Year for Priests - Universal Rosary Year for Priests

St. Philomena, patroness of the Universal Rosary appearing to St. John Marie Vianney in a vision.

Universal Rosary Year for Priests

How You Can Help All Priests through Prayer and Fasting

Beginning at a young age and throughout his life as a priest, St. John Vianney demonstrated great sacrifices through fasting, prayer and sleep depravation in order to meet the needs and demands of thousands of parishioners who sought confession and his counsel on a daily basis. Following in his example and in honor of him, we are asking all of our members to join us in 40 days of prayer and fasting for all priests beginning today, June 19, 2009. Through our combined prayers and fasting, we can help all priests live out their vocation and mission in this difficult culture to bring Jesus Christ, our first and most holy priest and "the one mediator between God and men" (Catechism of the Catholic Church: 1544) to all people in our society. Without our beloved priests, we cannot have Christ in the Eucharist, for it is the priest, who through the grace of God, is a minister of this most Holy Sacrament – most important and at the center of our Catholic faith. The priest acts as another Christ and is deeply needed by all humanity. He is there for us from birth to our death and in all key moments of our lives of joy or suffering. He, like Christ, sacrifices himself for the salvation of souls.

We also invite you to print the following prayer and pray it often.

Prayer for Priests

Keep them, I pray Thee, Dearest Lord,
Keep them, for they are Thine,
Thy priests whose lives burn out before
Thy consecrated shrine.

Keep them, for they are in the world,
Though from the world apart;
When earthly pleasures tempt, allure,
Shelter them in Thy heart.

Keep them, and comfort them in hours
of loneliness and pain,
When all their life of sacrifice for souls,
seems but in vain.

Keep them and O remember, Lord,
They have no one but Thee,
Yet they have only human hearts,
with human frailty.

Keep them as spotless as the Host
That daily they caress;
Their every thought and word and deed,
Deign, dearest Lord, to bless.

(Imprimatur: + D. Card. Doughherty, Abp. Of Philadelphia)

Our Father, Hail Mary
Mary, Queen of the Clergy, help all priests.

Free Booklet for Honoring Priests