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Catholic Gateway Course

Catholic Gateway Course. Ss. Mary & Joseph Church – Thursday, November 19, 2009 – Week 6. Catholic Prayer and Spirituality. What is prayer? What is spirituality? What are different ways that Catholic pray? What are some of the different kinds or schools of spirituality?. What is Prayer?.

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Catholic Gateway Course

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  1. Catholic Gateway Course Ss. Mary & Joseph Church – Thursday, November 19, 2009 – Week 6

  2. Catholic Prayer and Spirituality • What is prayer? What is spirituality? • What are different ways that Catholic pray? • What are some of the different kinds or schools of spirituality?

  3. What is Prayer? • 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 the Holy Spirit who dwells in their hearts. (CCCC #534)

  4. Different Types of Prayer Liturgical Personal Group Devotional

  5. Different Types of Prayer • These are not exclusive groupings, but simply a presentation of the wide palate of prayer activities and prayer styles. • Think of approaching this palate as one would try to have a balanced diet of food • All of these prayer types complement one another • Something may be missing in the spiritual life if one or more ‘prayer groups’ are missing.

  6. Personal Prayer But you, when you pray, enter into your closet, and when you have shut your door, pray to your Father which is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you openly. Matthew 6:6 • Prayer can take place in any place, at any time, using any words or none at all. • Four Basic Types of Prayer • Praise/Adoration • Sorrow/Contrition • Petition/Intercession • Thanksgiving • Trinitarian dimension: “to the Father, in Christ, through the Holy Spirit.” • Sovereignty of the Will of God

  7. Personal Prayer: Contemplative Prayer Hans Urs von Balthasar… Das Betrachtende Gebet • Prayer is dialogue in God’s language • God speaks first, we try to make sense of it as God teaches us how to speak. • God’s Word is inexhaustible and eternally continues to be uttered, even as we resort to prayer in our exhaustion and perhaps find frustration. • “I” and “Thou”… contemplation as looking into the depths of the soul where God is found, BUT prayer is more than self-fulfillment. • Prayer presupposes the Word of God within us… Mary as model of receptivity leading to spiritual possession. • The role of the Church is to stir us up, keep us fresh and challenged when the spiritual life becomes familiar.

  8. Devotional Prayer • de votum (Latin): of or relating to a vow or the fulfillment of religious obligations • Often vocal form of prayer, often private, leads one into deeper reflection on the mysteries of the faith and paves the road for better practice of the other forms of prayer. • Done in communion with the rest of the Church, although often not explicitly so.

  9. Examples ofDevotional Prayer • The Rosary… a series of formal prayers reflecting on the life of Jesus and Mary • Litanies… a series of prayers of intercession based on the saints or the mysteries of God. • Novenas… prayer or series of formal prayer said over nine days (weeks, months, etc) • Sacramentals… objects used as reminders of the holy • Scripture Reading… reading and studying the bible for purposes of prayer and inspiration • Pilgrimages… travel to holy sites or shrines for purposes of prayer and inspiration • Practices… such as fasting, abstinence, mortification, etc.

  10. Devotional Prayer:The Rosary • The Rosary is a most popular Catholic devotion, arising out of history as a supplement (and sometimes alternative) to liturgical prayer. • Often attributed to St. Dominic, but his role was more one of being a champion of ‘revival’ than ‘invention’. • Usually found as 5 sets of 10 beads with a single large bead between the sets. Each bead represents a prayer. • Each set of beads is to be prayed with reflection on a particular mystery in the life of Christ or Mary.

  11. Group Prayer • Faith Sharing Groups • Cursillo, Koinonia, TEC, Legion of Mary, Altar Societies, St. Vincent DePaul societies, Dead Theologians Society, other local groups • Lay Orders/Apostolates • Third Order Franciscans/Dominicans/etc, Opus Dei, Regnum Christi, St. Vincent de Paul Society • Scripture Study/Prayer • Support Groups • Caritas Christi, 12 steps • Spiritual Direction “Where two or more are gathered in my name, there am I also.” Matthew 18:20

  12. Liturgical Prayer • Formal, public prayer of the Church • “Liturgy” from the Greek • leos = the people, public • ergon = work • Often misunderstood as “work of the people”, better understood as “public works” • Sacred Liturgy (Mass) as source and summit of Christian prayer.

  13. Liturgical Prayer • Sacred Liturgy – The Mass • Liturgy of the Hours • Celebration of the Sacraments • marriage, reconciliation, anointing, etc. • Blessings and Sacramentals • Instituted by the Church to sanctify different circumstances in life, to praise God and ask for his gifts. • Connects person/item/condition into the life and prayer of the entire Church

  14. Next Week: Christian Moral Reasoning

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