Posts Tagged ‘prayer’
Prayers for the Domestic Church: A Handbook for Worship in the Home
Do you ever find yourself at a loss for words when the moment arrives to pray during a family gathering, for example, at Christmas or Easter dinner, after a child’s baptism or during an engagement party? If so, “Prayers for the Domestic Church” may be the resource you need.
Who Me, Pray?… With Her?
How many times have you heard the suggestion to pray together as a couple? But how do you actually going about doing something that can seem strange and awkward, at least at first? Here are some practical tips.
A Virtual Marriage Retreat: Day Six
Today’s Theme: Marriage is a Journey of Human and Spiritual Growth Breaking Open the Theme Each stage of marriage has its own joys and sorrows, opportunities and challenges. When understood in the light of Christ’s own journey, they can contribute to human growth and spiritual maturity. That is, a couple grows in holiness by journeying [...]
A Virtual Marriage Retreat: Day Three
Today’s Theme: Marriage Is a Communion of Love and Life Breaking Open the Theme In creating man and woman for each other, God made marriage to be love-giving and life-giving. We call these two purposes or ends of marriage the unitive and the procreative. They are inseparably connected and are ordered to each other. The [...]
A Virtual Marriage Retreat: Day Two
Today’s Theme: Marriage Is the Unique Union of a Man and a Woman Breaking Open the Theme In the beginning, says Sacred Scripture, God created man and woman in his image, “male and female He created them” (Gn. 1:27). In His wisdom, God planned that man and woman would be made for each other. God [...]
A Virtual Marriage Retreat: Day Seven
Today’s Theme: Marriage Is a School of Love and Gratitude Breaking Open the Theme As Adam recognized Eve as God’s gift to him, likewise, spouses should recognize each other as God’s gift in their lives. Through life’s journey, sometime a husband or wife may need to reflect on the gift of the other, especially when [...]
A Virtual Marriage Retreat: Day One
Today’s Theme: Marriage is a Natural and a Supernatural Gift Breaking Open the Theme Marriage is a natural gift to society; it is also a supernatural gift to the Church. As a natural institution marriage retains certain God-given characteristics. It is the permanent, faithful union of a man and a woman, intended for the good [...]
A Virtual Marriage Retreat: Day Four
Today’s Theme: Marriage is a Sacrament of Christ’s Love Breaking Open the Theme Jesus heals marriage and restores it to its original purity of permanent self-giving in one flesh. But the Lord does not stop there. Christ generously invites husband and wife to participate in his spousal love for his Church. Christian spouses are invited [...]
A Virtual Marriage Retreat: Day Five
Today’s Theme: Marriage Is the Foundation of the Family and Society Breaking Open the Theme The early Church understood the Christian family as an ecclesia domestica, or domestic church. This idea recognizes that the smallest expression of Church is not the parish, but the Christian family. The family, our first community, is the basic way [...]
Contemplative Prayer
Prayer is essential to Christian life, and the Catholic tradition offers various ways to pray. Many Christians have benefited from contemplative prayer, which is less about saying things to God than listening to what God is saying to us.
Every Tear Will Be Wiped Away
“Living through grief takes courage,” Gretchen Schwenker says in this new book.” She compiled prayers and reflections for people who lose someone they love and struggle to “cope with the pain,” hoping in time to remake their lives.
Relating the Cross to Married and Family Life
This year the meditations for the 14 Stations of the Cross in Rome where composed by Danilo and Annamaria Zanzucchi, an Italian couple who have been married for 59 years. The couple “wanted to make sure that these texts bore the mark of a lived Christian experience and, at the same time, reflected our understanding of the Passion as it has developed through years of contact with thousands of couples.”
Blessings and Prayers for New Parents
“This short book–”for imperfect parents”–includes prayers for all kinds of occasions in family life, along with observations and suggestions for parents. There’s a prayer for letting go, and another when a child is in the emergency room. It’s a great book to keep close at hand and to use often.
How to Pray With Your Spouse: Four Simple Steps
Many couples would like to pray together, but don’t know how to begin. Here are four simple steps to get started, based on the structure of the Mass.
Why Do Catholics Pray the Rosary?
The Rosary is one of the most well-known and beloved of Catholic devotions. What is this prayer and how did it get started?
Table and Prayers
Sara and Justin reflect on how prayer has been part of their relationship.
Blessings and Prayers for Married Couples
Whether you’re a couple with experience in praying together, or a couple who is just starting to do so, this book offers prayers to suit all situations. Its down-to-earth approach to spirituality makes this a valuable resource for couples who desire a deeper relationship with God and each other.
The Stations of the Cross
Does your parish offer Stations of the Cross? Many parishes do, especially during Lent. What is this popular devotion that continues to attract so many people?
Prayers and Blessings
Prayer is the glue that holds a marriage and a family together. Prayer comes in many forms, including: recited prayers, such as the Hail Mary; spontaneous prayer, as a husband and wife might say before bedtime; praying with Scripture; and that perfect prayer–the Mass. The book, Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers, is an excellent resource [...]
A Marriage Blessing
This blessing is an adaptation of a beannacht, an ancient Hebrew form of blessing used to communicate the power of the Divine within families and later within believing communities. This beannacht is dedicated to married couples.
10 Pointers for Prayer
Finding time for prayer can seem impossible. Amid the busyness of family life, how can one respond to God’s ongoing invitation to speak with and listen to Him? Here are ten pointers to help you do just that.
