Rosary Run -The Fatima Prayer
BrendanMcGroarty
Posts: 945 Member
O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of Hell. Lead all souls to Heaven, especially those in most need of thy mercy.
Often taken as an optional prayer, the Fatima prayer nonetheless offers runners a particularly meaningful perspective. First, we ask simply for forgiveness. We are powerless to redeem ourselves, and, with grace, we are aware not only of our sins but of the demands of justice. With this awareness of our incapacity and dependence of God, we can focus beyond ourselves. We add our prayers to those of Mary for the salvation of all. Spiritual tradition holds that humility grows from imperfect to perfect when we focus first on our own sinfulness, but then, in accepting the mercy of God, to focus beyond the self, and to respond in love to others.
Interestingly, one version of the original Portuguese version of the prayer, held to be the words of Mary at Fatima, asks not for the salvation of all souls, but for the souls in Purgatory. By praying for the souls in Purgatory, we pray for our departed loved ones, but we also pray for people whose lives no longer materially touch ours. When we pray for the living, we pray for people whose lives intersect with our own, however distantly. By praying for souls in Purgatory, we are able to partake in the disinterested love and mercy of Mary and Christ himself.
Often taken as an optional prayer, the Fatima prayer nonetheless offers runners a particularly meaningful perspective. First, we ask simply for forgiveness. We are powerless to redeem ourselves, and, with grace, we are aware not only of our sins but of the demands of justice. With this awareness of our incapacity and dependence of God, we can focus beyond ourselves. We add our prayers to those of Mary for the salvation of all. Spiritual tradition holds that humility grows from imperfect to perfect when we focus first on our own sinfulness, but then, in accepting the mercy of God, to focus beyond the self, and to respond in love to others.
Interestingly, one version of the original Portuguese version of the prayer, held to be the words of Mary at Fatima, asks not for the salvation of all souls, but for the souls in Purgatory. By praying for the souls in Purgatory, we pray for our departed loved ones, but we also pray for people whose lives no longer materially touch ours. When we pray for the living, we pray for people whose lives intersect with our own, however distantly. By praying for souls in Purgatory, we are able to partake in the disinterested love and mercy of Mary and Christ himself.
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