OUR CATHOLIC PRAYERS, AN OASIS OF GRACES!

Catholic prayers are a wonderful resource to help us to grow in love with God and with each other! How's your prayer life? Could it be better? Does life give you more stress than you can handle? Good news: You're not alone! There are over 2000 years of Catholic prayers to help save the day and enrich your life!

Perhaps you’d just like to know more prayers (for all sorts of needs and occasions) or learn more about them. This collection features those important to every Catholic, daily prayers such as the Our Father, the Rosary, and the Act of Contrition. There are also some lesser known ones here that are quite beautiful and inspiring, along with many prayers to and from the Saints.

We’ve also included Catholic prayers for various times in the liturgical year, such as Lent and Pentecost. In addition, you'll find thoughts in these pages to inspire you in your prayer life (and to help you deal with distractions!) written by Saints and other well known religious figures. For example, as St. Pio of Pietrelecina would say, “Pray, hope, and don’t worry”.

GOD IS CALLING! ARE YOU LISTENING?

Remember that God is never “too busy” to hear from you. Don’t be “too busy” for him! There are some daily Catholic prayers such as the Our Father and the Rosary that take only minutes to say, yet their benefits can last a lifetime!

Catholic prayers can do wonders for your soul. God gives us joy and strength though prayer. You can get a great sense of peace in good times and consolation in bad from them. Our Lord wants to give us the good things we ask for in accordance with His will. The more we pray the more we can grow in His grace.

GROW WITH GOD

Grace is a gift from God that enables us to live more fully in union with Him. It strengthens our desire to choose good over evil. It also helps us to manage difficulties in our lives better. When we feel humility, compassion, forgiveness we’re putting others’ needs before our own. These are signs of God’s graces working within us.

When we let Him work through us, we help Him to do the same for others. We can show His love for others in how we treat them and in how we pray for them.

LET GO WITH GOD

Still, God hasn’t promised any of us a “Rose Garden” in this life. Sometimes we feel more like we’re in the Garden of Gethsemane where Our Lord prayed in deep agony the night before His Passion. Remember though that when misfortunes or tragedies hit us, we can withstand them better with God’s help. And with day-to day problems, Catholic prayers can help turn mountains back into molehills.

Our Lord taught us to pray “lead us not into temptation,” so that we can resist temptations against His will when they hit us. Through prayer we are better able to resist the every day temptations such as envy, hatred, bearing grudges, greed, lust, and selfishness. These negative emotions don’t bring us any real joy or peace of mind.

For those people in your life who continually rub you the wrong way (and we all have them! Bosses, co-workers, family members, etc.), prayer can give you the grace to deal with them better.

Also, as Jesus said in the Sermon on the Mount, “Pray for those who persecute and slander you” (Matthew 5:44). God wants us to pray for others, however we may feel about them (or even if we don't personally know them). Such prayers remind us that one way or another, we are all in this journey towards holieness together. Your prayers can do a world of good for others, just as their prayers can help you!

KEEP GOING WITH GOD

The most important thing is to persevere in your prayer life on your journey with God. St. Hilary once said that “grace depends mostly on perseverance in prayer.”

There are times you might feel you just can’t concentrate, that there are too many distractions. Or perhaps you feel God’s not there. Pray anyway!! God allows us to experience these times of “dryness” for us to grow spiritually. Many great religious scholars and saints went though the same things.

Remember as Our Lord says in John’s Gospel (Chapter 14, verse 2) “In my Father’s house[in heaven] there are many mansions…I go to prepare a place for you.” Our Catholic prayers can help you prepare to “move in” to your true home in heaven, “that blessed fatherland from which we are all exiles,” according to St. Aloysius Gonzaga.

So come and explore the rich heritage of our Catholic prayers. If at times you feel too intimidated or too distracted remember God is always there and ready to help. He’ll help you find the grace you need to deal with the pressures and problems of daily life and to grow in His love. A love this good is meant to be shared. These prayers are for all of us. They are our Catholic prayers.

Prayer:
Sign of the Cross

In the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit.
Amen.

The Lord's Prayer

Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread,

and forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us,
and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil.
Amen.

Hail Mary

Hail Mary, full of Grace, the Lord is with you!.
Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb Jesus.
Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death.
Amen.

Glory Be To The Father

Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit.
As it was in the beginning is now, and ever shall be,
world without end.
Amen.