Question regarding RCIA meeting

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Marilena

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I went with my husband to his second RCIA meeting last night.
Father asked me to open up the meeting with a prayer. I looked
at him and said, " maybe my husband would like to" ( I felt
uncomfortable as I did not have my head covered) He asked me
to say the prayer, so I did. It was uncomfortable because I think
women should have their head covered when praying if men are in attendance in the group. Might not be forbidden, but it made me
uncomfortable. Should I talk to Father about this? Or let it slide?
One other thing that bothered me, when he was talking about
people praying, he said that if you pray to God to win the lottery,
He may or may not answer your prayers. Why would anyone want
to pray to win a lottery? I never ask God for things that are for
self serving reasons. Is not praying to win a lottery self serving?
Another thing, he said God does not answer all prayers. I think
God does if your intent is sincere, and out of love for Him does
He not? God is love after all, and why would He not answer a
prayer that is not self serving, out of love for Him, and totally
sincere? God says, " things impossible with man are possible
with God" Jesus says, " ask anything in my name and I will do
it" Does He not? I was a bit troubled at the meeting, and wondered if I should speak to him in private. Iam thinking it might
not be a good idea. I don’t know. But it did trouble me. Especially
praying without my head being covered. Any ideas? Please don’t chastise me for saying that I felt uncomfortable praying without
my head being covered. It is my personal opinion and that’s all.
Thank you for helping me out 🙂 God bless you!
 
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Marilena:
I went with my husband to his second RCIA meeting last night.
Father asked me to open up the meeting with a prayer. I looked
at him and said, " maybe my husband would like to" ( I felt
uncomfortable as I did not have my head covered) He asked me
to say the prayer, so I did. It was uncomfortable because I think
women should have their head covered when praying if men are in attendance in the group. Might not be forbidden, but it made me
uncomfortable. Should I talk to Father about this? Or let it slide?
One other thing that bothered me, when he was talking about
people praying, he said that if you pray to God to win the lottery,
he may or may not answer your prayers. Why would anyone want
to pray to win a lottery? I never ask God for things that are for
self serving reasons. Is not praying to win a lottery self serving?
Another thing, he said God does not answer all prayers. I think
God does if your intent is sincere, and out of love for Him does
he not? God is love after all, and why would He not answer a
prayer that is not self serving, out of love for Him, and totally
sincere? God says, " things impossible with man are possible
with God" Jesus says, " ask anything in my name and I will do
it" Does He not? I was a bit troubled at the meeting, and wondered if I should speak to him in private. Iam thinking it might
not be a good idea. I don’t know. But it did trouble me. Especially
praying without my head being covered. Any ideas? Please don’t chastise me for saying that I felt uncomfortable praying without
my head being covered. It is my personal opinion and that’s all.
Thank you for helping me out 🙂 God bless you!
Click to expand...
Good for you to attend RCIA w/ your hubby. I’m sure that he appreciated the support and I hope that you will find the class informative and supportive of your journey with Christ in His Church.

My suspicion is that Father asked you to say the prayer as he knew you would do a good job and be a good witness to everyone there. If you feel strongly about praying with your head uncovered, maybe you should always have a “beenie” in your purse. I’m not trying to make light of your views. I think your personal dedication to proper attire is a virtue that more should practice (myself included).

However, I think it is good whenever a Catholic is invited to lead prayer. It is just one more way in which we can subtly invite or expose others to the Catholic Faith. Among my friends (some of whom are Protestant), I always relish when I’m asked to say a prayer (usually Grace) as I consider it an opportunity for me to spread the Good News. If the beenie idea is a bad one (I’m one of those slovenly guys who doesn’t understand the nuances of fashion much to my wife’s chagrin), I suggest that you either talk to father or just wear a hat to RCIA.

Regarding praying to win the lottery, I think he was just trying to illustrate that not all prayers conform to God’s will (esp. one’s with such an obvious selfish motive) and thus His “non-answer” is His answer.

LOL After my monologue above, let me address your question. I don’t think one should ever be bothered by what their Pastor says. Approach him respectfully and ask to discuss these matters with him. He will become aware that sometimes his speach isn’t as clear as he intended and thus creating misunderstanding and an understanding of when you feel comfortable leading the group in prayer.
 
I have never heard that women should cover their heads while praying in the presence of men.

