A Prayer To the Holy Innocents

Holy Innocents, you died before you were old enough to know what life means, pray for all children who die young that God may gather them into His loving arms.

Holy Innocents, you were killed because one man was filled with hatred, pray for those who hate that God may touch their hearts and fill them with love.

Holy Innocents, you experienced a violent death, pray for all who are affected by violence that they may find peace and love.

Holy Innocents, your parents grieved for you with deep and lasting sorrow, pray for all parents who have lost young children that God may wrap a warm blanket of comfort around them.

Holy Innocents, those around you certainly felt helpless to prevent your deaths, pray for all who feel helpless in their circumstances that they may cling to God for courage and hope.

Holy Innocents, you who are now in Heaven, pray for all of us that one day we may join you there to bask in God’s love forever.

Amen.

Prayer for the Year of Faith

An excellent prayer to pray during the Year of Faith (taken from the Diocese of Arlington Year of Faith website):

Heavenly Father,

Pour forth your Holy Spirit to inspire me with these words from Holy Scripture.

Stir in my soul the desire to renew my faith and deepen my relationship with your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, so that I might truly believe in and live the Good News.

Open my heart to hear the Gospel and grant me the confidence to proclaim the Good News to others.

Pour out your Spirit, so that I might be strengthened to go forth and witness to the Gospel in my everyday life through my words and actions.

In moments of hesitation, remind me:

If not me, then who will proclaim the Gospel?

If not now, then when will the Gospel be proclaimed?

If not the truth of the Gospel, then what shall I proclaim?

God, our Father, I pray that through the Holy Spirit I might hear the call of the New Evangelization to deepen my faith, grow in confidence to proclaim the Gospel and boldly witness to the saving grace of your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever.

Amen

40 Hour Devotion: A Time For Prayer

Please join St. Mark on our annual 40 Hour Devotion leading up to this weekend's Solemnity of the Body and Blood of Christ.  The remaining times are:

• Thursday until 10pm
• Friday after 6:15am Mass to 10pm
• Saturday from 8:00am to Benediction at 3:30pm.

What is Adoration?

Confused about what Adoration is and why we do it?  Read this quote below, which is taken from a small book produced by Ligouri Press called In the Presence, by Sr. Joan Ridley, OSB (PDF).

When we sit in silence in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, we are being gazed upon by the Lord. Actually this is true every moment of our lives, but in church or chapel, we have intentionality in gazing at the Lord. That is why we are there. It is an experience of adoration. We do not have to be rationally aware of this reality. It does not depend on our mind so much as our heart... Adoration is our fundamental stance before God, the essential act of relating ourselves to the Absolute. It involves worship. We worship and adore God alone.

"Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest." -- Jesus, Matthew 11:28

Simply put, Adoration is a time for us to pray, to listen, and to be in the presence of Jesus.  Give it a try.  Bring your family.  Time with God is never wasted.

Image Credit: ElectricDisk on flickr

Trouble Praying?

Prayer Hands

Pope Benedict XVI gave some advice to those of us who struggle in our prayer life:

We want to pray, but God is far off, we do not have the words, the language, to speak with God, nor even the thought to do so. We can only open ourselves, place our time at God’s disposition, wait for Him to help us to enter into true dialogue. The Apostle says: this very lack of words, this absence of words, yet this desire to enter into contact with God, is prayer that the Holy Spirit not only understands, but brings and interprets before God. This very weakness of ours becomes -- through the Holy Spirit -- true prayer, true contact with God. The Holy Spirit is, as it were, the interpreter who makes us, and God, understand what it is we wish to say.

Is this advice helpful?  What do you think?


Image Credit: Connor Tarter on flickr

Praying With Children At Night: the Examen

I see the moon, and the moon sees me...

The day is drawing to a close.  It's time to get ready for bed and prepare for tomorrow.  Practically speaking, this means brushing teeth, putting on PJs, and packing the backpack for another big, big day.  But what about our day with God?  How do we wind down the day with God and prepare for tomorrow -- and help our children to do this too?

Enter Ignatian spirituality, a branch of Catholic spirituality that prays through the events of the day.  I wrote a blog post on praying the Examen as an adult in the winter, but didn't mention a way to pray this way with children.  Well, now you can.

With the help of this blog post on praying with 12-year olds, I developed a worksheet to help children and adults to pray.  Below is a five-step prayer:

1. Start with a period of relaxation.  Throughout the day events and choices can overwhelm and pull at us.  Not even children are immune from tension.  This period of calmness allows us to ask the Holy Spirit to inspire us in our prayer.
2. With the strength of the Spirit, we work our way through the day, from beginning to the present moment, and list at least three things that we're thankful for.  Big or small; meaningful or seemingly irrelevant; whatever you're thankful for write them down.
3. Again, working back through the day, we think about what happened.  What sort of feelings or emotions came to us today?  When did these occur?
4. From this list, we focus on one item and ask God to teach us.  Spend a few moments in conversation with God, then complete the sentence "Maybe the message is/Maybe God is trying to tell me..."
5. Finally, we ask God to help us learn from our day today and live a better tomorrow.  Complete the prayer, "God, please help me to..."

The worksheet is embedded below.  The top half of the contains the guidance for praying the examen while the bottom half can be filled out as you pray.  A PDF version of this form can be downloaded by clicking here and pressing Ctrl + S.


May God be with you and your family as you pray your nightly prayers!

Photo Credit: Patricia Kashtock on flickr

Holy Week Basket

Fill your basket

With Holy Week around the corner, here's an idea for your family that will help make Holy Week a special week: Holy Week baskets!  Bust out the fake green grass a little early and scrounge up your Spring-colored plastic Easter eggs: we're repurposing them in a non-candy way.

Put the green plasticy grass in the basket, and place the basket in a prominent place in your house.  Inside the eggs, place slips of paper with different actions or ideas for keeping Holy Week.  For ideas, check out the description of a classroom version of this activity.  Here are some that are St. Mark specific:

• Attend the Palm Sunday parish penance service (at 7:00PM on Palm Sunday)
• Donate a household item for those who cannot afford it (see bulletin for details)
• Attend a Holy Week service at St. Mark

What other ideas could you include in your Holy Week basket?

Image credit: tracitodd on flickr

2 Family Lenten Events at St. Mark

How is your family’s Lent this year? Okay? Good? Not so good?

There are two opportunities (both at St. Mark) in the next week for your family: (1) (Youth Mass +) Parish Lenten Mission and (2) Pizza + Children’s Stations of the Cross.

(Youth Mass +) Parish Lenten Mission
On Sunday evening, we have our monthly youth Mass at 6PM followed by a family dinner at 7PM in the Activities Center. After dinner, children (grades preschool through 8th) are invited to join in a Lenten Workshop. Parents are encouraged to attend the Parish Mission at 7:30PM being held in the church at the same time (starting at 7:30PM). (We would ask one parent to remain in the activity center if your children are in 2nd grade or below.) The title of the Mission is Lent: Our Journey into the Mystery of God.

On Monday and Tuesday Evenings, you’re invited to the other two nights of the Mission, also beginning at 7:30PM. Check out our awesome flyer (PDF) for more info.

Pizza + Children’s Stations of the Cross
Join us next Friday, March 9 for Pizza + Children’s Stations of the Cross. Pizza will be served at 7PM in the Activities Center and Stations will begin at 7:30PM in the Church. This particular Stations of the Cross caters to children in the primary grades, but is suitable for all ages. Donations will be accepted to help offset the cost of the pizza.

Please RSVP to Isaac by noon on Thursday, March 8 so we can order enough pizza.

Website Wednesday: 3 Lenten Reflection Sites

Lent is a very popular time for parishes.  It's popular because people know that Lent is a special time in the year, a time to focus on God.  To help us "rend our hearts," many different communities provide a series of one-a-day reflections.  Below are three online series that I've found helpful.

Fast | Pray | Give

It's like an Advent calendar...that's fasting from chocolate.

Busted Halo does a great job of coming up with daily, relatable content 366 days of the year.  [Insert Leap Day joke.]  Their yearly Lenten offering does not disappoint.  Each day features a quote from a cultural figure, real or fictitious, along with one way you can fast, pray, and give that day.

Take a look at Saturday, February 25.  Yoda's famous "Do or do not -- there is no try" quote is featured.  Then below we see our three Lenten disciplines:

FAST from overthinking decisions.
PRAY to be more confident in your abilities and more active in your faith.
GIVE a call to a parish or community ministry today to schedule time to volunteer in a parish or community ministry this week.

If you're a techie, they tweet these every day.  You can follow them on twitter @BustedHalo.  Or bookmark this page to visit the calendar every day.

Lenten Dimensions

"You had me at hello."

Romero Center Ministries is an urban retreat and social justice education center in the heart of East Camden, NJ.  Their daily Lenten offerings (Lenten Dimensions) are themed through alliteration.  For example, today is "Wednesday Word" and yesterday was "Tuesday Television."  Frequently focusing on social justice, these reflections take on a different flavor than others by sifting through our world and engaging our culture with the Gospel.

For example, take a look at yesterday's Tuesday Television.  Using a clip from the movie Jerry Maguire, seminarian Kevin Mohan shows how important it is to say what you mean in prayer (and in life) and not be okay with God (or your spouse) knowing that you love them.  Interested piqued?  Read the rest of the reflection.  Or subscribe to their calendar and get the link in your Google calendar daily.

Lent with the Saints

Short and sweet daily moments of prayer.

Lifted from a Daily Reflection book with the same name, Lent with the Saints has a short reflection on each day's Gospel followed by a prayer.  Some days the reflection is replaced by a short profile of the saint of the day.  To get the most out of each day's reflection, you should make sure to read the readings of the day (or go to Mass) beforehand.

Do you have a favorite Lenten reflection series?  How does it stretch you during Lent?

Fasting and Feasting: a Lenten Reflection/Prayer/Poem

Every year, I place before me the following reflection/prayer/poem that helps center my Lenten journey to help me prepare for Easter.  This is reproduced from this St. Louis University webpage.

Fasting and Feasting
Fast from judging others; feast on the Christ dwelling within them.
Fast from emphasis on differences; feast on the unity of all life.
Fast from apparent darkness; feast on the reality of light.
Fast from words that pollute; feast on phrases that purify.
Fast from discontent; feast on gratitude.
Fast from anger; feast on patience.
Fast from pessimism; feast on optimism.
Fast from worry; feast on trust.
Fast from complaining; feast on appreciation.
Fast from negatives; feast on affirmatives.
Fast from unrelenting pressures; feast on unceasing prayer.
Fast from hostility; feast on nonviolence.
Fast from bitterness; feast on forgiveness.
Fast from self-concern; feast on compassion for others.
Fast from personal anxiety; feast on eternal truth.
Fast from discouragement; feast on hope.
Fast from facts that depress; feast on truths that uplift.
Fast from lethargy; feast on enthusiasm.
Fast from suspicion; feast on truth.
Fast from thoughts that weaken; feast on promises that inspire.
Fast from idle gossip; feast on purposeful silence.

How do you feel called to fast?  How can you feast on the other end?

Lent: Time for a Road Trip

This article appeared in the March, 2011 edition of the Maneline, St. Mark's monthly newsletter.  The dates are off, but the heart of the text remains true.

The view was something like this

Road Trippin'

Last Christmas I returned to my hometown, Austin, Texas. Instead of flying, my wife and I road tripped with my best friend from high school (a youth minister in Harrisonburg) and his wife. Six months into our marriages and new ministry positions, there was much to discuss: the transition to life in Virginia; our different but beautiful communities; and life with a spouse. Beyond the conversations, we shared many “meals” that usually consisted of food purchased at a small-town edition of a fast-food restaurant. But we both brought food along for the journey to share with each other. I had Star Wars gingerbread cookies and he had the most delicious homemade peanut brittle. With friendships refreshed, the end of our trip found us physically tired and hungry for substantial food, which Mom happily provided with homemade lasagna and fresh bread.

During Lent, we all will take a different sort of road trip. Though our life situations are vastly different, the destination is the same: Easter. All the extra “stuff” we do during Lent (both communally and individually) is meant to prepare us for that glorious moment when the bells are rung, the Gloria is sung, and we celebrate the Resurrection!

