The Pope prays for the whole world every day; today, he is asking the world to pray for him.
Three relatives of Pope Francis – including two infants – have died and one remains hospitalized after a car wreck in Argentine overnight.
According to a Vatican spokesman the Pope's 38-year-old nephew, Horacio Bergoglio Emanuel, was driving his family over a mountain road near the city of Cordoba when his Chevy Spin collided with the back of a truck.
Emanuel is the son of the Pontiff's late brother, Alberto Bergoglio.
The accident killed Emanuel's wife, Valeria Carmona, as well as their two children, ages two years old and eight months old, respectively.
The collision took place just as Pope Francis returned from a trip to South Korea, where he visited a cemetery dedicated to aborted children and strongly called the world to pursue moral truth.
Vatican spokesman the Reverend Federico Lombardi said that “the pope was informed about the tragic accident.”
“He is deeply pained,” he said.
The pope asks “all who share in his grief to unite with him in prayer.”
Please feel free to pray in your own words, in your own way, or to share some of these traditional prayer forms from different Christian traditions:
Catholic:
Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace. Amen.
Eastern Orthodox:
Grant rest, O Lord, where the blessed repose, to the souls of Thy servants who have fallen asleep, and may their memory be eternal. Amen.
Anglican:
O God, whose mercies cannot be numbered: accept out prayers on behalf of Thy servants. and grant them an entrance into the land of light and joy, in the fellowship of Thy saints; through Jesus Christ our Lord, Who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever. Amen.
