January Focus - We Pray Our Faith

In January 2014, the Parish Pastoral Council and the Parish Staff will focus energy and support to help us attend to our prayer lives.

I want to invite everyone in the community, yes everyone (!), during this month to reflect on how they are doing as people who pray.

It is not a matter of beating ourselves up, but rather of reflection.

Some may feel they have nothing to reflect on. Don’t step out of the circle if that is the feeling.

Your reflection may be helped by one or two of the questions below, prepared by the Parish Pastoral Plan Subcommittee.

The first question, for example, “who taught you to pray?” can unlock a person’s spirits to the invitation to pray frequently and deeply.

·       Who first taught me to pray? What memories do I have of those prayer times? Do I still use prayers I was taught at that time?

·       Think of a time (possibly recent) when prayer was significant in my life. How was it significant?

·       Where can I find a time and place to quiet myself in order to hear God's voice?

·       Prayer can be considered in many ways: as a ritual or as a duty or as a means of appeasement or as a relationship. How do you describe prayer?

·       One writer said: Prayer is like love; it is a decision – not a feeling. Reflect on your reaction to that statement. How are you with the decision to pray?

·       When I struggle with prayer, am I comfortable seeking help? Who do I know who can help me deepen my prayer life?

Fr. Neville O’Donohue, S.M., Pastor