At the request of Pope Francis, the Bishops of Ireland established a National Day of Prayer for survivors and victims of abuse. In 2019 the Irish Bishops introduced a Candle and Prayer of Atonement as part of this day. This year the Day of Prayer will take place on Friday 25th February 2022.

Prayer for Atonement.

Lord, forgive us our many sins.

We grieve and repent with all our hearts for having offended you, for our great failings and neglect of the young and vulnerable.

We place all of those who have been hurt by the Church in any way into your loving hands and under the protection of Our Blessed Mother.

Lord, bring peace to their broken lives and show us all the way out of darkness and into the light of your Word.

May we as the people of God be more fully human, more fully Christ-like and more fully your people, that we may see the errors of the past and go forward with renewed hope and faith in Christ and in our Church.

Amen.