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Guidelines for Intercessory Prayer

For additional information, see the References and Links section of this web site.

Suggestions from Recent Deacons' Meetings

• Offer individual prayers for each country in the ecumenical prayer cycle, addressing specific concerns (e.g., not just "bless the people of Japan" but "bless the Buddhist-Christian dialogue in Japan").
• Use simple petitions so that people will feel more comfortable adding their own afterwards.

Edited Excerpts from "Guidelines to Intercessions"

Note: this document was part of the packet distributed to new deacons in the early 1980s. If you remember who wrote it, please contact us so that we can give the author proper credit.

There is an art in gathering the congregation into the act of prayer:

• Six or seven petitions is all a congregation can readily assimilate; better short petitions and longer silence for individuals' own petitions.
• Bids should be shaped so that they can be taken in and comprehended immediately; don't tell the congregation what to pray except in general terms.
• Concluding invitations to pray--bids--should be familiar, followed by a familiar response. Examples:
  • Petition: Lord, in your mercy. HEAR OUR PRAYER.
  • Thanksgiving: Bless we the Lord. THANKS BE TO GOD.
  More than this would have to be placed before the congregation on paper; then, something is lost.
• If meditative material is used between petitions to direct conscience or prayer itself, it is better if another voice is used for this than the voice that bids to prayer.
• The general tradition of the church suggests the following order for subjects to be considered in prayer:
  1. for the whole church
  2. for nations and world peace
  3. for the parish
  4. for the culture
  5. for the community
  6. for all sorts and conditions of men and women and children
  7. specific petitions from the congregation
  8. for faith at the last
• Personal pronouns should be consistent within the prayer. That is, if the prayer is addressed to God, then use the second person (you) throughout. If the prayer consists of bids to the people, then use the third person (he or she) for God.

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