TheGeneral Intercessions orUniversal Prayer orPrayer of the Faithful are a series of prayers which form part of the liturgy in theCatholic,Lutheran,Anglican,Methodist and otherWestern Liturgical Churches. Such formulae are found in the oldest ofDivine Liturgy forms in theGreek church, such as theliturgy of Saint John Chrysostom, as well as in theCatholic liturgies of the earlyGallican Rite,[1] and pre-Reformation England.
The Christian custom of offering such prayers, perhaps in line withJewish tradition, is rooted in Scripture:
First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers, intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all men, for kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way. This is good, and it is acceptable in the sight of God our Saviour, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, the testimony to which was borne at the proper time.
The practice is witnessed to byJustin Martyr andAugustine of Hippo, and by the fourth century, theRoman Rite had a set of nine Solemn Prayers of Intercession of the kind now preserved only onGood Friday at the same point in theliturgy at which the ordinary General Intercessions are prayed.[2]
The General Intercessions dropped out of use, leaving only the introductory greeting "Dominus vobiscum" and the invitation "Oremus" (followed by no particular prayer) which, in theTridentine Mass, the priest said when about to begin the Offertory. They were one of the elements that theSecond Vatican Council referred to when decreeing inSacrosanctum Concilium, theConstitution on the Sacred Liturgy, that "other parts which suffered loss through accidents of history are to be restored to the vigour they had in the days of the holy Fathers, as may seem useful or necessary".[3] Specifically, theConstitution called for "the common prayer" or "the prayer of the faithful" to be restored:
By this prayer, in which the people are to take part, intercession will be made for holy Church, for thecivil authorities, for those oppressed by various needs, for all mankind, and for thesalvation of the entire world.[4]
In theAmbrosian Rite, the prayer of the faithful had been in vigour for some occasions also before the Second Vatican Council, with the Ambrosian chant for the offertoryDicamus omnes.
This prayer is said at the conclusion of the Liturgy of the Word or Mass of the Catechumens (the older term). TheGeneral Instruction of the Roman Missal states:
In the General Intercessions or the Prayer of the Faithful, the people respond in a certain way to the word of God which they have welcomed in faith and, exercising the office of their baptismal priesthood, offer prayers to God for the salvation of all. It is fitting that such a prayer be included, as a rule, in Masses celebrated with a congregation, so that petitions will be offered for the holy Church, for civil authorities, for those weighed down by various needs, for all men and women, and for the salvation of the whole world.[5]
The prayer is introduced by the celebrating priest. A deacon, another member of the congregation, or the priest himself recites a number of intentions, and the people respond with a short invocation such as "Lord, hear our prayer." The prayer is concluded with a final oration by the priest and all responding "Amen".[6][7]
Abidding-prayer (Old English:biddan, "to pray", cf.German:beten) is the formula ofprayer, or exhortation to prayer, said during worship in churches of theAnglican Communion. It occurs during the liturgy of the word, following thesermon.
The form varies, but the characteristic feature is that the minister tells the people what to pray for. For example, the form for the bidding-prayer in the1662Book of Common Prayer begins, "Let us pray for the whole state of Christ's Church militant here in earth" (although this is an adaption of the formerCanon of the Catholic Mass).[8] The bidding-prayer is an informalintercessory prayer, covering a wide variety of concerns such as the church, the state, the living and the dead, and public and private necessities. In England in the 16th century, it took the form of a direction to the people what to remember intelling their beads. In the course of time, the wordbid, in the sense ofpray, became obsolete and was confused withbid in the sense ofcommand (fromOld English:beodan, 'to offer, present', and hence 'to announce, or command'; cf.German:bieten, 'to offer'gebieten, 'to command'). Hence, the termbidding-prayer evolved to mean, in practice, theexhortation to pray, instead of the prayer itself. A form of exhortation which preachers and ministers shall move the people to join with them in prayer is given in the 55th canon of theChurch of England (1603).[9]
The termsintercessory prayers andprayers of the people are also commonly used for bidding-prayers.[10][11] In keeping with Anglican custom, these are still said according to one or more Prayer Book templates,[12] but are generally designed in such a way that specific topical, seasonal, or cyclical petitions can be added. On occasion, the person leading the prayers will still introduce each petition with the phrase, "I bid your prayers for..."[12]
A bidding prayer is offered at the beginning of the Festival ofNine Lessons and Carols observed atKing's College,Cambridge University, onChristmas Eve; this prayer has been heard annually in radio broadcasts of the Festival since the 1930s. It is included in various Anglican and Methodist worship books and has been subtely, but importantly, revised several times in its history,[13][14] including to reflect the concerns raised by theCOVID-19 pandemic[15] and theGaza war.[16]
Lutheran church services also include "prayers of intercession" or "prayers of the people".
Similar sets of prayers are said in theLiturgy of the Hours after the canticles of theBenedictus and theMagnificat at Lauds and Vespers (Morning and Evening Prayer). Referred to as the Intercessions, they are similarly introduced by an introductory phrase, but end with the recitation of theLord's Prayer before the person presiding over the celebration recites the concluding prayer.
One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Bidding-prayer".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 3 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 918.74. A Bidding Prayer [To be used on special occasions. The Officiant may alter the form as desired.] 'Good Christian People, I bid your prayers for Christ's holy Catholic church'...
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