time, but for all time to come. Whenever society strays from the right path, no other remedy is needed but to revive the spirit of the orders founded by Saint Francis.”
“Everybody Loves Francis” could be the name of a reality TV show if a camera followed the numerous conversations we have with people we meet who are Protestant, Jewish, Buddhist, etc… For some reason they all love Saint Francis. In light of his upcoming feast on October 4 th and the urgent need for a renewal in the Church and society, I would like to invite you our readers to join us in a novena we have begun praying daily to prepare for his feast day. This prayer came from Pope John Paul II:
Novena Prayer to Saint Francis
O, St. Francis, stigmatized on La Verna,
the world longs for you
that icon of the crucified Jesus.
It has need of your heart,
open to God and others;
of your bare, wounded feet,
of your pierced hands raised in supplication.
It longs for your voice so frail
yet forceful with the power of the Gospel.
Francis, help the people of this age
to recognize the evil of sin
and to seek purification from it in penance.
Help them to become free from the very structures of sin that oppress today’s society.
Rekindle in the consciousness of those in government
an urgent need for peace between nations and peoples.
Instill in young people your freshness of life
that is capable of withstanding the snares
of the many cultures of death.
To those injured by every type of evil
teach, O Francis, the joy of being able to forgive.
To all those crucified by suffering, hunger and war,
reopen the doors of hope.
Help us!
You who brought Christ so close to your age,
Help us to bring Christ close to our age,
to our difficult and critical times.
Fr. Richard Roemer, CFR
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