Prayer formulated by H.E. Mons. Claudio Gatti on 5th August 2008

The power of confession cancels sins and, through You, man is renewed and returns purified to the love of God. God the Holy Spirit, may truly enlighten our minds and open it to the knowledge of the Word of God, so that it may be light for our steps and for this reason we need to understand it in an ever deeper way. Only You, God the Holy Spirit, can give us the necessary light for the exact and fruitful understanding of the Word of God and let us pass from understanding to realization. It is not enough, even if important, to know the Word of God, it is necessary to put it into practice because only Your Word, God the Holy Spirit, is capable of transforming the hearts of men, therefore the Church and the whole world.

God the Holy Spirit, as the Father and the Son have shown so many times, I humbly ask you to show, give us the joy of listening to your thoughts. On the Silvi Marina seashore You have showed many times in the form of that white seagull, luminous and regal in moving and flying; we bowed our heads, we adored you, present in the form of a seagull, because you are God and before God man must worship and kneel.

God the Holy Spirit, let me tell you about myself for a moment. The promise that you would give me the gift of tongues is still in place. This gift will arrive, You said, when God decides, but let me use it for the good of souls and make sure that not even the smallest stain of pride or haughtiness is present in me; make me live, in profound and sincere humility, this great gift that you promised me and, certainly, at the time established by You, it will be given to me. I wish to use it for the good of my brothers, for an effective and transforming preaching, not because the words I speak come from my mind, but because they come from Your heart of life.

God the Holy Spirit, I entrust you the Church, which shows so many cracks that must be removed and fixed. The walls of the Church are crumbling, they need new reinforcements and the hearts of men are empty and thirsty for Your love. Really fill our hearts, enlighten our minds, give strength to our will, because each of us present here, and all those who are part of my community, of our Movement, all those who love the Eucharist, who love the Mother of the Eucharist, may receive from You, my God, the necessary help so as not to offend you anymore. Sin is the destruction of the relationship between God and man and we do not want to ruin this relationship, but strengthen it more and more, make it better and better, because by improving the relationship with God, the relationship with men improves as well. This has been understood by these two young people.

Thank you, my God, for listening to me. Like a son, humbly, confidently I wait for Your coming.

In the glory of Mary, assumed after her death and transfiguration, I was waiting for this moment to turn to you, dear Heavenly Mother, because it is sweet and beautiful to invoke your name, to say our prayers and to listen to what you were saying especially to Marisa and me for the last thirty-seven years. We can say, dear Mother in Heaven, that if we were to enclose everything you have told and taught us in books, those from all over the world would not be enough. John says the same about Jesus and I allow myself to say the same with regard to the abundant, important and wonderful letters of God that in all these years you have brought and given to us. Dear Mum, children always want to be close to their mother, but in our case it is the mother who is always close to their children, because you can be wherever we go; you accompany us, follow us, keep us company, help us, comfort us, encourage us and, if necessary, also make us feel the so-called maternal caresses, which are also important for spiritual growth.

Dear Heavenly Mother, you are waiting for us up there, but I know that the one who is working the hardest of all, for Marisa's triumphal entry into Heaven, is you; you are the director of everything and you are preparing everything with the collaboration of angels and saints. How beautiful that moment will be, how beautiful the meeting of the bride with the groom will be, how beautiful the meeting of the human victim with the divine victim will be. You will introduce little Marisa to your Son, who will embrace her and in front of all of Heaven will thank her for all the sufferings that during her life, so full of pain, she experienced for the love of your Son Jesus.

Mother of the Eucharist, Mother of the Church, the Church needs your maternal mantle protecting and defending her from contrary winds, from the storms men unleash against her. The Church needs your presence, to be brought higher and higher and we need your closeness to feel more peaceful, strong and secure in carrying out the mission that God has entrusted to each of us. Now, dear Mum, allow us to entrust yourself with an assignment: you, who can bring our profession of faith, our testimony of love, our commitment of fidelity to God the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, in such a way that, as this prayer began, so it ends in the remembrance, in the presence, in the grandiose help of God One and Triune, of God the Dad, of God the Brother and of God the Friend.

As you say to us: "Thank you for listening to me", I too take the liberty of saying to you: "Thank you for listening to us".

+ Claudio Gatti

Bishop ordained by God

Bishop of the Eucharist