Leading the intercessions

This is not a full introduction to this ministry (if you take part in this there will be a workshop you can attend). Rather, this page covers a few reminders of practicalities, along with pointers to / information about some resources.

General information

Structure and theme

Some like to write their own intercessions from scratch; many of us to a greater or lesser extent use resources to aid us.

If you are going to write them yourself you should remember that whilst sometimes referred to as "the prayers", this slot is for intercession i.e. praying for the needs of others, though this may arise out of thanksgiving. The prayers may then contain some thanksgiving but as this is not what this slot is for it should not be the major element.

They are normally broadly based, expressing a concern for the whole of God’s world and the ministry of the whole Church, not just your own concerns.

Some useful suggestions can be found on this website.

When there is a Baptism you will be asked to keep the intercessions short; also remember that the 3^rd Sunday of the month is a Family Eucharist and you may wish to keep the prayers simple.

The usual sequence is

The prayers usually include these concerns and may follow this sequence:

The Church of Christ
Creation, human society, the Sovereign and those in authority
The local community
Those who suffer
The communion of saints

- they need not conform to this, though, nor include every concern.

The Supplementary Texts of Common Worship provide a number of Collects and other endings to conclude intercession. In some Churches a priest may say both the opening invitation and concluding words; at St. Mary's they will usually say "let us pray" - the rest is up to you.

The response

You will probably wish to break the prayers up with a response at the end of each section. At the start say

"the response to "xxxx" " is "yyy". "xxxx" "

- which will be followed by all joining in "yyy". A short pause at the end of each section to help all reflect on the prayers also acts as a signal that the response is about to come.

If you are not using one of the two well known responses:
Lord, in your mercy - hear our prayer or
Lord, hear us - Lord, graciously hear us
then do respond yourself to remind everyone of the response.

"We pray especially for ..."

Cycles of prayer

There are several "cycles of prayer" which you may wish to check:

The Parish has a booklet working through the alphabet each month, and praying for individuals on each day.
The Deanery sometimes issues a cycle of prayer for the Deanery
The Diocese - the topics for each day of a month are also in Sarum Link.
You may also wish to chekc the Diocesan website for the latest prayer requests for our the Church in the Sudan, with which our Diocese has a link.
The Diocesan website also has pages about / prayers for the other areas we are linked with - Latvia and Evereux
The Anglican Communion

Some of this will be available on the prayer desk in the Good Shepherd Chapel - if you are using the Parish booklet it may be a good idea to check the Chapel copy which is likely to have updates written in that your own copy won't have.

The Church's season

The seasons and readings often suggest particular topics - the books and online resources described below will take these into account. Do try to check what lessons we are having, though; only one at Family Service (3rd Sunday of the month) or at Baptisms - and if you are using a theme or phrase from the one we don't have it may sound slightly strange.

The news

The news - local, national and international may suggest special subjects. It is a good idea to make sure you check the news shortly before leading the intercessions in case there is anything you need to take into account.

The Church of England website has some prayers which can include special prayers for certain situations / events.

Local events

Remember to think about the local community - children beginning a new school year, or the Gillingham Festival, etc. (as well of course as events in which St. Mary's is involved).

Requests

The prayer desk in the Good Shepherd Chapel has on it a small blue book containing special subjects for prayer - you may wish to read out the names of the sick and the recently departed in the appropriate places ("Those who suffer" and "the communion of saints" respectively in the sequence shown above.)

The LPA welcomer may receive special requests from those coming into church; be prepared to be asked by them to include someone in the prayers.

Traidcraft

Traidcraft provide a list of areas for prayer for their work, spread through the year.

Forms of intercession

Several forms of intercession are provided in Common Worship; but many other suitable forms are available in books or online.

Books

A list of books with intercessions currently available in bookshops can be found on the Church House Bookshop website: enter "intercessions" as a keyword.

St. Mary's library has a few books of intercessions.

Online materials

The Text this Week website has material for each Sunday and Holy Day. show / hide more about this site

When you enter the site you will just see a date, occasion e.g. "Easter 2" and a "link of the week". Click on the occasion - e.g. "Easter 2" and look for the section called "Prayers, Prefaces, Litanies, etc". You may also find some of the reflections and other material help you think about what to include in the prayers.

The material is mainly Anglican - but American, Lutheran and Roman Catholic. Mostly the readings are the same but you can check ours against those shown at the top of the page or with a theme used in a given set of intercessions.

This site also covers the main festivals and Holy Days. If you are looking well in advance or there is a festival just before the home page may show a different occasion - you can then select from the side menu.

Some other sites with material are listed below - they are written for other situations, so are often not appropriate to use completely, but contain some material and ideas that can be used / adapted: