ADVENT AND CHRISTMAS PRAYERS

ST NICHOLAS
December 6 is the feast day of Saint Nicholas, Bishop of Myra (around the year 300). We know him as St Nick or Santa. This is the collect (or prayer) for St Nicholas Day:


Almighty God, who in your love gave to your servant Nicholas of Myra a perpetual name for deeds of kindness on land and sea: Grant, we pray, that your Church may never cease to work for the happiness of children, the safety of sailors, the relief of the poor, and the help of those tossed by tempests of doubt or grief; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.



JUAN DIEGO AND GUADALUPE
On December 9-12 1531, while Saint Juan Diego was on his way to Mass, the Blessed Virgin Mary revealed herself as Guadalupe and spoke to him on Tepeyac Hill in Mexico. On July 31, 2002, in the presence of 12 million people, Pope John Paul II canonized the humble Saint Juan Diego. Guadalupe was given the title "Patroness of the Americas and the Philippine Islands." This what Guadalupe said:

Let nothing frighten or grieve you,
let not your heart be disturbed,
do not fear any sickness or anguish.
Am I not here, who am your Mother?
Are you not under my shadow and protection?
Am I not your fountain of health?
Are you not happily within the folds of my mantle, held safely in my arms?

Her words are reminiscent of the prayer of Teresa of Avila: nada te turbe:

Let nothing disturb thee;
Let nothing dismay thee;
All things pass;
God never changes.
Patience attains all that it strives for.
He who has God lacks nothing.
God alone suffices.



CHRISTMAS
A prayer for Christmas that Jill Hunting found among the papers of her brother, Pete, a civilian IVS volunteer who was killed during the Vietnam War. Jill writes about him in her book, Finding Pete.

By the way of Bethlehem, lead us,
O Lord, to newness of life;
By the innocence of the Christ Child,
renew our simple trust;
By the tenderness of Mary,
deliver us from cruelty and hardness of heart;
By the patience of Joseph,
save us from rash judgment and ill-tempered action;
By the shepherds' watch,
open our eyes to the signs of thy coming;
By the wise men's journey,
keep our searching spirits from fainting;
By the music of the heavenly choir,
put to shame the clamor of the earth;
By the shining of a star,
guide our feet into the way of peace.
--Author unknown

From St Patrick's Grapevine, newsletter of St Patrick's Episcopal Church, Kenwood, Cal., December 2009

http://www.stpatskenwood.org/grapevine.html#05

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