Daily Prayers for September 20
Paul Chong Hasang (1794? – 1839) and the Korean Martyrs
Paul Chong Hasang was the son of Augustine Chong Yakjong, one of Korea’s first converts to Christianity. Yakjong was martyred with Paul’s older brother, but Yakjong’s wife and their remaining children, including seven-year-old Paul, were spared. Paul became a government interpreter, which allowed him to travel and eventually meet a bishop in Beijing whom he entreated to send priests as missionaries to Korea. Years later, Paul learned Latin and theology, and he was about to be ordained when persecution broke out in 1839. Refusing to renounce his faith, Paul was bound to a cross on a cart. We remember him on this day, along with Andrew Kim Tae-gon, the first Korean-born Catholic priest, and 103 other Korean Christians who were martyred.
O Lord, let my soul rise up to meet you
as the day rises to meet the sun.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.
Come, let us bow down and bend the knee : let us kneel before the Lord our Maker.
Song “What Wondrous Love”
Listen, Lord, to our hearts’ cry : teach us how to pray.
Psalm 103:8 – 13
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy : slow to anger and of great kindness.
He will not always accuse us : nor will he keep his anger for ever.
He has not dealt with us according to our sins : nor rewarded us according to our wickedness.
For as the heavens are high above the earth : so is his mercy great upon those who fear him.
As far as the east is from the west : so far has he removed our sins from us.
As a father cares for his children : so does the Lord care for those who fear him.
Listen, Lord, to our hearts’ cry : teach us how to pray.
Hosea 14:1 – 9 Matthew 9:18 – 26
Listen, Lord, to our hearts’ cry : teach us how to pray.
When a judge told Paul Chong Hasang that the king had forbidden Christianity and that it was his duty as a loyal subject to renounce the faith, Paul replied, “I have told you that I am a Christian, and will be one until my death.”
Prayers for Others
Our Father
Thank you, Lord, for the witness of those who have counted their relationship with you more important than their very lives. Draw us to you in constant prayer, that we might grow in the intimacy that makes your passion ours. Amen.
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you : wherever he may send you;
may he guide you through the wilderness : protect you through the storm;
may he bring you home rejoicing : at the wonders he has shown you;
may he bring you home rejoicing : once again into our doors.
