Prayer: What's that? 

Why Pray?       

 Prayer is the expression of that intimate relationship with God to which we are all called.  We witness this expression when Jesus taught his disciples (and us) how to pray in Matthew’s gospel (6: 6-8)

“But when you pray, go to your room, close the door, and pray to your Father who is unseen. And your Father, who sees what you do in private, will reward you.

When you pray, do not use a lot of meaningless words, as the pagans do, who think that their gods will hear them because their prayers are long. Do not be like them. Your Father already knows what you need before you ask him.”

He then proceeded to teach his disciples the Lord’s Prayer.

In Pope Benedict XVI’s words: 

 'Prayer is the first form of witness that awakens vocation'.

The late and beloved Cardinal Hume wrote;                           

 'A very precious way to pray is just through silence. No thoughts or words, just wanting to be silent in the presence of God. Perhaps one of the high points in prayer is where two silences meet: God’s silence and our silence. No need for thoughts – and words get in the way'. (p3)

'There is one place where Christ wishes to rule, which he wishes to dominate, to make his own, to have no rivals, and that’s in our hearts. That’s where he wants to rule'. (p6)

'Pentecost is now. The Spirit is constantly at work in the Church and in the world'. (p13)

('In my own words' , Cardinal Basil Hume, Hodder & Stoughton,  1999)

Written 35 years ago by Mother Teresa but just as applicable today :

“I think today the world is upside-down, and there suffering is so much because there is so very little love in the homes and in family life. We have no time for our children, we have no time for each other; there is no time to enjoy each other, and I think if we could only bring back into our lives the life that Jesus, Mary and Joseph lived in Nazareth, I think that peace and joy would reign I the world.”…..

“We must make our homes centres of compassion and forgive endlessly.”

('A Gift for God', Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Compiled by Malcolm , 1975)

 In the chapter ‘Love to pray’ , this quote, although applying to her vocation to the sick, could equally to all our vocations in life:

“Sweetest Lord, make me appreciative of the dignity of my high vocation, and its many responsibilities. Never permit me to disgrace it by giving way to coldness, unkindness, or impatience.”

Elsewhere Mother wrote:

'Prayer makes your heart bigger, until it is capable of containing the gift of God himself.

The first requirement for prayer is silence. People of prayer are people of silence.

My secret is a very simple one: I pray. To pray to Christ is to love him.

Prayer is not simply asking for things. Prayer is putting oneself in the hands of God, at his disposition, and listening to his voice in the depths of our hearts'.

(In my own words, Mother Teresa, Hodder & Stoughton 1996, p5 -11)

Every day the Missionaries of Charity pray the following prayer which Cardinal Newman wrote:  (particularly appropriate at this time!)

Jesus, help me to spread

your fragrance wherever I am.

Fill my heart with your Spirit and your life.

Penetrate my being and take such a hold

of me that my life becomes a

 radiation of your own life.

Give your light through me and remain

 in me in such a way that every soul

I come in contact with can feel your

 presence in me.

May people not see me, but see you in me.

Remain in me, so that I shine with your light,

 and may others be illuminated by my light.

All light will come from you, Oh Jesus.

Not even the smallest ray of light

will be mine. You will illuminate

others through me.

Place on my lips your greatest praise,

 illuminating others around me.

May I preach you with actions more

than with words, with the example

of my actions, with the invisible light

of the love that comes from you

to my heart. AMEN

Prayer is the raising of one’s mind and heart to God, or the petition of good things from him in accord with his will. It is always the gift of God who comes to encounter man. Christian prayer is the personal and living relationship of the children of God with their Father who is infinitely good, with his Son Jesus Christ, and with the Holy Spirit who dwells in their hearts.

    Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church,

In simple terms we can turn to God in prayer wherever we are in our lives and encounter his presence. Even when we are at our lowest ebb and don’t know how or what to pray we can find peace in the silence around us. The best form of prayer is when we talk to God as to a friend, because after all he is our very best friend. When we have lost faith in all the people around us he is the one person who will never let us down. All we have to do is open up our hearts and let him in. A very helpful phrase to repeat is “Let go. Let God.”  In the middle of our troubles we can meditate on these words and feel their power fill our being. We trust in God and his power to help us face our struggles.

A child preparing for First Holy Communion said when asked about how to pray: “It’s easy just talk to Jesus wherever you are and whatever you are doing as you do with your friends.”

If we can keep this in mind we will find our burdens are lighter and less painful  and this prayer can be said in gratitude for God’s grace in our lives:

Sometimes I wonder what I might say if I were to meet you in person Lord. I think I might say "Thank You Lord" for always being there for me. I know with certainty there were times when you carried me, Lord, when it was through your strength I got through the dark times in my life.              (sacredspace.ie/dailyprayer   6/05/10)

(By Maria Etienne, May 2010)

 Types of Prayer  

The Church recognizes many different kinds of prayer, which can be grouped together under three general categories: vocal prayer, mental prayer, and contemplative prayer.  

Vocal prayer consists in reciting, either out loud or to oneself, the words of previously composed prayers, and aligning one's thoughts and desires to their meanings.  

Mental prayer combines personal reflection on a text from the Bible or from some other spiritual work with words of one's own, spoken to God in a heart-to-heart conversation. Mental prayer is also commonly known as Christian meditation.  

Contemplative prayer brings the soul into more direct contact with God, often without words or ideas; it is the prayer of being in the presence of God, loving him and knowing you are loved by him.  

Prayer has as its ultimate goal to praise God and to receive his grace, to deepen our personal communion with God and strengthen the Church. The time we spend in prayer should awaken in our hearts attitudes of adoration, wonder, gratitude, petition, and contrition.  

How to Pray  

We learn to pray by praying. The single most important factor in our life of prayer is our decision to make prayer an integral part of our life. If God matters to me, I will make time for prayer. If he doesn't, I won't.   

Prayer, conversation with God, should accompany us throughout our entire day. We should invite God to be a part of all our joys and sorrows, our struggles and concerns, our projects and decisions. He is a loving Father who longs to be "let in" to his children's lives.  

Nevertheless, the hectic pace of life requires us to set aside some time to be alone with God. We need to "tune in" to him frequently each day, so that our activities don't end up crowding him out, so that we recognize his action in our daily lives, and so we never impede the grace that he wants to give others through us.  

To maintain a healthy prayer life, and therefore a healthy relationship with God, experience has shown the following prayer commitments to be helpful:  

- Starting the day with a morning offering  

- Ending the day with a brief prayerful reflection on how the day went  

- Dedicating 10-15 minutes each day to mental prayer  

- Praying the Angelus  

- Praying a decade of the rosary sometime during the day 

- Regular confession (every month or every two weeks)  

- Going to Mass during the week in addition to Sundays  

- Praying before meals  

- Visiting Christ in the Eucharist  

No prayer book, however, can pray for you. God will never force his way into our lives; what kind of friend would? Each one of us has to decide, every day, how much God matters to us, and pray accordingly.

Some well established prayers through the ages (from the Archdiocese of Dublin):

Now, get started with:

'Pray as you Go' 

or

Praying Each Day