LORD, WHO ARE WE AS A PEOPLE, having been given blessings in portions as no other nation before us? What has become of us, Father? We have spoiled your spacious skies with buildings and cities breathing with sin. The amber waves of grain are no longer viewed as our blessing but as our due. The awe and reverence due You when we gaze upon the purple mountains and their majesty is no longer held; rather, how much pleasure they can give us. Father, we have spurned You. We’ve blamed our problems on those who promote darkness, but You gave us time with Your Mother. Now our eyes have been opened by Her. Our lack of holiness, our not being light has allowed darkness to prevail. Indeed, our sins which we wrongly view as small have allowed those in darkness to commit great sins without shame. We now realize it’s because of our failings as Christians. Father, Samuel told your people, “It is true you have committed all this evil, still you must not turn from the Lord, but worship Him with your whole heart. For the sake of His own great name, the Lord will not abandon his own people.” Father, we come before You with our whole hearts and ask You to grant Our Lady Her intentions.
Mary, we do not deserve to even be heard, yet we know Your Son’s passion merits that we are. Mary, we call You as You have called us. Please, intercede before God to forgive us, to heal us, to heal our families, and to heal our nation.
Father, grant Mary’s intentions and hear Her pleas for us. We know you are justly irritated with us but we beg and plead for forgiveness through our repentance from our hearts. We realize our nation is headed toward disaster by so many signs You have given us. Holy, Holy, Holy God, grant Mary Her requests that we may again be your people, not a nation above God but one nation humbled and under God. Amen.
