Help in a New Year

Gracious God,
We thank you for having called us here together.
At the start of this academic program we ask for your help.
For the students,
Please open their minds to learning and new ideas,
Provide them with strength and perseverance, and help them to be patient.
For the sponsors, families, friends, and loved ones,
Help them to be supportive and understanding throughout this program.
For the faculty,
Challenge the students and help them grow intellectually.
All this we ask in your name,

- Rob Munson

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Working For The Good

Loving God,
bless us as we gather today for this meeting.
Guide our minds and hearts
so that we will work
for the good of our community,
and help all your people.
Teach us to be generous in our outlook,
courageous in face of difficulty,
and wise in our decisions.

- Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops,

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Our New Colleagues

Gracious God,
With joy, we now join here together to celebrate,
as some look back on times past and as others look forward to times yet to come.

We rejoice in the opportunity to become better acquainted with our colleagues while finding you in them.
We are grateful for the encouragement we receive to seek to know you as the source and substance of the mission and identity of our place of employment.
We are humbled to be entrusted with the service and promotion of social justice in our local and global communities. We ask that You guide us in this service.
We praise You for Your generous gift of life and love and ask for Your help in sharing that love with everyone we meet.

- Sheila Doran

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For Our Assembly

Holy One, dear one,
one who knows us more intimately
than we know ourselves
we present ourselves in this assembly
at the start of a new academic year
in the hopes that you will reveal yourself in our midst,
in our thoughts, in our desires,
in our conversations, in our work,
in our frustrations, in our anguish,
in our enthusiasm, in our joys
and in the blessed peace
that is an inherent, if elusive, part of our very selves.
Help us open our hearts and minds
to our own largesse
that we might become the people
you love to call your own.

- Gillian Ahlgren

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We Bow Our Heads

Lord,
We bow our heads collectively
To give you thanks for your ever present grace
Glory and honor for the countless mercies bestowed upon us. Father,
We ask that you grant us the patience to endure all hardships
The wisdom to make a difference in the situations which we can control
And the understanding to navigate through the difficult times we all face
And when the end of each day approaches
Let your magnificent peace settle our hearts and minds
As your everlasting love carries us all from day to blessed day.

- David Bryant

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Gifts of Our Ignatian Heritage

Loving God,
We come to you filled with gratitude for making us partners in your ongoing work of creation.
You call us to be part of this community and bless us with a unique legacy
That began with Ignatius Loyola and has been passed
From generation to generation.

The gift of our mission, founded on the practice of reflection and discernment,
Enables us to make decisions which call us to stand in solidarity and kinship
With all those who share our earthly journey
And moves us to perform active service rooted in justice and love.

These gifts of our Ignatian heritage invite us to be part of a tradition
That builds on the wisdom of the past
With a vision open to the opportunities of the future.

These gifts also challenge us to move beyond our norm,
To broaden our imagination,
To deepen our trust,
And to establish your kingdom here on earth.

Fill us with enthusiasm and wonder as we receive these gifts
With open minds, generous hearts, and a willing spirit.
Following the example of St. Ignatius, may we, too,
"labor and ask for no reward except that of knowing we are doing your will."
May we take full possession of this heritage and joyfully pass it on
To those generous men and women
Who walk behind us into the future.

- Br. Darrell Burns, S.J.

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