Collect taken from the feast of St. James the Greater, Apostle.
Collect: Almighty ever-living God, who consecrated the first fruits of your Apostles by the blood of Saint James, grant, we pray, that your Church may be strengthened by his confession of faith and constantly sustained by his protection. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son…
“Almighty ever-living God, who consecrated the first fruits of your Apostles by the blood of Saint James,”
-It is fitting that James, known for his zeal and desire to reign in the kingdom, be the first to suffer martyrdom. We recall God’s goodness in acknowledging this as we make our prayer to Him.
“grant, we pray, that your Church may be strengthened by his confession of faith and constantly sustained by his protection.”
-Though the Church will never fall to the Gates of Hell, She must always work to stay strong in the faith and to hand it on faithfully. So, we are right to pray for Her to find that guidance and strength in the example and intercession of St. James.
Questions & Advice: How zealous are you in finding your place in God’s Kingdom? Do you assume that everything in the Church is always okay and going to turn out fine? Are you willing to suffer for the Truth after the example of James and the Apostles?
Read about the mission and responsibility of the Magisterium (890-896). Spend some of your daily prayer time asking God, through the intercession of St. James, specifically for the Pope and Bishops to grow deeper in their fidelity to our faith.
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| Sancte Jacobe, ora pro nobis! |