The Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem has published a prayer of preparation for Pope Benedict XVI’s trip to Jerusalem May 8-15, during which he will visit Bethlehem, Nazareth, Jerusalem and Jordan.

According to the L’Osservatore Romano, the prayer implores the Lord for “a time of renewal and particular grace” for this region afflicted by conflict. The prayer will be translated into seven languages: Italian, Arabic, Hebrew, English, French, Polish and Portuguese.

The text of the prayer is:

“Lord Jesus, history has always had in the Successor of Peter a guide and a pastor who has shown the way to fulfilling the will of the God the Father. We entrust to you these months of preparation for the visit of our Pope Benedict. Give us your Holy Spirit that we might know how to prepare ourselves in prayer so that this visit may be a time of renewal and particular grace for the Holy Land.”

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