Prayers are Catholics "supposed" to know?

[Irish_Eyes_826]

Is there a set list a prayers every Catholic is supposed to know? I know most of my prayers, but sometimes I hear new prayers and wonder if I’m “supposed” to know them. I know the Our Father, Hail Mary, Sign of the Cross, Glory Be, Prayer to the Holy Spirit, Prayer of St. Francis, Prayer of St. Ignatius, the Morning offering, grace before/after meals, Act of Contrition, Gloria, Memorare, Prayer of St. Michael, Nicene Creed, Apostles’ Creed, Prayer of St. Ignatius, Prayer for Eternal Rest, and the Guardian Angel’s Prayer. Am I missing any?

 

[jilly4ski]

:hypno: If you know all those by heart, then you know more than me, a cradle catholic.* The only one I didn’t see on your list that I have memorized is the “Hail Holy Queen.”

*I have a prayer book I pray some of the more exotic or longer prayers.

 

[losh14]

You may find you’ll memorize the ones you use most. Anima Christi and the Jesus Prayer are two of my favorites - I’ve let the latter evolve into something very personal to me:

“Lord Jesus Christ
Only Son of the Living God
Savior of all Mankind
Have Mercy on me, a sinner”

The Our Father is my morning coffee - it’s a prayer I meditate upon when I’m too tired in the morning to really pray spontaneously or even consider the day before me, because it gives me all I need to get through my day. It reminds me of who I am in Christ, and who Christ is to me, and how I am to live. If it feels stale, I ponder the words out loud as I say them:

“Our father, who art in Heaven
My God who knew me before I was born, You who dwell in Holiness and yet hear my raspy sinner’s voice…
Hallowed be thy Name
May I honor you in all things, by words and deeds, and never invoke shame upon your most sacred Name”

I’d also recommend a prayer for your work - a simple dedication such as Thomas Merton’s “Lord, I have no idea where I am going but I trust in you”. Actually his was a little longer. One I often say:

“Lord, I thank you for this day and I offer it up to you.
Please let me honor you and not offend you.
Let me be patient and allow you to work in me.
I offer you my triumphs and failures, my strengths and my weaknesses
my moments proud and humiliating, and ask you to make them to your use.”

It’s also helpful to have one in times of temptation:
“Lord, remind me of your mother’s tears as she saw you on the Cross, that I may not do this thing.”

“Lord, take this desire from me, I offer it upon your Cross and ask you to help me shoulder this burden.”

One I like to calm my mind is from Psalm 46:10 - a meditation:
“Be still, and know that I am the Lord
Be still, and know that I AM
Be still, and know
Be still
Be”

I used to begin our Bible studies with this meditation, kinda shuts down everything else in your mind.

Lastly, a prayer to the Holy Spirit:
“Spirit of the Living God, fall fresh upon me
Spirit of the Living God, fall fresh upon me
Make me, mold me, shape me, use me, fill me
Spirit of the Living God, fall fresh upon me”

Is there a set list a prayers every Catholic is supposed to know?

 

[Semper_Zelare]

I don’t want to be overly forward… but, what is it that keeps you from becoming Catholic? How do you know all of those prayers, and still aren’t Catholic?

 

[tjwdsssc2015]

JMJ

Wow, I too am impressed. I’m a seminarian, and I don’t have memorized some of those prayers you listed! (I admit, I do know most of them, though!)

Here are a few suggestions for you:

The various prayers from Fatima (you can find them all over the internet; here are some):

–My God, I believe, I adore, I trust, and I love Thee. I beg pardon for those who do not believe, do not adore, do not trust, and do not love Thee. (repeat three times)

–O Most Holy Trinity, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, I adore Thee profoundly. I offer Thee the most Precious Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in Tabernacles throughout the world, in reparation for the outrages, sacrileges, and indifferences by which He is offended. By the infinite merits of the Sacred Heart of Jesus in union with the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I beg the conversion of poor sinners.
[NB: when the Angel taught the children this prayer, they were shown a beautiful monstrance with the Host; they bowed until their foreheads touched the ground, and repeated this prayer three times. Then, the Angel distributed Holy Communion to the three–for two, it was their first Eucharist (and what a first Eucharist to have!!). After, they bowed low again, and repeated this prayer three times.]

