Session outline 1-Man is in search of God. In the act of creation, God calls every being from nothingness into existence… Even after losing through his sin his likeness to God, man remains in image of his Creator, and retains the desire for the one who call him into existence. All religions bear witness to men’s essential search for God . CCC2566 2- Human life without prayer, which opens our existence to the mystery God, lacks sense and direction--- Pope Benedict 16 3-Many Christians are aware of the necessity and the beauty of contemplative prayer and have a sincere yearning for it. Yet, apart from tentative effort soon abandoned, few remained faithful to this mode of prayer , and even fewer are really convinced and satisfied by their own practice of it… W would like to pray, but we cannot manage it… Our time of prayer passes, leaving us distracted, and since it does not seem to yield tangible fruit, we are not loath to give up. From time to time we take up a book of meditations which presents us ready-made with the contemplation we ought to produce for ourselves…. Often fearfulness--- rob us of the confidence to take steps on our own- Hans Urs von Balthazar |
||
4-He was praying in a certain place, and when he ceased, one of his disciples said to him: Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples Luke 11:1 5- It is in fact in Jesus that man becomes able to approach God in the depth and intimacy of the relationship of fatherhood and sonship. Together with the first disciples, let us now turn with humble trust to the teacher and ask him: Lord, teach us to pray… Pope Benedict 16 6-God calls man first. Man may forget his Creator or hide far from his face, he may run after idols or accuse the deity of having abandoned him, yet the living and true God tirelessly calls each person to that mysterious encounter known as a prayer In prayer… God’s initiative of love always comes first; our own first step is always a response CCC 2567 7-It was not you who chose me but I who chose you John 15: 16, NAB 8 A step or two before the place where I am to contemplate or meditate, I will stand for the space of an Our Father and , with my consciousness raised on high, consider how the Lord my God looks upon me. Then I will make an act of reverence or humility.. St Ignatius of Loyola 9- We have come to believe in God’s love: In these words the Christian can express the fundamental decision of his life. Being Christian is not the result of an an ethical choice or a lofty idea., but the encounter with an event, a person, which gives life a new horizon and a decisive direction . Pope Benedict 16 10- We receive the first lesson from the Lord by his example. The Gospels describe Jesus to us in intimate and constant conversation with the Father. It is a profound communion of the One who came into the world not to do his will, but that of the father who sent him for the salvation of man—Pope Benedict 16 11 Yet on ly in God who reveal himself, does man’s seeking find complete fulfillment. The prayer that is openness and elevation of the heart to God, thus becomes a personal relationship with him. And even if man forgets his creator, the living, true God doe not cease to call man first to the mysterious encounter of prayer- Pope Benedict 16 12 For I know well the plans I have in mind for you, say the Lord, plans for your welfare, not for woe! Plans to give you a future full of hope. When you call me, when you go to pray to me, I will listen to you. When you look for me, you will find me. Yes, when you seek me with all your heart, you will find me with you, say the Lord- Jeremiah 29:121-14 NaB Oremus week one Day 1 For your prayer Jeremiah 29:11-14 Day 2 For your prayer John 15:1-17 Day 3 For your prayer Psalms 139:1-18 Day 4 For your prayer Romans 8:22-27 Day 5 For your prayer Romans 8:31-39 Day 6 For your prayer Psalns 63 Day 7 For your prayer Return to Scripture passage that spoke to you the most this week |
||
For your prayer Read the passage once to become familiar with the text Slowly read the passage a second time, very slowly read the passage a third time Pay attention to which word, words or phrases captures your attention or tugs at your heart Talk to God about what is on your heart---and listen
Journal Questions The strongest thought or fêling during my prayer was----- My heart: rested when- --- I sense the Lord was telling me....... I ended the prayer wanting.... |
Session outline
Step one--- Find the right time 1. Each one of us needs time and space for recollection, meditation, and calmness... Thanks be to God that this is so! In fact, this need tells us that we are not made for work alone, but also to think, to reflect or even simply to follow with our minds and our hearts a tale, a story in which to immerse ourselves, in a certain sense to lose ourselves' to find ourselves subsequently enriched (Pope Benedict XVI) 2-Making time for God regularly is a fundamental element for spiritual growth; it will be the Lord himself who gives the taste for his mysteries, his words, his presence and action, for feeling how beautiful it is when God speaks with us; he will enable us to understand more deeply what he expects of me Pope Benedict XVI)
3. A few important questions about you: -when are you most receptive ? -When are you most uninterrupted ? -What time is most consistently open ?
