Mental Illness Awareness Week
Building Community, Taking Action
( October 5-11, 2008 )
National Day of Prayer
for
Mental Illness Recovery and Understanding
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
The NCPD Council on Mental Illness, an outreach program of the National Catholic Partnership on Disability (NCPD) is encouraging Catholic observance of the National Day of Prayer for Mental Illness Recovery and Understanding on October 7, 2008. This national effort is designed to promote pastoral sensitivity to, and inclusion of, individuals and their family members who are affected by mental illness. It is an opportunity for dioceses and parishes to raise awareness about this important issue, to educate Catholics about mental illness, and to help reduce the unfortunate stigma often associated with mental illness.
Click here for a press release describing the history of this event.
Resources for observing these days of prayer:
NCPD Council on Mental Illness hosts Web seminar during Mental Illness Awareness Week
Valuable resources available through the
National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, click here.
Sample petitions to be included in the Prayers of the Faithful or as a Litany:
For persons with a mental illness, and their families that they may find effective treatment for their disease and understanding and acceptance in society, we pray to the Lord.
For our elected officials to come to an understanding of the need for increased funding for mental health care, we pray to the Lord.
For people who live on the streets without homes or hope, we pray to the Lord.
For families who strive to understand and help their loved ones with mental illness, we pray to the Lord.
For people with mental illness who are confined in jails and prisons, we pray to the Lord.
That the darkness of stigma, labels, exclusion and marginalization might be dispelled by the light of greater understanding, acceptance and respect for the dignity of every person, we pray to the Lord.
In thanksgiving for the compassion and dedication of mental health professionals and those who provide care, and for new discoveries in brain research, we pray to the Lord.
For each of us to reach out with support as we form a caring community, we pray to the Lord.
Link to sample bulletin articles
Link to NCPD Council on Mental Illness home page
|
