Shouldn't a "right to life" intention be included every week?

The right to life is a central tenet of Christian teaching and an important issue in the U.S. and world today.  Here at FCA, we see the right to life in terms of the "seamless garment" metaphor of the late Cardinal Joseph Bernadin.  Therefore, although intentions one might label "right to life" do not appear every week, we believe that every intention addressing the quality of life that God desires for all God's children is, indeed, a "life" intention.

You may be interested in the general intercessions that Priests for Life offer on their web site at http://www.priestsforlife.org/intercessions/index.htm.

Does the Subscription Service include intercessions for holydays when they are not "days of obligation"?

Yes, these are included in the Subscription Service. 

How many petitions should there be each week?

The number is not prescribed.  However, general practice suggests four to seven.  FCA always provides more petitions than you can or should use in a single liturgy.  Each parish or community uses pastoral judgment to select and adapt those most meaningful to its assembly.

When are FCA’s General Intercessions available?

Intercessions will be e-mailed to subscribers by Thursday morning for the coming weekend's liturgies. For the Paschal Triduum, intercessions are sent to arrive on Monday and Tuesday of Holy Week.   Intercessions for holydays arrive the day before the vigil of the holyday.

Is it possible for me to receive the intercessions earlier?

What makes FCA’s Intercession Service unique is that it provides intercessions that are appropriate to the readings of the week AND reflective of the EVENTS of the week.  For that reason, they are composed as close to the weekend as possible—just in time for their Thursday delivery.  To provide them earlier would negate the very purpose that this service was designed to address.  FCA does make schedule adjustments for all subscribers to accommodate likely parish office holidays.   However, it is not possible to provide intercessions on different schedules for different needs.  Anyone who must prepare the Prayer of the Faithful earlier in the week may find FCA's Prayers of the Faithful on CD helpful.

But what if I have to prepare them early because I’m going to be on vacation?

FCA is happy to send the intercessions temporarily to an alternate address while you are away.  However, if you do not have someone who can “cover” for you, we suggest having the Prayers of the Faithful on CD as a backup.  (See the preceding question.)

Are FCA's Prayers of the Faithful available in Spanish?

Regretfully, FCA is not able at this time to provide its intercessions in Spanish.  We know that this need is real and growing, and we hope to be able to meet it in the future.  Anyone who is fluent in Spanish and could work for a share of our modest revenue is welcome to contact us about helping us to meet this need.

Liturgy.com and Priests for Life provide Prayers of the Faithful in Spanish as well as English.  Go to Litugy.com and  http://www.priestsforlife.org/intercessions/index.htm.

According to GIRM 70, “as a rule, the series of intentions is to be:

a. For the needs of the Church;

b. For public authorities and the salvation of the whole world;

c. For those burdened by any kind of difficulty;

d. For the local community.”

The exceptions are special celebrations such as marriages, funerals, and the like.

CSL states that the liturgy is the “summit” toward which the Christian life is directed as well as the “fount” from which that life flows (10).  In other words, there is an intrinsic relationship between liturgy and life.  Liturgy is not the place we come to escape the world and our everyday lives.  Rather, it is the place we bring our broken lives and our broken world, our joys as well as our sorrows, to be transformed into the reign of God through the Paschal Mystery.  The Prayer of the Faithful may be the place where the connection between liturgy and life can be made most clearly.

Further, when we name someone, we give them a place in our consciousness.  Conversely, to fail to name someone makes them invisible—i.e., not present to us.  To name someone in liturgy is to give them a place in our assembly and a claim to our care and concern.

As persons baptized into the priesthood of Christ, it is our duty--and privilege--to intercede for the world to God the Father through Jesus his Son in the power of the Holy Spirit.  (That is why we dismiss the catechumens from Mass before the Prayer of the Faithful.)  CSL 53 states, and GIRM 69 repeats, that we are to pray “for the holy Church, for the civil authorities, for those oppressed by various needs, for all people, and for the salvation of the entire world.”  The General Intercessions thus remind us that God gathers us for Eucharist not only for our own sake but, even more, for the sake of the world.  The intercessions are “general” in that they reach far beyond the needs in our personal or community life.

Frequently Asked Questions

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal is the authoritative Roman document that lays down the principles and guidelines for the celebration of the Eucharistic Liturgy (Mass) in the Roman Catholic Church. Its stated purpose is "to offer general guidelines for properly arranging the Celebration of the Eucharist and to set forth rules for ordering the various forms of celebration" (GIRM 21). The GIRM, however, is much more than a set of rules. Taking its lead from the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy (CSL) of Vatican II, it also gives the theological and pastoral basis for our celebration of the sacrament. It thus becomes a kind of map to situate our celebration within the broader context of the Paschal Mystery which is at the heart of our faith.

What is the General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM)?

In what sense are the General Intercessions or Prayer of the Faithful “general”?

Then why is it important that the General Intercessions (Prayer of the Faithful) refer to specific events, people or issues?

Is there a prescribed sequence for the General Intercessions (Prayer of the Faithful) at Mass?

The Subscription Service provides Prayers of the Faithful based on the season and readings of the day, and reflective of current issues and events for: every Sunday, every holyday of obligation, Ash Wednesday, Holy Thursday and the Easter Vigil, a children's liturgy at Christmas.

Exactly what liturgical celebrations are included in the Subscription Service?

Your question not answered here?

E-mail us with your question at comments@fcaministry.com.