But what about that road trip? How will we spend our time in the car? Thankfully, the Church has been on quite a few of these road trips and has some suggestions to help change us into people ready to celebrate the Resurrection. She recommends three practices during Lent: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

Prayer
In prayer, our search for God finds a tongue and ears. On my Texas road trip, prayer took the form of conversation – listening and speaking. We talked about everything under the sun, asked each other for gum, and probably said a few “I’m sorrys” for wrong turns and incorrect fast food orders. Our Lenten prayer takes a similar shape: speaking to God about anything and everything, listening to God in silence and with Scripture, asking God for guidance and help, and saying sorry. When we relate to God in this way, our friendship is refreshed and we (s l o w l y) become better guests for the Easter party that God is throwing.

Saying goodbye to fast food can be hard

Fasting
Fasting forces us out of our M.O., our normal way of doing things. During the day long drive, we fasted from comforts normally sought when sleeping, namely a stable, horizontal bed with a variety of coverings and a familiar pillow. The words “I’m going to sleep well tonight!” came out of our mouths the second the motor stopped humming. When we deny ourselves cheeseburgers, Netflix, and judging, we become more aware of the physicality of our body, the depth of our mind, and our quick emotional reactions. By denying ourselves the comforts and normalcy of life, we relearn to enjoy them all the more and our “thanks be to God” becomes more sincere. Fasting during Lent is as much about giving up good things as it is about conversion from bad habits. When we fast from judging AND from listening to music in the car, we enter into better relationship with other Easter party guests and will enjoy the music so much more.

Almsgiving

A statue of a beggar receiving alms

Sharing is difficult, but so much more so when you only have a finite amount of resources. And homemade peanut brittle proved to be very finite on the long trip. Yet, my friends kept giving, not from their excess but from their very limited supply. Lenten almsgiving should affect those closest to us in addition to those most in need. Giving tangible gifts to the poor is a great way to give alms, but what if instead of giving our ugliest, never-worn sweater we gave our favorite jacket? Or if we sat down as a family and decided not to eat out after mass on Sundays and instead give that exact amount to the poor each week? These gifts affect us more because there is an actual cost involved. Giving to the poor then becomes giving ourselves—our time, our post-mass meal, our favorite shirt, our skills—and the gift, in a certain way, becomes more genuine. When we give these gifts of self to the poor and to God, we prepare ourselves to receive the ultimate authentic gift of self at the Easter banquet, the Eucharist.

Lent gives us the wonderful opportunity to reorient ourselves to God by committing to practices meant to make us more fully alive, giving new life to parts of life in need of a change. Our three disciplines are not ends in themselves, but a means to participate in the workings of the Spirit and in the Body of Christ as a whole during this season. We do not do them to win the favor of God, but to become more aware of the love that God has for us by preparing the way.

May our road trip together be fruitful. Happy traveling!

Image Credits: Christian Cable, Thiophene Guy, on flickr

7 Steps for a Good Lent (For You & Your Family)

After the Fat Tuesday party dies down today, be prepared to answer the ubiquitous Lenten question: "What are you giving up for Lent."  Using the traditional Lenten practices of prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, there's more to Lent than not eating chocolate.  But even if you repeat your Lenten practices from last year, it's still a good idea to think about what it is you're doing and so make your Lent an intentional pilgrimage with the Lord.

Enter: the 7 Steps for a Good Lent, as conceived by Coming Home Catholic (CHC), a group focused on renewing religious education in the family.  Their guide is focused on your family and how your family will keep the Lenten practices.  Below are their Seven Steps with additional suggestions.

Before Your Start Your Lenten Practices

Decide as a family what to do for Lent.

Step 1: Take the Family Inventory
CHC put together a good inventory/assessment tool (PDF) your family can use to think through major areas of family life.  With your entire family, answer the questions and highlight a few areas your family needs to improve on.

Step 2: Think About Lenten Resolutions
Pick at least one area your family can focus on from your inventory results.  Consider how your family can pray, fast, and give alms to make a difference in that area.  CHC recommends resolutions that are easy enough to do for 6 weeks but still challenging.

Step 3: Celebrate Mardi Gras / Fat Tuesday / Shrove Tuesday
Many, many years ago, Lenten dietary restrictions included restrictions on dairy products.  Shrove Tuesday was the day when all those products were used up.  What do eggs, milk, and butter play a prominent role in?  Pancakes!

