Why and When to Pray

Why Pray?

To join in the natural state that we hope to be in eventually, of praising God.

Often we pray in Petition.  We ask or beg God for help for ourselves or someone we know.  We pray for a particular outcome.  God wants that – He can and will take care of us.  There are two schools of thought on that, however, and there are good arguments for both.  The first is turn over the problem to God without a solution or turn over problem with a solution asking specifically for what you want.  Specifically asking for what you want is fine as long a you accept God’s will.  Regardless, prayer isn’t only for petitioning God.  In this website, I’ve included a sample Resolution statement – a promise to work on specific behaviors in order to imitate Christ – with each Mystery.  I included a Thanks statement also, as a way to praise & adore God. I encourage you to create your own statements to enhance your own ‘interior’ prayers by alternating your approach.  Remember prayer approaches in this order:  ACTS, that is:  Adoration, Confession/ Contrition, Thanksgiving and Supplication (Petition).  Praying is an action verb!

Each time you touch a bead or start a prayer is an opportunity to remind yourself of the personal resolution or intention. The five Rosary prayers are:  The Apostles’ Creed, The Lord’s Prayer, The Hail Mary,  The Glory Be and The Fatima Prayer.   There are also optional concluding prayers (Hail, Holy Queen and The Holy Rosary Prayer ) and in practice, frequently in a Novena for example, additional prayers are added for a particular saint.  Each of the 5 core prayers on their own has a lot to teach us.   But the way the Rosary is structured, when the prayers are combined with each other and then the meditations are layered in, we receive much more.

The Rosary includes stories from the life of Christ in addition to a handful of prayers. When you realize that this was prior to the printing press and therefore before each of us was able to have our own copy of the Bible to study, it helps explain its long tradition of teaching the faithful.

Opportunities to Pray

• The Living Rosary for Groups
• Family Rosary
• First Saturday Devotion
• Novena, 54 Day Novena
• Chaplets and prayers to specific saints

Call to Action

• Bible: 1 hour review to improve understanding of mysteries
• Check Parish for groups