Housework as a form of prayer?

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Charlie_Zeaiter

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Hello,

I’ve once heard that housework can be a form or prayer. (If so, I must be a saint! 😉 )

I wonder if anybody can lead me to some books or links, with some info about this? I would prefer something written by a saint - you know, a bit of credibility goes a long way. 🙂
 
A friend of mine gave me an example given by a Saint. I forgot the name of the Saint, but from what he told me, these are what I have applied to my housework as a form of prayer. I will ask my friend for the name of the Saint and let you know.

Mainly, every action we take, we can think of them spiritually.
  1. when I wash dishes, I will pray something like “As the soap detergent washes away the food on these dishes, Dear Blessed Mother, may Jesus’ blood and water wash away my sins and keeps me from falling into sins”.
  2. As I turn on the light in my room, I ask God to guide me with His Light.
  3. As I open the door to my room, I ask God to help me open and keep my soul purified for the Holy Spirit.
  4. When I walk down stairs, I could ask my Guardian Angel to protect me from falling into the trap of Satan.
  5. etc …
 
water said:
A friend of mine gave me an example given by a Saint. I forgot the name of the Saint, but from what he told me, these are what I have applied to my housework as a form of prayer. I will ask my friend for the name of the Saint and let you know.

Mainly, every action we take, we can think of them spiritually.
  1. when I wash dishes, I will pray something like “As the soap detergent washes away the food on these dishes, Dear Blessed Mother, may Jesus’ blood and water wash away my sins and keeps me from falling into sins”.
  2. As I turn on the light in my room, I ask God to guide me with His Light.
  3. As I open the door to my room, I ask God to help me open and keep my soul purified for the Holy Spirit.
  4. When I walk down stairs, I could ask my Guardian Angel to protect me from falling into the trap of Satan.
  5. etc …
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Hey that’s neat! I may have to print this and hang in in my house. 👍

BTW if housework is a form of prayer, I’m in trouble! 😛
 
Charlie_Zeaiter said:
Hello,

I’ve once heard that housework can be a form or prayer. (If so, I must be a saint! 😉 )

I wonder if anybody can lead me to some books or links, with some info about this? I would prefer something written by a saint - you know, a bit of credibility goes a long way. 🙂
Click to expand...
Along with St. Therese, who others suggested, you might want to read The Practice of the Presence of God by Bro. Lawrence.
 
water said:
A friend of mine gave me an example given by a Saint. I forgot the name of the Saint, but from what he told me, these are what I have applied to my housework as a form of prayer. I will ask my friend for the name of the Saint and let you know.

Mainly, every action we take, we can think of them spiritually.
  1. when I wash dishes, I will pray something like “As the soap detergent washes away the food on these dishes, Dear Blessed Mother, may Jesus’ blood and water wash away my sins and keeps me from falling into sins”.
  2. As I turn on the light in my room, I ask God to guide me with His Light.
  3. As I open the door to my room, I ask God to help me open and keep my soul purified for the Holy Spirit.
  4. When I walk down stairs, I could ask my Guardian Angel to protect me from falling into the trap of Satan.
  5. etc …
Click to expand...
That’s pretty cool. When I ride an elevator or take a cab, I pray for those riding with me. That way, you are not miffed when someone delays the elevator by jumping in late, or a cabbie who takes a wrong turn…
 
The “little flower” is an excellent place to find this ideal. Another is Josemaria Escriva:

“Persevere in the exact fulfilment of the obligations of the moment. That work — humble, monotonous, small — is prayer expressed in action that prepares you to receive the grace of the other work — great and wide and deep — of which you dream.”

“I’ll place a martyrdom within your reach: to be an apostle and not call yourself and apostle, to be a missionary - with a mission - and not call yourself a missionary, to be a man of God and to seem a man of the world: to pass unnoticed.”

A collection of St. Josemaria’s writings where you can find more - especially helpful on this topics, I think, are the sermons and devotions concerning Joseph and Mary:
escrivaworks.org/
 
Just thought of another good place to look related to St. Josemaria:
Ordinary Work, Extraordinary Grace - by Scott Hahn. Scott Hahn is an enjoyable read and this book will give you a lot of thoughts to digest. Its more than just an auto-biography of his involvement in Opus Dei - it really gets to the intent of Opus Dei to sanctify the ordinary and everyday routine.
 
Charlie_Zeaiter said:
Hello,

I’ve once heard that housework can be a form or prayer. (If so, I must be a saint! 😉 )

I wonder if anybody can lead me to some books or links, with some info about this? I would prefer something written by a saint - you know, a bit of credibility goes a long way. 🙂
Click to expand...
Rule of St Benedict is one way to start, esepcially what he has to say about hospitality, care of the kitchen, vessels used in cooking being equal in importance and deserving of care as the altar vessels, care for guests and for fellow residents, stewardship of possessions of the monastery used for the needs of the monks etc. He definitely rates good ole housework under the virtue of hospitality, and ranks it in importance with chastity, obedience, and stability, the other vows taken by the monks. and of course one more thing to note about a monastery, the men do all the work!
 
God calls all to some particular state in life - intrinsic are the duties that come with that state in life. With many of us housework is a part of the duties of our state in life - hence God’s Will. When we are about ordinary everyday housework we are about God’s Will.
Two good habits to cultivate I think are “The Morning Offering” and also to think of God often during the day, perhaps with a small aspiration: e.g. “Jesus, I love and trust you, help me to live this day well for you”.

The Morning Offering has a long history in The Church and was recommended also by Pope John Paul II. There is also a text of a \Morning Offering (which is very short and easy to learn) on this site:
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Morning_offering

Morning Offering mirrors Christ’s Offering as He came into the world October 23, 2007, 8:57 pm
unbornwordoftheday.com/2007/10/23/morning-offering-mirrors-christs-offering-as-he-came-into-the-world/

Morning Offering to the Sacred Heart by Fr. Francois Xavier Gaulrelet (1844)
O Jesus, through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I offer You my prayers, works, joys and sufferings of this day for all the intentions of Your Sacred Heart, in union with the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass throughout the world, in reparation for my sins, for the intentions of all our associates, and in particular for the intentions of our Holy Father for this month.
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I would recommend too “Practise of The Presence of God” by Brother Lawrence - online text:
catholictreasury.info/Presence/Default.htm

Blessings all…Barb:)
 
There have been many excellent posts in this thread. I would also recommend looking into Salesian spirituality as a way of consecrating your ordinary day to the Lord. St. Francis DeSales wrote back in the 1600’s about everyday holiness and how each of us, whether priest, wife, or soldier, are called to live a life of holiness in a way appropriate to our vocations. I recommend checking out “Introduction to the Devout Life,” still as applicable in the 21st century as it was in the 17th. Also, the Oblates have many wonderful resources including this pamplet, which may help:
oblates.org/spirituality/salesian_perspectives/salper_engvol3num04.pdf
God Bless!
 
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