The Crowning of Mary as Queen of Heaven
You shook our world, Holy God,
and You rolled back the stone
covering Our Lord.
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Oh Jesus, You escaped the grave,
according to His Holy Will.
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Pray, Heavenly Father, that You
awaken our hearts.
Soften their scars and open them
to receive Your mercy and forgiveness.
Fill us with Your Holy Spirit,
as You prepare us for Your Truth.
Command our attention, Oh Lord.
Show us the emptiness of a world without You.
From the prisons we’ve constructed in our sin,
let us hear Your voice, guiding us,
as we come to You on our knees.
Let us glimpse beyond this world’s corruption
as we follow You,
someday to walk upright with You
in Your garden.
And just as You promised we will do,
who believe and have faith in You,
let us fall in love with You.
Let us walk in love with You,
and Your people again.
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You appeared to Mary Magdalene first, that glorious day.
Not in the form in which she expected to see You.
Nor in the form in which she had always known You.
But in the form of a gardener.
She recognized Your voice, though.
How her heart must have burned within her.
Let our ears hear Your voice, too,
and let our hearts burn with the fire of Your love.
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Later, Your disciples met You on the road to Emmaus.
Like Mary Magdalene, they didn’t recognize You.
But You walked with them and taught them.
You explained to them what they had experienced
when You were here with them.
Pray, walk with us, too, Lord.
Help us to recognize Your Presence
and to understand Your purpose for our lives.
Help us to understand where You are,
in this time, hidden in our world,
as we go about our day.
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As You sat with Your disciples later,
at supper, and as You broke the bread,
You blessed them. They told us their hearts burned
with the knowledge of Your presence.
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Pray, You walk with us, too, Holy Lord.
Maybe in a garden or along the Way or by the sea,
as we wrestle with the storms of our daily lives,
searching for their purpose and meaning,
searching for You, Oh Lord, our bread of life.
Just as You were broken, dispersed,
given up and given away for us,
You are now hidden in all things,
waiting patiently for our eyes to see
and our ears to hear.
Your teachings are hidden in the people You send us.
Hidden in the experiences You allow us.
Hidden, waiting to comfort us
and to help us understand,
in our rejoicing and abundance,
and in our sadness and sorrow.
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So, too, is Your body and Your blood
hidden in each consecrated host
and in each sip of consecrated wine
that we consume into our bodies with the Eucharist.
So, too, will You, keeping Your promises,
give us Your heavenly grace
of mercy and forgiveness and life everlasting
with You and our Father,
together, in Your heavenly kingdom.
So, too, do You, through all these ways,
love us and help us become more and more like You,
as You become hidden in us.
More and more part of Your Holy Family,
as You bless and change us from the inside out.
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