Oremus Pro Invicem

It used to be that in most places where people lived, they knew most of the people in the area, but sight if not by name.

This is no longer true. If you live in the United States, chances are good that you live in a suburb. You may know a few of the people who live on your street. If you have kids in the local schools, you probably know a number of their classmate’s parents. If you go to church, you know people there. But chances are excellent that there are hundreds of people who live within a few blocks of your house that you have never met and do not know at all.

It used to be that the most important thing people had in common was the community in which they lived. That’s what the word “community” means. But in our day, with increased population densities and the Internet, community has become largely non-geographic. You know a few people in your vicinity: people from your church, or your school. You know the people you work with, but many them commute long distances from their homes. They aren’t really locals, and you might not be either. You probably know lots of people on the Internet: some you’ve got real ties to—folks you used to go to school with, distant family members, and so on—but most are people who like the same movies, or the same genre of music, or the same kinds of books, or the religion, or the same politics. Birds of a feather flock together.

But your neighbors? Them you don’t know.

Jesus asks us, “If you do not love the brother whom you can see, how can you love the God whom you cannot see?” But what if you don’t know your brother because he stays in his house and you stay in yours? What if you have nothing in common beyond living a few blocks apart? How can you love your neighbor if you don’t know him?

How can you find him, so that you can know him?

As you walk down the street, or through the mall, or where ever, focus on the people you see, one at a time, and say the Oramus prayer for them.

While at the mall, spend some time sitting in the Food Court, or on a bench, or anywhere that people stream by. Focus on them, one at a time, and say the Oramus prayer for them.

If you have more time, sit and silently pray the Rosary for the people passing by.

So you’re walking down Main Street, or through the mall, or the grocery store.  You’re surrounded by people from your community, most of whom you don’t recall ever having seen before, and most of whom you might never see again.  These are your neighbors.  How do you pray for them?

Try this:

Lord, bless him (or her) and keep him and make your face to shine upon him, that he may know how much you love him. And have mercy on me. Amen.

The person will never know that you prayed for him. But you have taken a moment of your time and given it to him, and to Him.

You’ll never know the good that you do.