4- A few important questions about your commitments to other people: -What commitments have you made to your spouse ? -What commitments have you made to your family ? -What commitments have you made to others, such as to your job or school ? -Consider: Might any of these commitments need to be sacrificed or re-prioritized inn order to meet your commitments |
||
5 There's a different betwe en recreastion and re-creation -Start slow -Be realistic -Be consistent -Grow gradually
Step Two ---Select a Scripture passage ahead of time 6.Through his word, God speaks to man-------CCC 2700
7.How do you find a Scripture p-assage ? -Readings for daily Mass -Readings for the upcoming Sunday -Slowly read through the Gospels: Mark, Matthew, Luke, John -Slowly read through the Psalms
StepThree-----Pay attention to your desires 8. Saint Augustine, in a homily on the first Letter of John, describes very beautifully the intimate relationship between prayer and hope. He defines prayer as an exercise of desire -Pope Benedict XVI
9. And if the object of one's desire is a relationship with God, his blessing and love, then the struggle cannot fail but ends in that self-giving to God, in recognition of one's own weakness, which is overcome only by giving oneself over into God's merciful hands. Pope Benedict XVI
10. We would not be able to pray were the desire for God, for being children of God, not engraved in the depths of our hearts ....... Pope Benedict XVI
11. I will ask my Lord for what I want and desire St Ignatius of Loyola Oremus week one Day 1 For your prayer Matthew 11: 28-30 Day 2 For your prayer Isaiah: 55 Day 3 For your prayer Isaiah 43:1-7 Day 4 For your prayer Mark10:46-52 Day 5 For your prayer Isaiah 26:8-13 Day 6 For your prayer Matthew 18: 12-14 Day 7 For your prayer Return to Scripture passage that spoke to you the most this week
For your prayer Read the passage once to become familiar with the text Slowly read the passage a second time, very slowly read the passage a third time Pay attention to which word, words or phrases captures your attention or tugs at your heart Talk to God about what is on your heart---and listen
Journal Questions The strongest thought or feeling during my prayer was----- My heart: rested when- --- I sense the Lord was telling me....... I ended the prayer wanting.... |
||
Session out line
I would like in particular to recall and recommend the ancient tradition of lectio divina:the diligent reading of Sacred Scripture accompanied by prayer brings about the intimate dialogue in which the person reading hears God who is speaking and in praying,responds to him with trusting openess of heart.If it is effectively promoted, this practice will brings to the Church-Iam convinced of it-a newspiritual springtime- pope Benedict XVI
Lectio Divina Lectio divina ( sometimes known simply as lectio) is Latin for divine reading
Step One Start with a passage from Scripture and become familiar with the text Slowly read the passage a second time very veryn slowly read the passage a third time Pay attention to which word, words or phrases rest in your heart |
Step Two:Meditatio Think about the significant text......what is God saying to you? What are the implications of the text in your life? To meditate on what we read helps us to make it our own by confronting it with ourselves. Here, another book is opened:the book of life.... To the extent that we are humble and faithfull, we discover in meditation the movements that stir the heart and we are able to discern them CCC2796
Step Three: Oration Talk to God bout everything Whăt is contemplative prayer? St Teresa answers: Contemplatve prăyer (oracion mental) in my opinion is nothing else than a close shăring between friends.... In this inner prayer we can still meditate, but ourattention is fixed on the Lord himself CCC 2709 |
||
Step Four: Contemplatio Rest in God's presence Contemplative prayer is also the pre-eminently intense time of prayer. In it the Father strengthens our inner being with power through his Spirit that Christ may dwell in our hearts through faith and we be grounded in love Where does prayer come from? Whether prayer is expressed in words or gestures, it is the whole man who prays. But in naming the source of prayer, Scripture speaks sometimes of the soul or the spirit, but most often of the heart ( more than a thousand times). According to Scripture, it is the heart that prays. If our heart is far from God, the worđs of prayers are in vain. CCC 2562 Oremus week one Day 1 For your prayer Luke 12: 22-32 Day 2 For your prayer Psalm: 27 Day 3 For your prayer Psalm 23 Day 4 For your prayer John4:7-19 Day 5 For your prayer Wisdom 11:21-26 Day 6 For your prayer Deuteronomy 7: 6-8 Day 7 For your prayer Return to Scripture passage that spoke to you the most this week
For your prayer Read the passage once to become familiar with the text Slowly read the passage a second time, very slowly read the passage a third time Pay attention to which word, words or phrases captures your attention or tugs at your heart Talk to God about what is on your heart---and listen
Journal Questions The strongest thought or feeling during my prayer was----- My heart: rested when- --- I sense the Lord was telling me....... I ended the prayer wanting....
