Tag: prayer
St. Augustine: There is no doubt the dead are aided by our prayers
There is an ecclesiastical discipline, as the faithful know, when the names of the martyrs are read aloud in that place at the altar of God, where prayer is not offered for them. Prayer, however, is offered for other dead who are remembered. It is wrong to pray for a martyr, to whose prayers we… Read More ›
Walking Humbly with God
We are all familiar with the well-loved and often quoted verse from the prophet Micah: He has told you, O man, what is good; And what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, to love mercy, and to walk hum-bly with your God? (Micah 6:8). We usually then pro-ceed to mount our… Read More ›
Instruction of the Psalter
. . .David with all his weaknesses was a king “after the heart of God” (cf. 1 Sam 13:14), that is, a passionate man of prayer, a man who knew what it meant to implore and to praise. The connection of the Psalms with this outstanding King of Israel is therefore important because he is… Read More ›
Prayer to be Merciful to Others
This prayer gives us a true measure of our mercy, a mirror in which we observe ourselves as merciful Christs. We can make it our morning invocation and our evening examination of conscience. O Most Holy Trinity! As many times as I breathe, as many times as my heart beats, as many times as my… Read More ›
True Devotion to Mary: the prayer of the humble Virgin
Since grace enhances our human nature and glory adds a still greater perfection to grace, it is certain that our Lord remains in heaven just as much the Son of Mary as he was on earth. Consequently he has retained the submissiveness and obedience of the most perfect of all children towards the best of… Read More ›
St. Bernard: “a sword has truly pierced your soul!”
In another famous Sermon on the Sunday in the Octave of the Assumption the Holy Abbot described with passionate words Mary’s intimate participation in the redeeming sacrifice of her Son. “O Blessed Mother”, he exclaimed, “a sword has truly pierced your soul!… So deeply has the violence of pain pierced your soul, that we may… Read More ›
Attention in Prayer
It may be taken for granted as a rule that the chief benefit which we derive from any private prayer will be in proportion to the attention and fervor which we bring to it when saying it. Without attention to what we are saying or doing, our prayers are apt to become a mere mechanical,… Read More ›
Litany to St. Michael the Archangel
(For private recitation) Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, have mercy on us. Lord, have mercy on us. Christ, hear us. Christ, graciously hear us. God, the Father of heaven, have mercy on us. God, the Son, Redeemer of the world, God, the Holy Spirit, Holy Mary, pray for us. Queen of the Legions of… Read More ›
Chose to Ignore the Negative — and Pray
Do you know when to “ignore” others? Can you shut off what other people think (especially when it’s unfair)? Or are you bogged down in the thought processes of others? Hopefully not. You can become a slave to telepathy! Let God define you, not humans. What about the word, “ignore.” It sounds so harsh. Is… Read More ›
Prayer of St. Isaac the Syrian
It is clear to all who dwell in Egypt that it is through the monks that the world is kept in being and that through them also human life is preserved and honored by God… There is no town or village in Egypt that is not surrounded by hermitages as if by walls, and all… Read More ›