Prayer Of The Faithful Concludes The Liturgy Of The Word
The Liturgy of the Word concludes with the Prayer of the Faithful or the Universal Prayer. The use of these prayers of petition goes back to the Jewish Synagogue service in Babylonia (587-537 B.C.). They also were a customary part of the Roman Liturgy according to St. Justin Martyr (141-167 A.D.) following the homily. Saint Hippolytus (210 A.D.) also indicates that these petitionary prayers were part of the Roman Liturgy. Saint Augustine (430 A.D.) encouraged the assembly to face the East to offer their petitions. (The reason for facing the East was an expression of their faith that Jesus would return from the East because the sun rises in the East). In the 3rd and 4th century in Egypt, prayers after the homily were common. The Eastern Church also had intercessions following the readings.
The Prayers of the Faithful were read by the deacon with the peoples’ response being “Kyrie Eleison” or “Lord, have mercy.” These intercessory prayers, as previously conducted with a petition and response by the people, disappeared from the Roman Liturgy since the 6th century except on Good Friday. From that time on, the prayers were introduced by the deacon followed by a more formal prayer recited by the priest with the people responding “Amen” or “So be it”. What seemed to have happened at that time was: 1) various intercessory prayers for the Pope and Bishop, the living, and deceased found their way into the Eucharistic Prayer (Roman Canon); and 2) the introduction of the “Kyrie Eleision” at the beginning of Mass which had formerly been the typical response to the Prayer of the Faithful.
The disappearance of the Prayer of the Faithful was not a uniform feature in all liturgies; e.g. the Council of Lyon (517 A.D.) continued to encourage the use of the “Prayer of the People.” The Gallican Mass in France still had prayers after the homily recited by the priests for the people without any participation by the assembly. In 900, the German Church recommended that on Sundays and feast days after the homily the faithful offer prayers for various needs: for rulers, for the heads of the Churches, for peace, against the plague, and for the departed. The people quietly recited an Our Father during each petition.
In the Mass of Vatican II, the Universal Prayer or Prayer of the Faithful has been restored with the participation by the people. These intercessions are to follow a certain order so we do not fall into praying only for our own needs, personal or communal. Just as Jesus died for the salvation of all peoples, the assembly’s prayer is a sharing in the priesthood of Jesus Christ as we focus our attention on needs beyond ourselves (General Instruction 69). The Church prays 1) for the needs of the Church, 2) for public authorities and the salvation of the whole world; 3) for those burdened by any kind of difficulty; and 4) for the local community (G.I. 70).
The priest introduces the Universal Prayer by inviting the people to pray, and he concludes them with a prayer. The lector, deacon or another member of the faithful then offers the individual petitions. Sometimes these Intercessions can appear to be very wordy, which can easily lead us to forget what we are praying for. Each intercession is to be in a few words (G.I. 71). Pausing after each intercession before saying “We pray to the Lord” may also help the assembly reflect upon the intention just mentioned. On special occasions, these intercessions are sometimes sung.
Father Sauer continues his series on the Mass in the Jan. 6. 2017 issue of The Message.
