Prayers of other religions?

[MrBibbins]

I’ve only been attending Mass for a few months at my local Catholic parish and haven’t had much experience with the Mass, but this past Sunday (Sept. 11) we were informed about something that seems kind of odd to me. To commemorate the September 11th attacks and to promote world peace we are going to recite prayers of peace from different religious traditions starting this past Sunday with St. Francis’ Prayer (I hadn’t heard this prayer before and I found it very beautiful) all the way to Sept. 21st (United Nations International Peace Day). I’m not sure if these prayers will be said after or during the Mass but either way it sounds kind of strange to me. Anyway, I’m curious if this common place or out of the ordinary, also do you think this is proper/“kosher”?

 

[YoungTradCath]

What religions does this include? This sounds really suspicious to me, and I don’t think it should be happening.

 

[JGMendes4049]

There is a hymn, Prayer of St. Francis, by Sebastian Temple. The text is:Make me a channel of your peace:
Where there is hatred, let me bring your love,
Where there is injury, your pardon, Lord,
And where there’s doubt true faith in you.

Make me a channel of your peace:
Where there’s despair in life, let me bring hope,
Where there is darkness, only light,
And where there’s sadness, ever joy.

O Master, grant that I may never seek
So much to be consoled as to console;
To be understood as to understand,
To be loved, as to love with all my soul!

Make me a channel of your peace:
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
In giving of ourselves that we receive,
And in dying that we are born to eternal life.

The actual Prayer of St. Francis, supposedly written by St. Francis of Assisi himself, goes like this:Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.
Where there is hatred, let me sow love.
Where there is injury, pardon.
Where there is doubt, faith.
Where there is despair, hope.
Where there is darkness, light.
Where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled, as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive.
It is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.
Amen.

 

[Joe_Kelley]

Who is the prayer addressed to? [Or to be more correct -To whom is the prayer addressed?]

 

[OraLabora]

What religions does this include? This sounds really suspicious to me, and I don’t think it should be happening.

Why not? It is outside of a liturgical service. Without getting into syncretism, there are some common truths and basic human desires expressed by almost all religions’ prayers. Peace is one of them; part of inter-religious dialogue (something promoted at the highest levels of the Vatican BTW), is shared experience in areas that are common, without getting into doctrinal differences.

Fear of others, and circling the wagons, is part of the problem, not part of the solution.

Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue

1. FORMS OF DIALOGUE

1. The forms of dialogue

There exist different forms of interreligious dialogue. It may be useful to recall those mentioned by the 1984 document of the Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue(17). It spoke of four forms, without claiming to establish among them any order of priority:

**a) The dialogue of life, where people strive to live in an open and neighbourly spirit, sharing their joys and sorrows, their human problems and preoccupations.
**
b) The dialogue of action, in which Christians and others collaborate for the integral development and liberation of people.

c) The dialogue of theological exchange, where specialists seek to deepen their understanding of their respective religious heritages, and to appreciate each other’s spiritual values.

d) The dialogue of religious experience, where persons, rooted in their own religious traditions, share their spiritual riches, for instance with regard to prayer and contemplation, faith and ways of searching for God or the Absolute.

(DIALOGUE AND PROCLAMATION: Reflection And Orientations On Interreligious Dialogue
And The Proclamation Of The Gospel Of Jesus Christ )

(bold is mine)

Who is the prayer addressed to? [Or to be more correct -To whom is the prayer addressed?]

I would presume to God, as each participant understands Him.

 

[YoungTradCath]

Why not? It is outside of a liturgical service. Without getting into syncretism, there are some common truths and basic human desires expressed by almost all religions’ prayers. Peace is one of them; part of inter-religious dialogue (something promoted at the highest levels of the Vatican BTW), is shared experience in areas that are common, without getting into doctrinal differences.

Fear of others, and circling the wagons, is part of the problem, not part of the solution.

Pontifical Council for Interreligious Dialogue

(DIALOGUE AND PROCLAMATION: Reflection And Orientations On Interreligious Dialogue
And The Proclamation Of The Gospel Of Jesus Christ )

(bold is mine)

I would presume to God, as each participant understands Him.

Well the OP never said whether these prayers will be said outside or within the context of a mass.

 

[odile53]

I don’t know if you recall this interdenominational prayer service a few days after the actual attacks of 9/11 in the Washington National Cathedral (Episcopal.) It was not liturgy, it was an interfaith prayer service, which I felt was very appropriate at the time. The Catholic Archbishop of Washington was one of the participants.

nationalcathedral.org/galleries/PresPrayer2001.shtml

 

[MrBibbins]

I Just read the pastoral letter in our weekly bulletin and it does sound like, at least in the article, the prayers will be said during the Mass. Here is the portion of the letter that addresses the prayers,

Most importantly we pray for peace in our world, for an end to terrorism of any kind, for understanding, tolerance and reconciliation. Starting on Sunday with the Prayer of St. Francis and continuing for the next ten days, we will pray a different prayer every day at Mass, each from different religious traditions, all seeking and calling for peace. We will continue this for ten days not only to mark ten years but also to take us to September 21st, the United Nations International Day of Peace. This day was established by a resolution of the United Nations in 1981 to coincide with the opening of the general assembly. It provides an opportunity for individuals, organizations and nations to create practical acts of peace on a shared date. This year, inspired by the Interfaith Peace Project in the Bay Area, I am asking that each of us in the parish pray for peace and choose one action of peace on September 11th and each day for ten days following. As the project notes, “Perhaps if we are able to to practice peace in everything we do for eleven days, we may be able to practice peace in our lives day by day forever”.

As long as these prayers are reserved until the Mass has ended I see no problem with it, but as I’m new to the Church and still learning her teachings I wonder what the general feeling is towards this.

Thank you for all the answers thus far!