January Prayers
Entrusting the Church to Mary, Mother of God
O Mother of all peoples; you know all their sufferings and their hopes.
You maternally feel all their struggles between good and evil,
between the light and the darkness which shake the world.
Receive our cry, directed in the Holy Spirit striaght to your Heart and,
with the love of the Mother and handmaid of the Lord,
embrace the individuals and peoples which most look for this embrace,
together with the individuals and peoples
to whose trust you attend in a particular way.
Take the entire human family under your maternal protection.
With outflows of affection, O Mother, we entrust it to you.
May the time of peace and liberty approach for all,
the time of truth, justice and hope. Amen.
Epiphany Blessing
(20 + C + M + B + 15)
(20 + Caspar + Melchior + Balthasar + 15)
The Blessing of the Chalk by the Priest
Epiphany chalk is used to write the inscription over all the doors of one's house.
Soft classroom chalk of any color is best for writing on varnished or painted surfaces.
A priest should bless the chalk on Epiphany Day, before the celebration of the main Mass of the day, using the following Blessing, which is taken from the Roman Ritual.
V. Our help is in the name of the Lord.
R. Who made heaven and earth.
V. The Lord be with you.
R. And with thy spirit.
Let us Pray.
O Lord God, bless + this chalk which Thou hast created,
that it may be helpful to mankind;
and grant that through the invocation of thy most holy name all those who use
this chalk or with it write over the doors of their houses the
names of thy saints: Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar,
may by their merits and intercession receive health of body and protection of soul.
Through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
The Blessing of the House
Later that day -- or any day within the Octave of the Feast of the Epiphany -- at home,
the ceremony is completed by a priest, or the father, or senior member of the family.
The following prayer is said once and at the main entrance of the house.
All family members should be present, and should accompany
the priest or the head of the family as he or she goes from door to door --
everyone keeping a respectful silence, or reciting the Joyful Mysteries of the Rosary.
Let us Pray
Hear us, O Holy Lord, Father Almighty, Eternal God,
and send thy holy angel from heaven to watch over, cherish,
protect, be with, and defend all who live in my house.
I call upon your saints: Caspar, Melchior, and Balthasar,
to protect my family and my home from every harm and danger,
and I place the marks of their holy names over the doors of my home
to remain there as a constant reminder to us
and to all who enter here that my house is truly a house of the Lord.
O God, make the door of my house wide enough
to receive all who need human love and companionship;
narrow enough to shut out all envy, pride, and strife.
Make its threshold smooth enough to be no stumbling block to children,
nor to straying feet but rugged and strong enough to turn back the tempter's power.
O God, make the door of my house the gateway to thy enternal kingdom.
I ask these things in the name of Jesus Christ, thy Son.
Amen.