Fortresses of prayer

Sometimes when looking at the saint of the day my thoughts are led on a bit of a dance from here to there.  Today we have an English saint – Walburga (d779).  I learn from the website catholicireland.net that she was the niece of St Boniface of Crediton, regarded in Germany as one of their great evangelists.  I found this observation in the website article about St Boniface particularly fascinating: ‘He saw that scattered efforts at preaching would exert only a passing influence. So he decided to bring the whole country under an organised system. As he moved along preaching the gospel, he established monasteries which, like fortresses, would hold the conquered regions, and from these watch-towers the light of faith and learning would radiate far and near.’  I have never thought of monasteries as fortresses before – now I shall think in a new way of our Carmelite establishments as strongholds of prayer, radiating the light of prayer and faith around them.  At the same time we need to pray for them because they are under attack in the form of absence of vocations leading to closures not just in the UK but in other parts of Europe. Here is a prayer for vocations:

Loving God, you call all who believe in you to grow perfect in love by following in the footsteps of Christ your Son.  Call from among us more men and womenwho will serve you as religious.  By their way of life, may they provide a convincing signof your Kingdom for the Church and the whole world.  We ask this in Jesus' name. Amen.

Intercessions:

Brian Davis

Marie, Bernard (and wife Angela), Agnes – cancer

Siena, Elara – sick children

Rosemarie – very seriously ill

Wojtek – massive heart attack leaving him incapacitated

RIP Roswitha Watson OCDS (former President of St Therese Community, Oxford)