The key is not to go overboard and eat everything in sight.  Instead, taste whatever it is you're eating and celebrate life.

Lent: Prepares You For Easter
Step 4: Learn About Lenten Practices
To prepare us to celebrate Easter, the Church recommends three practices.  Learn a little about each of them below.

Truth.

• Prayer is our conversation with God, both individually and communally.  Here are some ideas on how your family can pray.  And other ideas too.
• Fasting increases our awareness of our bodies and our minds, sharpening ourselves that we may better be attuned to God.  This practice has overshadowed the other two, and is where we get the "giving something up" part of Lent.  Here are some ideas on how your family can fast.
• Almsgiving is a practice that invites us to care for the poor and oppressed within our community and our family.  Usually we think of giving money (CRS' Rice Bowl is a yearly tradition), but here are other ways to give alms this Lent.

Step 5: Follow Through
Write down your resolutions on the refrigerator, the door, all your mirrors, your alarm clock, your arm, even your face -- anywhere that will help you remember your family's resolutions.  Keep your family in your prayers!

Holy Week

Soon, but not yet.

Step 6: Prepare Your Home For Easter
Once Holy Week rolls around, start scrounging around for Easter decorations.  Holy Saturday is a great time to put up the decorations.  You've just spent 40 days fasting -- it's time to celebrate with all we have, including our house!

Step 7: Participate in Triduum
Come to Mass on Holy Thursday, participate in a Good Friday service, and attend the Vigil.  These are the three holiest days of the year -- make the most of it!  (More on this in April.)

What will your family do for Lent?  Where do you want new life in your family?


Image Credit: Nick Booth, LivingOS, Mikey G Ottawa, and Marek52 on flickr, 

Praying with your day: the Examen

Prayer is for everyone

How has your day gone?  What are you thankful for?  Where was God during your day?

I vividly a snippet of a homily from late Msgr. Cassidy about prayer: "all of life is data for our prayer."  The Ignatian Examen is a method of prayer that takes what Msgr. Cassidy said seriously, as it uses our life experiences and asks those questions above and a few more.  The goal is to become aware of how God is acting in your life so that we can be grateful for God's presence afterward with the hope that in future days we learn to be grateful for God's presence in the moment.

There are many, many resources online on praying the Examen.  Here are two that I find most helpful.

Pray-As-You-Go Audio Examen
Before the "no turning back" point of falling asleep, play this audio meditation version of the examen (MP3 link).  I've used this before and it brings me much peace.

The lady (with a foreign accent) guides the listener through the course of their day from morning to evening, asking questions and allowing time to reflect.  Within eight minutes, you'll find that God was more present in your day than you might have thought, and have an opportunity to speak to God about whatever it is that went on in your day.  Peaceful music helps settle even the most restless listener's heart so they can more authentically enter into the meditation.

Five Step Prayer Method
In a website crammed full of good resources for prayer, the page How Can I Pray? stands out.  On the page you'll find an explanation for praying the Examen with easy to understand explanations.


Here are the five steps.  To see the complete explanation click here.

1. Become aware of God's presence
2. Review the day with gratitude
3. Pay attention to your emotions
4. Choose one feature of the day and pray from it.
5. Look toward tomorrow

However you can pray through your day, give it a shot!  You won't be disappointed.  But don't take my word for it.

Do you have another way of praying through your life experiences?  How?

Image credit: More Good Foundation on flickr

A Prayer for Super Bowl Sunday

This year, the Giants and Patriots square off in what will be an exciting game.  Before we watch the game, take some time to read this prayer-poem, written by Walter Brueggemann from his book Prayers for a Privileged People.  When I read through it all, it helps me keep a good perspective on the day's events. 

H/T to Millennial Catholic Blog

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

Tonight we have our meeting with Confirmation Candidates and parents, which we will begin with this prayer to the Holy Spirit attributed to St. Augustine.  It's a great prayer for beginnings and in moments of need:

The Holy Spirit from St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican

Breathe in us, O Holy Spirit, that our thoughts may be holy.
Act in us, O Holy Spirit, that our work too may be holy.
Draw our hearts, O Holy Spirit, that we may love but what is holy.
Strengthen us, O Holy Spirit, to defend all that is holy.
Guard us then, O Holy Spirit, that we always may be holy.
Amen.

