Wednesday 22 February

Feast of the chair of St Peter

1 Peter 5:1-4; Psalm 23; Matthew 16:13-19

For the Church

Our prayers on this feast day are for the Church. We pray especially for our Pope Francis. He is the successor of St Peter, the rock on which Jesus chose to build his Church. To him, Jesus gave the keys of the kingdom of heaven. He appointed him to guide and shepherd his flock. Today is a special opportunity for us to renew our commitment in faith to the Church and its teachings and to pledge our loyalty and obedience to our Pope. We pray also that our Church and its leaders will remain faithful to the responsibilities entrusted to them.

‘Lord, in you our fathers put their trust and they never trusted you in vain.’ Psalm 22.