Cardinal Burke Marks Golden Jubilee With Prayer for Pope Leo XIV| National Catholic Register

Marking his 50 years of priesthood, the prelate composed a prayer entrusting Pope Leo XIV to the Blessed Mother.

When, on June 29, 1975, I received the grace of ordination to the Holy Priesthood through the laying on of hands and the prayer of consecration of the Supreme Pontiff, His Holiness Pope St. Paul VI, I was profoundly aware of the sublime gift with its corresponding solemn duty — the indelible mark on my soul — thus entrusted to me: to act in the very Person of Christ, the Eternal High Priest, Head and Shepherd of the Church, at every time and in every place. The reverence and paternal devotion with which the Roman Pontiff ordained the 359 deacons assembled that day remain indelibly impressed upon my soul. Each passing year deepens my gratitude to Our Lord for the ineffable grace of the priestly vocation and the priestly mission conferred upon me through ordination by the Vicar of Christ on earth.

As I give glory to God for the ineffable grace of the priestly vocation, ordination and mission, I am mindful of the grave moment in which the Church finds herself today. In such times, it is ever more necessary that we turn with filial confidence to the Mother of God, the Virgin of Guadalupe, who leads us, without fail, into the All-Merciful Heart of her Divine Son. Just as she did at Tepeyac in 1531, so now Our Lady draws us out of the tumult of the world and into the truth, love and peace which her Son alone bestows.

Moved by this conviction, I discerned, last year, the great need to consecrate ourselves anew to Our Lady of Guadalupe. With the assistance of the Shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe at La Crosse, Wisconsin, I was privileged to lead a nine-month novena in preparation for a Solemn Act of Consecration to Our Lady of Guadalupe on her feast day, Dec. 12, 2024. I was deeply edified and encouraged by the response of so many of the faithful who joined in this fervent prayer for the conversion of our hearts, the Church and the world. Nearly 190,000 souls, praying in at least 13 languages, officially registered to be united in this daily petition. On the day of the Solemn Act of Consecration, despite severe winter weather conditions at the shrine in La Crosse, numerous pilgrims gathered to dedicate themselves to Our Lady under her maternal mantle. Thousands more joined in the Solemn Act of Consecration through the communications media. It remains my earnest prayer that many more will entrust themselves to her, confident that she continues to speak to us as she spoke to St. Juan Diego: “Am I not here, I who am your Mother?” (Nican Mopohua, No. 119).

At this moment of grace, I am also grateful for the blessings that Our Lady has obtained for the Church through the election of our new Holy Father, Pope Leo XIV. Trusting in her maternal intercession, I am confident that she will guide the Holy Father in the exercise of his mission as Vicar of Christ on earth and shepherd of the universal Church.

In the face of the grave challenges confronting the Church and the world, we must earnestly invoke Our Lady’s intercession for the Holy Father. With this intention, I have composed a prayer entrusting Pope Leo XIV to Our Lady of Guadalupe. It is my hope that this prayer will be recited widely among the faithful. To that end, it is available in 13 languages, both in written and audio — for certain languages — form, and as a prayer card that may be ordered through the shrine’s website: GuadalupeShrine.org/LeoXIV.

As I prepare to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of my ordination to the Holy Priesthood during this month of June, I ask you to join me in praying fervently for the Holy Father, that he may be given all the graces necessary to shepherd the Church faithfully and courageously in these most difficult times. May he be strengthened to ordain many holy priests who, in turn, will lead the faithful to deeper union with the Sacred Heart of Jesus, through the maternal Heart of Our Lady of Guadalupe.