Solemn consecration of the Emmanuel Community
To the Hearts of Jesus and Mary
O Heart of Jesus, God-with-us,
Model of compassion,
O Heart of Mary, Mother-close-to-us,
Model of adoration,
In the fire of the Holy Spirit,
We come today once more
To consecrate the Emmanuel Community to you.
We humbly ask forgiveness
For all our sins,
For our unfaithfulness
In our commitments to prayer,
For our failings in charity
– especially towards the most fragile –
For our excesses of pride,
Our desire for power,
Our over-hasty judgments,
Our hurtful accusations
And our lack of courage.
We ask forgiveness for the times
When we felt ourselves indispensable
In carrying out our responsibilities,
For those times
When we did not seek
To trust in ourselves,
To understand
And to forgive ourselves
And for those occasions
When we failed in our urgency
In proclaiming the Gospel.
In union with Pierre Goursat
And our Brothers and Sisters in Heaven,
We give thanks for the founding of our community,
For the human
And spiritual richness of its history,
Its growth among
So many peoples and cultures
And for those of us
Who have offered their lives in love,
Sometimes even to martyrdom.
We give thanks for the Church,
Our Mother,
For its Pastors
And for the caring friends
Who have crossed our path,
Who counselled us
And led us along the right paths.
Animated by the same faith,
We look forward to the future with hope,
Asking for a new spirit of boldness,
Of strength and of charity in mission,
So that a new generation
Of prophets may arise,
Open to new charisms
That may be given in future times.
O Jesus,
Obedient unto death,
O Mary,
Our Mother, always standing at the foot of the Cross,
A constant heart in adoration and in silence,
That listens to the Word and puts it into practice,
Docile to the gifts of the Holy Spirit
And that intercedes unceasingly,
A happy heart that marvels at and praises
The beauty of creation,
The greatness of providence,
And the work of salvation,
A heart that allows itself to be taught,
In order to give an account
Of its understanding of the faith,
A humble and poor heart,
Close to the poor and to all those who suffer,
Attentive to the joys, hopes,
Sadness and anxieties of everyone,
A heart without fear,
That does not indulge in nostalgia
And that takes the initiative in going out
To meet those who are far away,
A heart of flesh,
Open to a missionary language
Accessible to those who are seeking God
And to a language which also challenges
Those who do not seek Him,
A patient and merciful heart
Which acts accordingly
And which is involved in caring for others,
Accompanying them on all their paths,
However long and harsh they may be,
A heart that beats and resists
Mystifications,
Deceptive ideologies
And the totalitarian systems
And violence of this world,
A pure heart
That never lets itself be dragged
Into the slavery of lying money,
In search of ephemeral pleasures,
Or in the consumption of images
That divert us from true Love,
A generous and available heart,
Which testifies even by very small sacrifices
That loving is giving everything and giving oneself,
A heart that speaks to other hearts …
O Jesus,
Light of the world,
O Mary,
Mother of Beautiful Love,
We dedicate to you
All our past, present
And future missions :
We entrust to you
All our brothers involved
In Fidesco, the Rocher,
Love and Truth,
The Summer Sessions,
The Zacchaeus Courses,
The parishes and shrines
Entrusted to us
On all the continents,
The traveling missions,
The publications,
The evangelization and formation of young people,
The university world,
The Schools of Emmanuel
And SOS prayer etc.
We entrust to you with gratitude
All our benefactors,
Especially those
Who have already supported us so much.
We beg you to give us new human
And material resources
To accomplish our task.
We consecrate to you the lay people
In the Emmanuel Community,
Bless couples and families,
Give them the grace of faithfulness
And testimony to the joy of love,
Bless our children and our adolescents,
That by seeing how we live,
They may build their human and spiritual characters,
So that they can put out into the deep,
Bless those who endure the trial
Of an unchosen celibacy,
That they may find in community life
The joy of giving themselves fully and in peace,
Bless the young people
Who evangelize other young people !
Allow us to welcome them
For themselves
And not be an obstacle
To their missionary creativity,
Bless our older brothers and sisters,
Those who endure losing a spouse, sick people
And especially those
Who are in the Glorious Cross.
With Little Therese,
Always keep them to their missionary calling
And protect them from doubt !
Bless those committed
In celibacy for the Kingdom,
Give them the grace to bring souls to birth,
By leading a simple but passionate life.
O Jesus, the Good Shepherd,
O Mary, humble servant,
We consecrate to you
Each of our brother priests,
Deacons and seminarians,
As well as all future vocations.
Be their support
In their relationship with this world.
Protect them from the temptations
Of power and loneliness.
Keep them pure in mind and heart.
Strengthen their priesthood
In promoting the holiness
Of all the baptized.
Make them always more
Fiery braziers of Mercy,
Ministers radiant with the Eucharist
And men convinced
That the word without an example is useless.
Bless those amongst our priests
Who are called to the episcopate.
May the life of Adoration,
Compassion
And evangelisation,
Lived with their brothers and sisters
In Emmanuel,
Nourish today
Their mission as Shepherds.
We ask you
For the grace
To witness together relationships
Forever better adjusted
To the different states of life,
Supported by an authentic
Ecclesiology of Communion,
So that the world may receive
An outpouring of charity
That finds its source in the Trinity.
Bless our households,
Our Community meetings,
Our services
And our times of companionship,
That they may be
Open and welcoming
Allowing us to come out
Of our environments,
Our habits
And our inflexibilities.
O Heart of Jesus,
Splendour of the Father,
O Immaculate Heart of Mary,
Protect us from evil,
Keep away the one who divides,
Remove Satan
And all his works
From our Community forever !
Make us
Zealous servants of the Church,
Working towards its unity,
Resolutely confident
In its Magisterium
And faithful to Peter’s successor.
O Jesus and Mary,
We want to love you
With all our strength.
Our hearts must be set on fire !
Thus, we commit
And consecrate ourselves together,
Today
And forever, to your Hearts.
