Pray for our Priests and Religious

I know we should pray for our priests, especially since they are on the front line in the war against evil.  We, the common people, know we are tempted and spiritually attacked on a daily basis; just think of the spiritual beating our priests and religious take.

I am sorry to admit that although I fully understand and support the need to pray for our priests and religious, I just didn't spend a lot of time doing this.  Side note;  I think I'm going to spend eternity in Purgatory making up for all the things "I have failed to do".  Even last year, during the Year of the Priest I picked up several prayer cards at different times during the year, but I didn't pray the prayer.  I watched my mother pray for priests every single night, especially when her cancer was getting really bad, but still I failed to pray.

What I witnessed in Mass today I feel is a direct result of this failure to pray.  We are each responsible for our own sins, but I share in the responsibility because my prayers bring Grace to others as well as to me.  We have an elderly, retired priest in residence who still says Mass every Sunday.  He is a bit too liberal for my taste and I have found myself annoyed with him on more than one occasion when he gently reprimands the Bishops for "covering up" the priest scandals. He brings this subject up every time he preaches.  I do realize that Fr. N hurts deep down in his soul about the details of this scandal, but his sermons tend to work at tearing apart the seams of our Church and are not focused on healing.  Today he once again digressed to the scandals...I sighed...then a lightbulb went off and I realized that I am called to pray for him, especially since he admitted that speaking of the scandals is in direct disobedience to the Bishops and Church.  He then went on to state that women should be ordained.  Wow!  I was blown away by his lack of knowledge of the Bible and Church teachings.  Disobedience...ordain women??!!  WHAT??!!

I began praying for him right then and there.  I'm sure there were others doing the same.  During the Consecration my prayer became more intense and as soon as I stated in my mind that Fr. N needs to stop preaching against Church teaching he faltered and for a minute he couldn't find his place in the book of Eucharistic prayer.  I would like to believe that the Holy Spirit spoke to him and said these same words.  I'm praying now that he listens to them and responds to the Grace pouring down.  I begged God to pierce his heart with knowledge of the truth.

In the meantime, please do not forget to pray for our priests and religious.  They need us very badly.

Forgive me Lord for forgetting your priests who are close to your heart.  Please give me the Grace to remember they need us and not to fail in the mission to pray for them.  Lord have Mercy on me, a sinner.

God Bless and thank you.