–O Most Holy Trinity, I adore Thee! My God, my God, I love Thee in the Most Blessed Sacrament!

–O my Jesus, forgive us our sins; save us from the fires of Hell. Lead all souls to heaven, especially those in most need of Thy mercy.

**The Magnificat and the Benedictus and the Nunc Dimitis **(that is, the Canticles of Mary, Zechariah, and Simeon, prayed at Evening, Morning, and Night prayer respectively)

Do you pray the Divine Office? Also called the Liturgy of the Hours or “Christian Prayer”, it is the prayers of the Church. Let’s just say, the Divine Office is so important that all priests are obliged to pray all five hours (not literally 60 minutes, but prayer times) daily (if they miss one, they must confess it!), but priests are not obliged to say Mass any day other than Sunday.

jilly4ski mentions a handbook of prayers, and so do I I highly recommend the Handbook of Prayers (the student edition is perfect); it has all the prayers you need, including basic prayers, novenas, chaplets, rosary meditations, stations of the cross, an incredible examination of conscience, prayers for before and after Mass, points of meditation, and even an instruction on “how to be a better Catholic”. The ISBN is: 978-1-936045-00-6; it is published by MTF. You’ll love it. My Dogmatic Theology professor just this evening in class recommended this book for all the students. It’s great!

God love you

 

[domandcarols]

Is there a set list a prayers every Catholic is supposed to know? I know most of my prayers, but sometimes I hear new prayers and wonder if I’m “supposed” to know them. I know the Our Father, Hail Mary, Sign of the Cross, Glory Be, Prayer to the Holy Spirit, Prayer of St. Francis, Prayer of St. Ignatius, the Morning offering, grace before/after meals, Act of Contrition, Gloria, Memorare, Prayer of St. Michael, Nicene Creed, Apostles’ Creed, Prayer of St. Ignatius, Prayer for Eternal Rest, and the Guardian Angel’s Prayer. Am I missing any?

Wow! I’m impressed. I don’t think you’re missing any essential ones.
God bless.

 

[Irish_Eyes_826]

@Semper Zalare: I am Catholic. Well, I was raised Catholic, but I don’t know if I want to continue to be Catholic. But I think I do. Let’s just say that topic is a whole other thread. My Catholic schools were big on prayer and spirituality, and even though my faith has wavered, I still try to pray. When talking to my religion teacher in high school, who knew I was struggling with my faith, asked me what religion I was this week, I told him I didn’t know, but I knew I wasn’t an atheist this week because I’d been praying too much .
Anywho, I just wasn’t sure if there were certain prayers a Catholic was supposed to know by heart. I’ve also been exploring Ignatian Spirituality so I’ve been learning those prayers. I’ve just always found prayer so intriguing and I want to make sure I learn as much as I can about Catholic prayer as possible.

 

[domandcarols]

@Semper Zalare: I am Catholic. Well, I was raised Catholic, but I don’t know if I want to continue to be Catholic. But I think I do. Let’s just say that topic is a whole other thread. My Catholic schools were big on prayer and spirituality, and even though my faith has wavered, I still try to pray. When talking to my religion teacher in high school, who knew I was struggling with my faith, asked me what religion I was this week, I told him I didn’t know, but I knew I wasn’t an atheist this week because I’d been praying too much .
Anywho, I just wasn’t sure if there were certain prayers a Catholic was supposed to know by heart. I’ve also been exploring Ignatian Spirituality so I’ve been learning those prayers. I’ve just always found prayer so intriguing and I want to make sure I learn as much as I can about Catholic prayer as possible.

God bless you and good luck in your journey of faith.
I like Anima Christi and Thomas Merton’s Prayer for Discernment. Those are two of my favorite prayers.