The Assumption of Mary

As we celebrate the Assumption of Mary at Mass this weekend in our Church’s liturgical calendar, we at St Jude Catholic Church thought it would be good to have special prayers after Mass in honor of our Catholic Social Teaching and our call to respect human life from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death. This will consist of adoration, the rosary prayer, and benediction at the end of our Masses on Saturday evening (6:00 pm) and Sunday evening (4:00 pm).  

In that context, we want to pray specifically for the reinstatement of the Hyde and Weldon Amendments in the federal spending bill that has been passed in Congress.  The Hyde Amendment prohibits taxpayer funding for abortion. The Weldon Amendment prohibits federal, state or local government funding to agencies and programs that discriminate against health care entities that refuse to participate in abortion.  We pray that these amendments be reinstated in order to better reflect Catholic Social Teaching in our federal budget practices.  We also pray for the Supreme court case regarding the regulation of abortion that is being presented from the state of Mississippi.   

As we honor Mary in a special way on her Assumption and pray for these specific issues, please remember that all of us as Catholics are called to practice the Catholic social teachings of our faith.  These social teachings are an integral part of our Catholic faith. Being pro-life in the true sense of that term is an important part of our identity as Catholics.    

O most holy one, O most lowly one, O Loving Virgin, Mary. You are our Mother, the Maid of fairest love. Queen of all above, pray for us. Virgin ever fair, Mother, hear our prayer. Look upon us, Mary.  Bring to us your treasure, Grace beyond all measure; pray for us. 

Immaculate Virgin, Mother of Jesus and our Mother, we believe in your triumphant assumption into heaven where the angels and saints acclaim you as Queen. We join them in praising you and bless the Lord who raised you above all creatures. With them, we offer you our devotion and love. We are confident that you watch over our daily efforts and needs, and we take comfort from the faith in the coming resurrection. We look to you, our life, our sweetness, and our hope. After this earthly life, show us Jesus, the blessed fruit of your womb, O kind, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary.  AMEN.