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Only a few weeks after Pope Benedict XVI’s death, Brazilian bishop Dom Antônio Carlos Rossi Keller of the Diocese of Frederico Westphalen authorized a private prayer to seek the intercession of the deceased pontiff.
He explained his reasoning in an interview published on A12.
Only the Church can officially say whether Benedict XVI will be canonized or not, if he lived the Christian virtues in a heroic degree. So this is a filial prayer, it is not an official prayer of the Church, it is a prayer of the sons and daughters who knew the pope through his person, his writings, his teachings, and they realize that he is a man who loved God very much, loved the Church very much, served with generosity and dedication, to the point that when he realized he no longer had the strength to govern the Church, he humbly withdrew. For these reasons, I composed this prayer, naturally with the value of personal piety, and it should not be said publicly, only individually. I believe that many graces will be granted through the intercession of Benedict XVI.
The prayer is intended as a private prayer and does not guarantee that Benedict XVI would ever be canonized a saint.
However, it is among the first steps in the long road to canonization.
If the cause for his canonization was ever approved, Benedict XVI would join a long list of popes in the last century who have been canonized.
Below is Aleteia’s translation of the Brazilian bishop’s prayer. Any graces or miracles attributed to Benedict XVI’s intercession must be communicated to the Vicariate of Rome
Prayer to Benedict XVI
Almighty and ever-living God,
you inspired in the heart of your servant, Pope Benedict XVI,
the sincere desire to encounter you and proclaim you,
becoming a humble “Cooperator of Truth”
and offering himself as a servant for Christ and the Church.
Grant that I may love Christ’s Church
and follow in my life the eternal truths that it proclaims.
Deign, Lord, to glorify your servant Pope Benedict XVI,
and grant me through his intercession the grace that I now ask of you. Amen.
Pray the Our Father, the Hail Mary, and the Glory Be.
And today we celebrate...