Advent with St. John Henry Newman
Reflections by Fr. Jason Smith, LC
I recently found out that each day of the week, someone is offering a Holy Hour for me—seven people in total. It’s humbling, and deeply moving, to know that at any given hour, somewhere, someone is praying for me. Their hidden intercession steadies me more than they know.
St. John Henry Newman writes: “To make professions is to play with edged tools… ‘By thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.’ … This is a day of individual profession… responsibility, and recompense.”
It is easy to underestimate the gravity of our words and the quiet power of our prayers. But both carry eternal weight, shaping the narrative of our life and the lives of others.
Praying for others is one of the greatest acts of charity we can make. It is love at work in secret, unseen yet mighty. When someone prays for us, they hold us together when our own strength falters; their faith carries us further than perhaps we could walk alone.
To know you are being prayed for is to glimpse the mercy of God in real time. It is also a glimpse of heaven itself—where the angels and saints intercede for us.
Let us pray for others as we say: “Come, Lord Jesus.”
Reflect: How would your prayer life look different if you fully grasped the power of intercessory prayer? Who might God be calling you to pray for in these last days of Advent?
In this Advent series, Fr. Jason Smith draws from his personal experiences and St. John Henry Newman’s own Advent sermons, connecting themes like reverence, awe, and intimately encountering Christ in the simplicity and stillness of ordinary life. Pray with us on The Regnum Christi App, sign up to have each day’s reflection delivered to your inbox every morning, or follow the RC Spirituality Center on Instagram and Facebook.
Ordained in 2006, Fr. Jason has served as a Legionary priest throughout the US, primarily in New York and Michigan. His newest role has called him south, as the superior of the Houston community of the Legionaries of Christ.
