…Learning about the sign of the cross should lead to further inquisitiveness about prayer. Am I praying correctly? Enough? When and how often should I pray? Does God need me to pray to Him?
Catholics are called to pray. Pray often, and often pray together. So why talk to God and how do we do it? What do we get out of it? What does God get out of it? How often should we pray? Should we say prayers or just speak conversationally? Let’s take a step-by-step approach to praying in the Catholic faith, and keep in mind three things: 1) what is most important is to make the time, 2) the best way to start praying is probably different than what you might instinctively think, and 3) it is not as strict and structured as you would imagine.
How To Start a Prayer Life
Let’s first answer the question of whether God “needs” us to pray. Of course, the answer is “no”, but there is more to think about here. God needs nothing from us. That is the most beautiful thing about creation and a lesson to think about in our lives. Because God didn’t need creation, the sheer act of creating out of Love is clear. That is also how grace works. Think of two examples of this… the loaves and fishes. Remember a small detail at the start of that story- they had fives loaves and two fishes and Jesus said “bring them to me”. Why include that detail? It is a lesson in grace for us. For when you give grace (which is its only nature… to be given), you receive back much, much more in return. The other example is when we present the sacrifices of bread and wine to the altar at Mass. Does God need that to make the Eucharist work? No, but that is how grace works. We give and we get back far more. God doesn’t need us to pray, this is for us. But, if we want to receive grace, we have to give, give, give.
So understanding how grace works answers a few of the key questions: God doesn’t need us to pray and what we get out of it is grace, among other things. Next, up is the question of how do we know if God wants us to pray.
Does God Want Us To Pray
Jesus, who is God, not only had a lot to say about prayer, but he also prayed in many ways. To start, let’s look at His explicit instructions from Matthew:
When you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, who love to stand and pray in the synagogues and on street corners so that others may see them. Amen, I say to you, they have received their reward.
But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door, and pray to your Father in secret. And your Father who sees in secret will repay you.
In praying, do not babble like the pagans, who think that they will be heard because of their many words.
Do not be like them. Your Father knows what you need before you ask him.
Matthew 6:5-8
This has to be understood as His instruction on your structured, daily prayer life and not an absolute literal set of strict rules stating that you have only prayed alone. If you read it like that, He Himself would be violating His own rules as He prayed around others often. Like many parts of the Gospels, this is a rebuke of the showy, empty praying of many of the religious leaders of the day that seem to be always saying “look at me” (as common a problem today as was then). The point here that he is making is to engage in true, honest, deeply felt prayer.
How To Pray
Far more important than “how” to pray is just simply making the time. Make the time. If you are being open and honest with God, guess what, you are praying correctly. But you have to make the time.
If you want some wisdom on how to get started with prayer, we will visit a few Saints for their advice. However, there is an overriding theme of advice from Jesus down through the ages from the Acts of the Apostles and the Epistles to the Church Fathers to the Saints through the years- be still. Christianity is not a religion of us going out to find wisdom or find God. It is about God coming to us. With prayer, you are not dialing up a number to reach God. He has been here the whole time. God became man. He came to us. When you pray, you are not reaching out actually, you are simply noticing what was there the whole time.
This idea of being “still” to start prayer perhaps is understated. Our minds in this day and age simply are always running at full speed. Perhaps the greatest treatise on prayer in the Catholic faith is St. Francis de Sales’ book “The Introduction to the Devout Life” which says to start prayer by 1) Placing yourself in the presence of God, and 2) Entreat Him to inspire you.” Here are two steps we need before that for modern times: 1) Shut up, Stop Thinking! 2) Ok, now, breathe, breathe, breathe, relax. Prayer is not you picking up the phone and calling God, it is you finally picking up the incoming call.
Taking elements of catechism, tradition, and some of the teachings of the Saints, here is a simple guide to saying a prayer:
- Make the sign of the cross (click the link first to read up on the power of this action)
- Quiet yourself. Put yourself in the presence of God.
- Put in your mind that you only exist because of God’s love. That is the only reason you “are”.
- Now, remember that all of your faults are your own. God wants you to be perfect.
- Say your prayer or speak to God openly and honestly.
- Make the sign of the cross.
- Say “Amen”, and remember it means “May it be so”.
