Jul 19, 2023
O suffering shepherd
severely persecuted
for your work of evangelization,
you ever continued to preach the faith
and convert multitudes
despite all the tortures
the ravenous beasts of this earth
could muster;
a true apostle you proved to be,
martyred even as Christ’s Twelve –
how shall we find
a measure of your conviction,
of your persistence
in spreading the Gospel of the Lord?
Pray for us, blessed shepherd,
that we who are weak of will
and so fearful
of the slightest disturbance
to our comfort and ease
shall learn by God’s grace
to give our lives
as freely as you
in the service of man’s salvation.