St. John Neumann
Catholic Church

Several things to keep in mind when thinking about the Prayers of the Faithful during Mass:

1. the prayers are petitions and not prayers of thanks and praise;
2. the prayers are, generally speaking, for the Church and the world;
3. the prayers, while read by one person, are the prayers of the entire parish community, and thus they should also express our particular needs and concerns;
4. the prayers take into account the themes found in Scripture readings as well as the “mood” of the Liturgical Season (especially during Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter).

A few other things to note specifically about our Prayers of the Faithful here at SJN:

1. Every effort will be made to include a prayer for recently-deceased parishioners. We hope to soon include more names of those who are sick and suffering.
2. The prayer for the dead is: “May the angels and saints lead them into their eternal rest.” This is a reference to a Latin Gregorian chant, In Paradisum, from the Office of the Dead. This prayer was customarily sung during the procession to the grave for the deceased.
3. The intentions in our Book of Prayer are referenced in a general way during the Prayers of the Faithful. For those of you who do not know, the Book of Prayer is found in the vestibule and provides an opportunity for all parishioners and guests to indicate specific prayer requests.