Rolling Prayer

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

Mt 28:19, NRSV

A Powerful Secret …

Did you know that you can actually help people in the middle of your busy day, even when it’s not possible to spend any time with them? It’s true! You can! In fact, you can even do it while you’re driving … in traffic … on a tight deadline.

The secret is prayer. Rolling Prayer!

Let’s talk!

For I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance.

— Phil 1:19 (NRSV)

You’ve Seen It …

Perhaps you’ve seen it. The basketball player is about to shoot a foul shot that will win the game and the tournament for his team. He blesses himself with the sign of the cross.

The place kicker runs out onto the field to kick the winning field goal for the Super Bowl. He blesses himself with the sign of the cross.

The student walking into the room to take an important test blesses herself with the sign of the cross. They all use the sign of the cross as their special, short prayer when they need some help on the go!

The Sign of The Cross …

The sign of the cross goes way back in church history. It was first used by Christians being persecuted and mocked by pagans who knew about the crucifixion of Christ, but did not understand His resurrection.

Making the sign was their way of responding to those pagans. It demonstrated their bold faith and also served as a prayer.

There’s much that can be said about the sign of the cross. We’ll summarize four meanings based on the writings of St. Francis de Sales.

• Ceremony — when it’s done to give honor to God, the sign of the cross becomes a short, holy ceremony.
• Christian — while anyone can make a sign of the cross, it is distinctly Christian in its history and meaning.
• Passion — when we make the sign of the cross, we unite ourselves closely with the Passion of Christ.
• Motion — as a distinctly Christian ceremony that unites us with Christ’s Passion, it exists “in motion” and puts us in motion. It’s not a permanent sign that remains in one place. Rather, it is for faithful people on the go.

That’s why we use it to invite people to make “Rolling Prayer” part of their faith journey!

Our Story …

In the cartoon above, Sr. Albertina and Sr. Charity are on their way downtown when Sr. Albertina spots an empty car sitting on the side of the road. She immediately alerts Sr. Charity that someone has a problem. They are in distress.

It would’ve been nice if the nuns were mechanics, but they are not. Fortunately, they understood that God put them there at that moment to witness someone’s distress and intercede in prayer.

While Sr. Albertina kept driving, Sr. Charity made the sign of the cross to unite the two of them to Christ’s Passion and to intercede for the unknown one in need.

You can become someone’s spiritual hero too by taking the sign of the cross with you wherever you go.

That’s our story and we’re sticking to it.

Vivat Jesus!

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