Tag: prayer
How to make a special consecration to St. Raphael the Archangel
The consecration prayer calls on St. Raphael’s assistance in the “struggle against the world, the flesh, and the devil.” Within the Catholic Church, there are various devotional traditions with which you can consecrate yourself and your family to God, invoking the special intercession of a saint. One of the most popular consecration prayers is that… Read More ›
St. Raphael, a powerful healer for anyone suffering right now
The archangel’s name in Hebrew means “Divine Healer.” Aleteia: Among the three archangels named in the Bible, St. Raphael is probably the least known. This is likely due to the fact that St. Raphael is only found in the Old Testament (and there only in a book not considered canonical by Jews or Protestant Christians),… Read More ›
Wondering about how to handle life at home? Contemplative monks and nuns have some advice
The coronavirus pandemic has forced us to slow down and spend more time together. Here are some ways we can make the most of it. Aleteia: As more and more people are spending more time at home during the current COVID-19 pandemic, especially since several U.S. governors are urging residents to not leave their homes… Read More ›
A forgotten prayer to St. Michael against the assaults of evil
The prayer dates to the 9th century and invokes the Archangel’s protection from the enemy of our souls. While many are familiar with the traditional “St. Michael Prayer” of Pope Leo XIII, it is not the only prayer of the Church to the Holy Archangel. In the Raccolta, a collection of prayers that dates to the early… Read More ›
Padre Pio’s Prayer After Communion
Stay with me, Lord, because I am weak and I need Your strength, that I may not fall so often. Stay with me, Lord, for You are my life, and without You, I am without meaning and hope. Stay with me, Lord, for You are my light, and without You, I am in darkness. Stay… Read More ›
“Go to Your Inner Room”
“The source of Christian joy is the certainty of being loved by God, loved personally by our Creator, by the one who holds the entire universe in his hands.” (Pope Benedict XVI, Address to the Rome Diocesan Congress, June 23, 2006) With these words, Pope Benedict placed an emphasis on an experience of love, an… Read More ›
New Year and thinking of the far past
One of the losses I was able to rectify a few years back, was to purchase from Amazon my high school yearbook from 1967. I remember one day in the year that I graduated finding out that we were the 50th class to graduate; the first being in 1967. I remember looking at the picture… Read More ›
The oldest Christian prayer outside of the Bible
The prayer was written near the end of the first century. Scripture is full of prayers from front to cover, but after the final page of Revelation, how did the early Christians pray to God? The oldest known Christian prayer outside of the Bible can be found in the works of St. Clement of Rome,… Read More ›
Remembering the dead at every meal
An important tradition that pays homage to the faithful departed. Many families maintain a tradition of invoking God’s blessing upon their food before eating. It is a simple way of thanking God for the bounty he has provided, recognizing his providential hand in our daily care. It is a Catholic tradition to add to this… Read More ›
Peace Prayer of Saint Francis
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace: The human experience for everyone is a rough journey. We can often hide from others what is going on inside of us; we can smile when in reality there is a war going on within. We experience injustice, injury, doubt and yes despair. We can also go… Read More ›