Day 2 (January 23): Being individuals and communities of prayer
The path of holiness is not possible without cultivating depth in our lives, without a genuine faith, and without prayer as the expression of this faith. Pope Francis declares: “I do not believe in holiness without prayer” (Gaudete et Exsultate, 147). And in fact all of this is impossible without intimacy with the Lord Jesus: prayer of thanksgiving, the expression of our gratitude to the transcendent God; prayer of supplication, the expression of a heart that trusts in God; prayer of intercession, the expression of fraternal love; prayer of adoration, the expression of our recognition of God’s transcendence; prayer of meditation on the Word, the expression of a docile and obedient heart; Eucharistic prayer, the summit and source of the path to holiness.
Prayer to St. John Bosco
Saint John Bosco,
help us to understand as you did that only in Jesus and in his Gospel can we find true meaning and happiness in our lives;
help us to respond generously to God’s invitation to holiness, so that like you, we may help build here on earth a true civilization of love;
help us to be like you, signs and bearers of God’s special love for the young and the needy.
Pray for us the grace of holiness, so that guided by Mary Help of Christians, and living the spirit of the Beatitudes in our daily life, we may all meet to enjoy together eternal happiness with God.
Amen.