Formal Prayer vs. Informal
When you set up a daily routine for prayer, let’s say every morning and every evening, it is very important to do it with reverence and structure. This is not an arbitrary rule, but something to help you get the most out of prayer. You have to give God your full attention. This means having a set posture, keeping your mind totally focused on praying, and even learning to breathe properly is common practice. Now, this is for formal prayer. You can also pray out of the blue throughout the day, and this is an informal prayer. Here is a short story to show the difference:
Many years ago a group of seminarians were gathered and their Novice Master instructed them, “Now remember, you are not allowed to chew gum while you are praying.”
One of the seminarians asked, “But, Father, is it okay to pray while we’re chewing gum?”
“Of course,” the Novice Master replied, leaving them wondering just how to follow these contradictory instructions.
The first question dealt with formal prayer, and the second with informal prayer. You might be having a tough day and starting to have nasty thoughts, and you might just do a quick prayer to ask Jesus to give you strength at that moment. This is a wonderful habit to learn and with this type of praying you to say or think as the day goes on. Now, one is not the substitute for the other. Both formal and informal prayer have their place.
When and How Often To Pray
You can’t pray enough. But, you can’t get to a point where you have a rich prayer life if you don’t learn to crawl before you walk. If you dive in too strongly, you will find your mind drifting and you will end up just saying prayers in a poor state of mind. Don’t confuse this with going into a deeper state of devotion while saying prayers. That is a wonderful thing. But it should be about drawing closer to God and not daydreaming about things of the world.
Catholics are required according to our station in life. That means there are reasonable expectations put upon us for making the time to pray. However, there are some basics from where to start in terms of how and when to pray.
If you can only find the time at first to pray once a day, do it in the morning. As soon as you can (and are of sound mind) in the morning, pray by dedicating your day to Jesus. State that your words and your deeds and your thoughts will be for Him. Next, pray about the blessings in your life. Finally, pray your petitions for the day… this can be anything from prayers for a sick friend, for the country, etc.
Next, try to start by saying the rosary once a week. Once you start saying the rosary, you will only increase how often you say it. Saying the rosary daily is ideal. It will clear your mind and your heart and will change your life.
Get to Mass! This probably should have been stated first, but sometimes people need to get into a prayerful life before they are ready to make this step. Mass is the most important thing you can do as a Catholic.
As you progress in your life, consider doing a Holy Hour. Jesus asked for his friends to just be with him for an hour as he entered into His Passion.
Go to “Adoration” at your local Church. This is highly underrated. Just sit in the presence of the Holy Sacrament.
Finding a good mix of “vocal” and “meditative” prayer is a way to find balance in your prayer life. Vocal prayer includes saying the Rosary out loud, praying at Mass with others, or saying Grace before a meal. Meditative prayer would be talking to God when you first wake up and dedicating your day to God, but in your own words in your thoughts. You might want to start with a meditative prayer in the morning, a vocal prayer in the evening, let’s say the Hail Mary or Our Father or even the Rosary, and then communal prayer which is a mixture of vocal and meditative when at Mass.
What is covered in this topic is establishing a prayerful life. The more you pray the better, but you want to grow into it. To take the next steps, you may want to consider saying the Daily Office.
Basic Catholic Prayers to Know
Our Father (see also the topic on the Our Father)
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,
and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us;
and lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil.
Amen.
Hail Mary (see also the topic on the Hail Mary)
Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
Glory Be (Doxology)
Glory be to the Father
and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit,
as it was in the beginning
is now, and ever shall be
world without end.
Amen.
Morning Offering
O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary,
I offer you my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day
for all the intentions of your Sacred Heart,
in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world,
for the salvation of souls, the reparation for sins, the reunion of all Christians,
and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father this month.
Amen
Prayer to Your Guardian Angel
Angel of God, my guardian dear,
to whom God’s love commits me here,
ever this day be at my side,
to light and guard, to rule and guide.
Amen.
Nicene Creed (see also the Topic on the Creed)
I believe in one God,
the Father almighty,
maker of heaven and earth,
of all things visible and invisible.
I believe in one Lord Jesus Christ,
the Only Begotten Son of God,
born of the Father before all ages.
God from God, Light from Light,
true God from true God,
begotten, not made, consubstantial with the Father;
through him all things were made.
For us men and for our salvation
he came down from heaven,
and by the Holy Spirit was incarnate of the Virgin Mary,
and became man.