Do you have a favorite prayer?  Share it below.

Image Credit: hops_76 from flickr

Website Wednesday: Pray.nd.edu

This is how it looks

Continuing our series of looking at websites on Wednesday, we turn our gaze to a website focused on praying through the daily mass readings: Pray.nd.edu.  Run by the University of Notre Dame, my alma mater, "Pray" includes different content every day, centered around the Gospel for that particular day.  Each day, you find the text for the Gospel, a brief reflection written by someone connected to the University, and a prayer.

One of the strengths of this website is the sheer number of contributors.  Tapping into the vast resource of Notre Dame students, alums, and friends, Pray has featured past Notre Dame football stars, current students, priests and religious, and of course alumni.  Hearing from many different individuals keeps the site fresh.  There are "as many ways [to God] as there are people," as Cardinal Ratzinger (now Pope Benedict XVI) once said.  The different perspectives allow us to see God with new eyes.

Let's take a look at a few of the other parts of the site.

Seasonal Sections
During Advent and Lent, "Pray" features videos for each week of the season.  Each video includes a well thought out, well delivered ~5 minute reflection on a particular aspect that shines forth in that week's mass readings.  I particularly enjoyed the one for the 2nd week of Advent:


Free Online Prayer Cards
Ever hit a patch where you don't know how you want to pray, don't feel like you have time to pray, and need to pray something short and meaningful?  So do I.  The prayer card section on the Pray website is an incredible resource for people in that spot.  Each prayer card is a PDF that can be printed out, cut, and folded up to fit in your wallet.  Here's an example of one of the prayers, a prayer for healing (PDF):

Prayer for Healing

Dear Jesus, we turn to you in this 

time of illness. Ease our worry 

and sorrow with your gentle love. 

Gift us with the strength to accept 

this burden. Lord, we place our 

worries in your hands. We place 

our sick under your care and ask 

that you restore your loved one 

to health again. Above all, grant 

us the grace to acknowledge your 

will and know that whatever you 

do, you do for the love of us.

Adapted from Missionary 

Oblates of Mary Immaculate 

Faith Videos for You

Looking at the world through a faith perspective requires some support and some challenge.  Tender, Strong, and True is a video series that tries to do just that.  With a wide range of relevant topics (starting and maintaining prayer, living faith at work, not being stressed), this video series is a real gem for anyone looking for help and guidance.

A great resource for Catholics on the go (they'll send you daily emails) or Catholics not on the go (watching videos), Pray.nd.edu can help you grow closer to God day by day.

If you have a website you recommend, leave a comment or send Isaac an email:

Active Waiting

A little more from our friend Henri Nouwen:

Waiting is essential to the spiritual life. But waiting as a disciple of Jesus is not an empty waiting. It is a waiting with a promise in our hearts that makes already present what we are waiting for. We wait during Advent for the birth of Jesus. We wait after Easter for the coming of the Spirit, and after the ascension of Jesus we wait for his coming again in glory. We are always waiting, but it is a waiting in the conviction that we have already seen God's footsteps.

Waiting for God is an active, alert - yes, joyful - waiting. As we wait we remember him for whom we are waiting, and as we remember him we create a community ready to welcome him when he comes.

image credit: CmdrFire

Prayer as Seeking Depth

Prayer: elusive but important

Raise your hand if you struggle with prayer.  Now that all our hands are raised, where do we go from here?  (You can put your hands down.)

Fr. Ron Rolheiser, OMI, is an author of many spiritual articles and books (his most famous/best selling being The Holy Longing).  This Advent, he is writing a four-part series on prayer.  Below is an excerpt from part 1 called "Prayer as Seeking Depth."

In our more reflective moments we sense the importance of prayer; yet, we struggle to pray. Sustained, deep prayer doesn't come easy for us. Why?

