How do you pray?

[Halligator]

My ancient dog recently had to be put to sleep. I called my sister to give her the news. She asked if I’d like to pray with her, and of course I said yes. As I was silently considering what I wanted to say to God, my sister began the Our Father. I prayed it with her. After we said Amen, I began a short prayer of thanks to God for the life Carolina (my dog) had shared with me.

I’m the sort of Catholic who makes up my personal prayers the moment I speak them. I thank God for the blessings I’ve received; I ask for what I or others need. I’ve understood that the Our Father (outside its special place in the Mass) to be more a formula for prayer than words to be recited in all circumstances.

Please help me understand why people (in their personal prayers) pray general prayers instead of making up specific ones. Thank you.

Arthur

 

[JRS_88]

I think part of it may be because many Catholics might not have been taught about, the various kinds of prayer (Prayers of thanksgiving, praise, petition, contemplation, etc. Particularly contemplative, meditative prayer.
I think when you study the forms of prayer, it’s gets easier to cultivate extemporaneous prayer. That is what I experienced.

Another reason would be sheer habit. People pray in a way that is most familiar to them.
It’s important to remember that in private prayer, it’s just that - private - and we can pray as we wish, whether it’s fixed prayers or free form. When I came back to the Church after 30+ years away, It took me ages to calm myself and just “talk” with Christ Our Lord. I had the terrible idea in my head that “Jesus doesn’t want to hear me ramble on about things, I better stick to the tried and true”. It took practice, reading about prayer and time to cultivate a broader prayer life beyond fixed prayer. It didn’t come easy for me.

 

[oneofmany]

I use my own words when talking to God but I do say the other prayers we have been taught. Jesus did teach us the Our Father. I do have to say when I am tense rote prayers are great. The Hail Mary is wonderful when I am in a tense situation and cannot quiet my mind on how bad I feel from anxiety.

 

[Catie59]

You’re special that you can do that all the time. Sometimes I have specific
requests my mind is saying but I am unable to verbalize them.
If that is the case , I pray a general prayer to God that pretty much
encompasses what I really want to say. But be assured that I say
the prayer contemplating every word with complete reverence, and
lift my prayerful thoughts to the Lord who knows what I am thinking.
I tell Him, “Lord you know what my intentions are and You also know I
am having a hard time in my humanity verbalizing them, and ask that
You please answer my intentions concerning …,” and end my prayer
as usual through Christ Jesus our Lord. Not all of us are able to make
a personal prayer at the time we want to, every time. Whatever
way we pray we must believe He hears them all. I think a very large
% of people pray this way. God our Father loves and accepts
both scripted and spontaneous prayer as long as we humble ourselves
in reverence. If this were not so Jesus wouldn’t have taught us the
Lords prayer.

 

[oneofmany]

My mother had dementia in her later life but she sure knew the Lord’s Prayer and the Hail Mary. Rote prayers are great that way, plus she learned them in her younger years and memory loss occurs on short term first so people can remember what happened in their childhood more than what happened yesterday.

 

[spedteacherita]

Whatever
way we pray we must believe He hears them all. I think a very large % of people pray this way. God our Father loves and accepts both scripted and spontaneous prayer as long as we humble ourselves
in reverence. If this were not so Jesus wouldn’t have tau

◄ I always take comfort in this promise:

Romans 8:26
New International Version
In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us through wordless groans.

 

[rasbat]

This is interesting to read. As a convert from protestantism this is one thing my relatives have accused catholics of time and again. In protestant churches they seem aside from the our Father to only pray in their own words, and rote prayers make them feel icky. But family has frequently claimed that Catholic prayer practices are too centered on these. But anyway I find them to be great in many ways and at least one reason why I use them is as a guide. They are “tried and true” as someone has said already. They are a way especially in times of distress and mental flustering in the day to elevate one’s heart, mind, will etc. to God without being “put on the spot” so to speak. So many of these prayers express things we would like to but just simply say it so much better if one is not particularly good with words as is the case for many. I suppose especially with long habit these things make it very understandable why some people go to them as a kind of default setting for prayer.

 

[mountee]

The familiarity of rote prayers is a comfort to me but I do pray in my own words many times throughout the day. If people took the time to read what our prayers actually said I doubt they would really have a problem with them. The ability to form your own prayer is always an option for us and I would be willing to bet that no matter what we pray we make God happy.

 

[Miserissima]

Please help me understand why people (in their personal prayers) pray general prayers instead of making up specific ones. Thank you.

Arthur

Have you ever been in a conversation and struggled to find the correct term or phrase? It could either be on the “tip of your tongue,” or your mind could be a general blank. Sometimes, we look at the person with whom we are speaking and say, “You know what I mean, right?” Other times, another listener will jump in and explain what you’re trying to say in a better way you could have thought.

In this analogy, the first listener is God, the second listener who speaks for you is the Holy Spirit.

That’s what some Catholics do with formal prayer. “Father, I don’t know how to pray for this situation, so apply this prayer to my intention.” The Holy Spirit fills in the blanks for us.

The Reader of the Hearts of Men knows what we want to say, even when we don’t have the words. The effort put forth to pray could be a formal prayer, especially the Our Father, because the Our Father was Christ’s own word and is perfect in its elements: Adoration, Contrition, Thanksgiving, and Supplication.

Oftentimes, non-Catholic Christians deride Catholic prayer as “too formal” and indicative of not having a “personal” relationship with the Lord. When actually some folks simply aren’t good extemporaneous pray-ers. It may simply be that they do not have this gift or will to grow this talent. As the Holy Spirit intercedes for us regarding our salvation, He also intercedes for us in our daily prayers – from the mundane to the crisis, as explained in Romans 6:

26 In the same way, the Spirit too comes to the aid of our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit itself intercedes with inexpressible groanings.

27 And the one who searches hearts knows what is the intention of the Spirit, because it intercedes for the holy ones according to God’s will.

So even if we don’t know how to “pray as we ought,” there are *also *saints who will intercede for us. For example, if I’m going on a long trip I’ll ask Sts. Christopher and Raphael to make sure I’m prepared and safe during my journey. I’m not asking them to provide as if they had any power of their own, but I’m asking them to pray on my behalf that I don’t forget my toothbrush and don’t get a flat tire – by the communion of the Holy Spirit, they will also pray with and for me, whether I ask for their intercession in formal petition or not.