Apologies are in order. I typically post at night before I drift off to sleep. Most of you probably read this in the morning. I am apologizing because I want to share a couple of prayers from the Mass for Ember Wednesday, which will undoubtedly be outdated in a sense when you read it. That being said, the prayers I am sharing are still marvelous in their language and sentiment and, I believe, can serve as a source of meditation for hours.
First up, the Postcommunion:
“By receiving Thy sacraments, O Lord, may we be cleansed of our secret sins and delivered from the snares of our enemies.”
What’d I tell you? I could spend hours with that one. Secret sins? It kind of immediately prompted me to want to ask my guardian angel to help me truly examine my conscience, rolling up the carpets and sweeping out the dust as it were.
Next, the Prayer over the People, which is a prayer said immediately after the Postcommunion on the weekdays of Lent:
“O Lord, we beseech Thee, shed light upon our minds by the brightness of Thy glory, so that we may see what we must do and have the strength to do what is right.”
The Roman liturgical tradition is nothing if not concise. And isn’t this something many of us ask of Our Lord every day? Show me what to do! The key here is the follow-up petition that He give us the strength to actual do it.
As I’ve been saying, these are darkening times. If I wake up on April 3 and there is no new document to view, I will give thanks to God for the additional day. If we get “cancelled” before that? Well… Lord, enlighten my mind now so that I may see what I must do. I have no fear nor doubt that He will give me the strength to do whatever that is.
Our Lady of Sorrows, pray for us!
Harvey Millican's Blog: Musings of a Trad Dad 