Prayers and Vigils

  • Litany for a More Expansive Gratitude

    This prayer was composed by CMN staff for Thanksgiving in 2022. As many enter into a space of gratitude and share time with family, friends, and loved ones, this prayer acknowledges both the beauty and the pain of our human journey. It invites us to reflect on our interconnectedness — a value at the heart…

  • Respect Life Month: A Novena to End the Death Penalty

    This prayer resource features nine days of prayer that lift up the dignity of life and the Catholic call to end the death penalty. CMN prays this novena each year starting on October 1, which begins Respect Life Month, celebrated each October. These nine days of prayer prepare us for World Day Against the Death…

  • Oraciones de los Fieles por el Mes del Respeto por la Vida (Spanish)

    Estas oraciones de los fieles subrayan nuestro llamado a ser defensores de toda vida. Otras oraciones se pueden descargar en el sitio web de la Conferencia de Obispos Católicos de los Estados Unidos (USCCB). Click here to access this resource in English: Sample Prayers of the Faithful for Respect Life Month Haz clic para descargar…

  • A Prayer for the End of the Death Penalty

    By Molly Cahill, Assistant Editor, America Media. Originally published in America following Missouri’s execution of Ernest Johnson on Oct. 5, 2021. God who forgives,                                                                  …

  • “Heaven-Haven” Prayer Card

    The poem, “Heaven-Haven,” was written in 1864 by Gerard Manley Hopkins, a Jesuit priest. On July 17, 2020 it was recited by Dustin Lee Honken in the moments before his execution at the United States Penitentiary in Terre Haute, Indiana. Dustin’s execution was the third in an unprecedented spree ordered by the federal government that year. “I have…