Bishop of Springfield, Illinois, asks for Prayer to St Michael to be said publicly after Mass

Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, Bishop of Springfield in Illinois, has asked that prayer cards with the Prayer to St Michael be placed in the pews of every church and that the prayer be said publicly at the end of every Mass before the recessional hymn.

This is a very powerful prayer that acknowledges that we live in a permanent state of battle with the devil. Without this reminder, we lose the desire to be vigilant and become complacent. That's just at the psychological level. And at the spiritual level, unless we pray for help, we simply cannot hope to win the battle, in our personal lives, in the battle Satan wages against the Church, and in society.

One of Satan’s greatest assets is his camouflage, the belief that he doesn’t exist. Disbelief in Satan and the forces of evil leave us unable to resist them. That is why it is good to remember the Prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel. We need to remember that each time we pray we work to defeat our real enemies, not each other, but rather the devil and his evil spirits...

While Jesus Christ's death and resurrection have restored the gifts of heavenly treasures for us, we also have to recognize that the devil, Satan, is real, and he will do everything in his power to deflect us from our goal, which is eternal life with Christ in His kingdom...

God permits us to be tempted by the devil but gives us the grace to resist him through prayer in our daily lives. We can and should say the prayer to Saint Michael the Archangel at church with the assembly or on our own during the day for spiritual protection for ourselves and for others.

Great signs of episcopal leadership from another US bishop. More information at Fr Daren Zehnle, Servant and Steward.