God of our weary years,
God of our silent tears,
O good and gracious God,
You are the God of health and wholeness
in the plan of your creation,
You call us to struggle in our sickness
and to cling always to the cross of your Son.
O God, we are your servants.
Many of us are now suffering
with HIV or AIDS.
We come before you and ask you,
if it is your holy will,
to take this suffering away from us,
restore us to health
and lead us to know you
and your powerful healing love
of body and spirit.
We ask you also
to be with those of us
who nurse your sick ones.
We are the mothers, fathers,
sisters, brothers, children
and friends of your suffering people.
It is so hard for us
to see those whom we love suffer.
You know what it is to suffer.
Help us to minister in loving care,
support, and patience
for your people who suffer
with HIV and AIDS.
Lead us to do whatever it will take
to eradicate this illness
from the lives of those
who are touched by it,
both directly and indirectly.
Trusting in you
and the strength of your Spirit,
we pray these things
in the name of Jesus. Amen.
The icon
"Mother of God,
Light in All
Darkness" was
commissioned to
Jesuit artist
Fr. William Hart
McNichols by the
National Catholic
AIDS Network.
|
Office of
HIV and AIDS Ministry
Archdiocese of Atlanta
680 W. Peachtree St., NW
Atlanta, GA 30308
Tel. (404) 885-7207
Irene Miranda,
Director
|
Fr. Bob Pawell, OFM, from Tau House, New
Orleans, created a novena to the Mother of God,
Light In All Darkness, praying for all who are
infected and affected by HIV and AIDS.
God of all compassion,
comfort Your sons and daughters
who live with AIDS.
Spread over us all Your quilt of mercy,
love and peace.
Open our eyes to Your presence
reflected in their faces.
Open our ears to Your truth
echoing in their hearts.
God of life, help us find the cure now
and help us build a world in which
no one dies alone and where
everyone lives accepted,
wanted and loved.
DISCLAIMER
Considering the nature of
the Internet, the
Archdiocese of Atlanta’s
Office of HIV and AIDS
Ministry cannot take
responsibility for the
contents of sites that may
be accessed through these
web pages. These links do
not represent, necessarily,
the position of the
Archdiocese of Atlanta’s
Office of HIV and AIDS
Ministry, much less an
archdiocesan endorsement
of a particular site.
A mature selective criteria
on the part of the user is
necessary when using the
Internet. In general, we
strongly recommend parents
to supervise their children
while surfing the Net. While
avoiding censorship, we
make every effort to post
suitable information and
links which may be of value
to understand HIVand AIDS.
It is the user's responsibility
to decide whether or not a
particular site is
appropriate, according to
the user’s personal criteria.