First of all, we struggle to make time for prayer. Prayer doesn't accomplish anything practical for us, it's a waste of time in terms of tending to the pressures and tasks of daily life, and so we hesitate to go there. Coupled with this, we find it hard to trust that prayer actually works and brings about something real in our lives. Beyond that, we struggle to concentrate when we try to pray. Once we do settle in to pray, we soon feel ourselves overwhelmed by daydreams, unfinished conversations, half-forgotten melodies, heartaches, agendas, and the impending tasks that face us as soon as we get up from our place of prayer. Finally, we struggle to pray because we really don't know how to pray. We might be familiar with various forms of prayer, from devotional prayers to different kinds of meditation, but we generally lack the confidence to believe that our own particular way of praying, with all its distractions and missteps, is prayer in the deep sense. 

 Interest piqued?  Read the rest on his website.

Part two can be found here.

image credit: mojoey

Five Family Advent Ideas

Yesterday we learned about Advent in two minutes.  So how do we practice preparation in our family?  Here are five ways your family can prepare for Christmas this Advent.

Decorate

My wife and I started a tradition last year of decorating our house on the third Sunday of Advent.  Why the third Sunday?  Because it's Gaudete Sunday!  It's a Sunday of Joy and we mark that time as a Church by using rose (pink) colored vestments at mass and light the rose (pink) colored candle.  Decorate with various greens, religious icons or drawings or pictures, lights, a creche (see below) and of course all the usual Christmas decorations.

Use an Advent Calendar

There are many Advent calendars to choose from online.  Here's one for a family (PDF) and one for children (PDF).  For you parents, here's one you can do online, which I do every year.  It includes a short quote or video clip and an action to do each day. On the First Sunday of Advent, it featured an excellent video clip from Lord of the Rings -- so you know it must be good.

Or, make your own calendar.  On the days from today to Christmas, write a different action you or your family can do in preparation for the coming of Christ. For example, write a Christmas card to a relatives, clean the house for guests, or make Christmas presents instead of buying them.

Make a Creche
At the manger scene, you can gather each night for prayer. Tell your kids to place one piece of straw in the cradle for good deeds they or their family did that day. The more good deeds, the softer the cradle becomes for Jesus. My family has a tradition of placing baby Jesus in the cradle when we come back from Christmas Mass on Christmas Eve.  Use that or create your own tradition.

Use an Advent Wreath
Light candles corresponding to the candles lit at Mass on Sundays and pray around the wreath every day.  Need your wreath blessed?  Try this family Advent wreath blessing from Loyola Press or this blessing from our own US Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Donate
Gather some clothes, toys, and other items to donate to a local charity. Try donating a favorite toy or favorite article of clothing. It may be difficult, but giving up our favorite items can foster a deeper love for others and remind us that others deserve the best we have to offer.

How does your family prepare for Advent?  What's your favorite family tradition?  What do you hope your children pass on to their children?  Share your ideas, leave a comment.

All Souls' Day: We Pray for and Remember the Dead

We pray for the dead

Prayers
All Souls' Day reminds us that part of the life of the Christian Catholic is to pray for the dead.  We have a mystical link to them through the Body of Christ and we believe that our prayers, somehow, help those in purgatory be with God in heaven.  (More information on purgatory and praying for the dead found here).

At St. Mark, we have a special Mass today at 7:30PM for all who have passed away, especially those who have died within the past year.  Throughout the month of November, our Book of the Dead will be available in the Narthex for you to inscribe the names of your deceased relatives and friends.  We will remember all these individuals during the masses this month.

Remembering
Aside from prayer, take sometime today to talk with your family about a love one who has passed on.  Growing up, I always loved hearing stories of relatives who passed before my birth, to see how the faces and voices of those sharing memories would brighten.  When we share these memories with each other, especially with children, we pass on our family tradition and heritage, and the childhood of grandparents or uncles seems more real.  Stories of how great grandma immigrated here not knowing the language inspire us to keep going even in the most difficult moments.

Give your children that gift today of coming to know someone you loved.  They'll thank you later.

Image: africa / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

2 Other iPhone Apps for Catholics

iPhone: pretty popular

The final part of a three part series on iPhone apps for Catholics.

In our second installment, we looked at two apps meant to help you pray in outward ways (part one found here).  The Divine Mercy Chaplet can be prayed with many people, ditto the Liturgy of the Hours (Divine Office).  This last installment will take a look at two apps meant to be introspective prayer aides, helping us to turn to God in different ways.

Here are our last two apps we'll preview in this series.