For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate,
he suffered death and was buried,
and rose again on the third day
in accordance with the Scriptures.
He ascended into heaven
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again in glory
to judge the living and the dead
and his kingdom will have no end.
I believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life,
who proceeds from the Father and the Son,
who with the Father and the Son is adored and glorified,
who has spoken through the prophets.
I believe in one, holy, catholic and apostolic Church.
I confess one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins
and I look forward to the resurrection of the dead
and the life of the world to come.
Amen.
Apostles’ Creed (see also the Topic on the Creed)
I believe in God,
the Father almighty,
Creator of heaven and earth,
and in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the Virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried;
he descended into hell;
on the third day he rose again from the dead;
he ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty;
from there he will come to judge the living and the dead.
I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and life everlasting.
Amen.
Act of Contrition
O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because of thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, who art all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin. Amen.
(A traditional version)
or:
My God,
I am sorry for my sins with all my heart.
In choosing to do wrong
and failing to do good,
I have sinned against you
whom I should love above all things.
I firmly intend, with your help,
to do penance,
to sin no more,
and to avoid whatever leads me to sin.
Our Savior Jesus Christ suffered and died for us.
In his name, my God, have mercy.
(from the Rite of Penance)
or:
Lord Jesus, Son of God,
have mercy on me, a sinner.
(from the Rite of Penance)
The Confiteor (I Confess)
I confess to almighty God
and to you, my brothers and sisters,
that I have greatly sinned
in my thoughts and in my words,
in what I have done,
and in what I have failed to do;
through my fault, through my fault,
through my most grievous fault;
therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin,
all the Angels and Saints,
and you, my brothers and sisters,
to pray for me to the Lord our God.
Amen.
Angelus
V. The Angel of the Lord declared unto Mary.
R. And she conceived of the Holy Spirit.
Hail, Mary, full of grace,
the Lord is with thee.
Blessed art thou among women
and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God,
pray for us sinners,
now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.
V. Behold the handmaid of the Lord.
R. Be it done unto me according to thy word.
Hail Mary…
V. And the Word was made flesh.
R. And dwelt among us.
Hail Mary…
Let us pray:
Pour forth, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy grace into our hearts; that we, to whom the Incarnation of Christ, thy Son, was made known by the message of an angel, may by his Passion and Cross be brought to the glory of his Resurrection. Through the same Christ, our Lord.
Amen.
Hail, Holy Queen (The Salve Regina)
Hail, Holy Queen, Mother of Mercy,
our life, our sweetness and our hope.
To thee do we cry,
poor banished children of Eve.
To thee do we send up our sighs,
mourning and weeping in this valley of tears.
Turn then, most gracious advocate,
thine eyes of mercy toward us,
and after this our exile
show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus.
O clement, O loving,
O sweet Virgin Mary.
Grace Before Meals
Bless us, O Lord, and these Thy gifts, which we are about to receive from Thy bounty, through Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Next up… the prayer that was given to us directly by Jesus- The Lord’s Prayer. Let’s take a detailed look at this prayer line by line.
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Next Topic >> The Lord’s Prayer (Our Father / Pater Noster)
Synopsis
Catholics should have a rich prayer life. But it is not something you should just dive into head first. It is important to take some time to develop a prayer life that truly puts you in an encounter with God. This means that you should thoroughly consider how and when you pray. Prayer life grows. It cannot be forced. So as the most important aspect of prayer is simply making the time, the next more important aspect is letting your prayer life grow properly.
Suggested Reading
Note: These three Catholic classics should be on every Catholic’s bookshelf.
“An Introduction to the Devout Life” by St. Francis de Sales
“The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius: or Manresa” by St. Ignatius of Loyola
“Dark Night of the Soul” by St. John of the Cross
Top Image
The Flemish Daniel Seghers, a student of Jan Brueghel the Elder, is credited with creating the distinct category of religious flower still-lifes. The origin of this, though, can be found in Rubens’ Madonna in Floral Wreath (with the collaboration of Jan Brueghel the Elder). This depicts a picture inside a picture with a definite religious significance, surrounded by cherubs and flowers.
Rubens, unlike Seghers, did not use Mary and Jesus as historical figures or visual artifacts. Yet, despite the fact that the motif of an image within a picture would have been perfectly suited for illusionist stylization, he instead preferred to convey the sense that they were physically present.