India's Catholic Church remembers victims of Paris terrorist attacks

Nov 17, 2015

MUMBAI, INDIA: The National Eucharistic Congress of India, taking place in Mumbai, Nov. 12-15, on Saturday remembered the victims and wounded in the Paris terrorist attacks.

Cardinal Oswald Gracias, who is hosting the Eucharistic Congress in his Archdiocese of Bombay, invited the Congress delegates from all over the country to pray for the souls of the victims, their families and loved ones, asking the Lord to fill them with strength and courage at this difficult time.

He also requested that the delegates pray for them while on the day’s pilgrimage to the Shrine of Our Lady of Vailankani, Uttan, north of Mumbai, and at the Eucharistic Celebration scheduled for later in the day.

The spontaneous prayer that Card. Gracias intoned after a moment of silence is given below:

“Heavenly Father you sent your son our Lord Jesus Christ,
to bring peace into the world
and we in our human smallness of mind
have not understood His message of love and peace,
and often we destroy this peace by our own activity.

We beg your pardon Lord for this.
This moment we pray for all the victims in Paris.
Those who have passed away,
be merciful to them.

We pray for those who are wounded,
that they be healed.
We pray for their relatives, friends and those giving care to them
that they be strengthened
and have courage to carry on their work.

We pray to you Father in heaven,
to continue to pour on us the abundance of your mercy,
that the hearts of all may be transformed;
that we might not be agents of hatred
and destruction but of peace, love and reconciliation.

Help us at this Eucharistic Congress to
understand more and more the meaning of the Eucharist that Jesus gave us,
and how each one of us has to become the piece of the bread to transform others.
We make this prayer through Christ Our Lord." --Vatican Radio