Lectio Divina Step one: Lectio---Read 'lectio divina Latin for divine reading Step two: Meditatio----Think about significant text Step Three : Oratio-- Talk to God Step Four: Contemplatio--Rest in God's presence |
||
Session outline 1. The four steps to relational prăyêr-prayer which God reaches out to us, and we respond to his loving approach- may be summed by the acronym A.R.R.R. The four steps: Acknowledge Relate Receive Respond 2. Mary is the perfect Orăns (pray-er),a figure of the Church-CCC 2679
Step One:Acknowledge 3. God calls man first.Man may forget his Creator or hide far from his face, he may run after idols or accuse the deity of having abandoned him; yet the living and true God tirelessly calls each person to that mysterious encounter known as prayer. In prayer... God's initiative of lose always comes first; our own first step is always a response. -CCC 2567
Step Two: Relate 4.Where does prayer come from? Whether prayer is expressed in words or gestures, it is the whole man who prays. But in naming the source of prayer, Scripture speaks sometimes of the soul or the spirit, but most often of the heart (more than a thoussand times) According to Scripture, it is the heart that prays. If our heart is far from God, the words of prayer are in vain....CCC 2562 5.In leărning how to speak to him, we learn to be a human being, to be ourselves Pope Benedict XVI |
6.Tips for Relating to god Don't just think about God; talk toGod Be aware. Be honest. Nothing is off limits Remember Psalm 139:4 (RSV:CE). Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, O Lord, you know it altogether Pay ăttention to what you do not want to say |
||
Step Three: Receive 7.Always expressed in every prayer...is the truth of the human creature who on the one hand experiences weakness and impoverishment, who therefore addresses his supplication to Heaven, and on the other is endowed with an extraordinary dignity, so that, in preparing to receive the divine Revelation, finds himself able to enter into communion with God. Pope Benedict XVI 8- God speaks in silence, but we must know how to listen…Pope Benedict 16 9- Tips for “ Receiving” from God: *Listen. Listen with all your spiritual senses *Be patient. Don’t be afraid of the silence *Could be a voice… a song…. A memory… an image….a sensation in your body….a Scripture passage
Step Four: Respond 10- The “Yes” of God is not halved, it is not somewhere between yes and no, but is a sound and simple yes. And we respond to this yes with our own yes with our “ amen” and so we are sure of the yes of God- Pope Benedict 16 11-Tips for Respond *Respond to what you have received * Could be more conversation….question….laughter….tears…..yes *Together, the 4 steps of relational prayer ( A.R.R.R.) are a vibrant dynamic, not a systematic checklist
Oremus week Four Relational Prayer Day 1 For your prayer: Psalm 91 Consider how God is the author of all creation Day 2 For your prayer: Genesis 1 Watch the sunrise as you pray Ps 91. Consider how all of creation is a gift from God and how God blesses all of creation. Read the assignment for tomorrow, so you may prepare Day 3 For your prayer Daniel 3:35-68: Watch the sunset and pray Day 4 For your prayer Daniel 3:35-68 (again) Consider how all creation Is a gift from God and how all of creation blesses God Day 5 For your prayer Philippians 4:11-13: Ask God for the grace to want Him more than you want anything else in this life Day 6 For your prayer Philippians 4:11-13 ( again) :Ask God for the grace to want Him more than you want anything else in this life Day 7 For your prayer Return to Scripture passage that spoke to you the most this week
|
||
Lectio Divina Step One: Lectio—Read “ lectio divina” Latin for divine reradfing Step Two: Medtatio----Think about significant text Step three: Oratio:- Talk to God…. Talk with God Step Four: Contemplatio-----Rest in God’s prersence For your prayer : Read the passage once to become familiar with the text. Slowly read the passage a second time. Very, very slow read the passage a third time Pay attention to which word, words, or phrases captures your attention or tugs at your heart Talk to God about what is on your heart----- and listen Journal Questions The stronghest thought or feeling during my prayer was…… My heart: rested when…I sense the Lord was telling me….. I ended the prayer wanting…… |