I have only heard that women should cover their heads in the presence of the Eucharist. (during Mass or when it’s stored in the tabernacle) (1917 Canon Law) My aunt once explained to me that this is the reason for the altar light- so women could know, as they entered the church not during Mass, whether the tabernacle contained the Eucharist or not, and so they would know whether to cover their heads or not. (and so that everyone would show the proper respect in His Presence.)

???

Am I mistaken?

(Also, if you won the lottery, you could do a great deal of good for others. It’s not necessarily self-serving.)
 
Marilena, as for prayers not being answered, even if they are not self-serving, we have the example of Paul in 2 Cor 12:7-9:

And to keep me from being too elated by the abundance of revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I besought the Lord about this, that it should leave me; but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” I will all the more gladly boast of my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Paul’s request that the ‘thorn’ leave him was not self-serving, because everything Paul did was for the service of God, and doubtless, he believed that without it he could serve better. “My grace is sufficient for you” was an “answer” to his prayer, but it was not the answer Paul hoped for. Grace gave him the understanding, even though God did not grant his request.

We have further evidence about the mystery and incomprehensibility of prayer in Romans 8:26:

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not knowhow to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words.

Our Lord directs us to pray for “self serving” ends, such as “our daily bread” – but not for $100,000,000! Clearly, your pastor was trying to show people that it is important to pray for our needs in accordance with the will of God. YOU know that but others might not be as far along in their walk as you are. You would be amazed!
As for the head covering – do you come from a tradition that requires this? It is a matter of “indifference” to Catholics. That means you may cover to your heart’s content if it you like! But others need not, according to their conscience.
 
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JoeMike:
I have never heard that women should cover their heads while praying in the presence of men.

I have only heard that women should cover their heads in the presence of the Eucharist. (during Mass or when it’s stored in the tabernacle) (1917 Canon Law) My aunt once explained to me that this is the reason for the altar light- so women could know, as they entered the church not during Mass, whether the tabernacle contained the Eucharist or not, and so they would know whether to cover their heads or not. (and so that everyone would show the proper respect in His Presence.)

???

Am I mistaken?

(Also, if you won the lottery, you could do a great deal of good for others. It’s not necessarily self-serving.)
Click to expand...
Take a look in the DRV at 1 Corinthians 11: 1-15
 
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mercygate:
Marilena, as for prayers not being answered, even if they are not self-serving, we have the example of Paul in 2 Cor 12:7-9:

And to keep me from being too elated by the abundance of revelations, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan, to harass me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I besought the Lord about this, that it should leave me; but he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” I will all the more gladly boast of my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may rest upon me.

Paul’s request that the ‘thorn’ leave him was not self-serving, because everything Paul did was for the service of God, and doubtless, he believed that without it he could serve better. “My grace is sufficient for you” was an “answer” to his prayer, but it was not the answer Paul hoped for. Grace gave him the understanding, even though God did not grant his request.

We have further evidence about the mystery and incomprehensibility of prayer in Romans 8:26:

Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness; for we do not knowhow to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words.

Our Lord directs us to pray for “self serving” ends, such as “our daily bread” – but not for $100,000,000! Clearly, your pastor was trying to show people that it is important to pray for our needs in accordance with the will of God. YOU know that but others might not be as far along in their walk as you are. You would be amazed!
As for the head covering – do you come from a tradition that requires this? It is a matter of “indifference” to Catholics. That means you may cover to your heart’s content if it you like! But others need not, according to their conscience.
Click to expand...
Thank you for the information
 
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Marilena:
I went with my husband to his second RCIA meeting last night.
Father asked me to open up the meeting with a prayer. I looked
at him and said, " maybe my husband would like to" ( I felt
uncomfortable as I did not have my head covered) He asked me
to say the prayer, so I did. It was uncomfortable because I think
women should have their head covered when praying if men are in attendance in the group. Might not be forbidden, but it made me
uncomfortable. Should I talk to Father about this? Or let it slide?!
Click to expand...
I think you could mention to Father that you feel called to cover your head while praying. Explain to him that you have very traditional viewpoints and, and that you are drawn to the beauty of Catholic Tradition. Maybe he will encourage you to wear a head covering, or maybe he will try to discourage you. At any rate, it is no longer required by the CC, but is a personal devotion that many women feel called to.
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Marilena:
One other thing that bothered me, when he was talking about people praying, he said that if you pray to God to win the lottery, He may or may not answer your prayers. Why would anyone want to pray to win a lottery? I never ask God for things that are for self serving reasons. Is not praying to win a lottery self serving?
Click to expand...
Here, I think your pastor was making the point that sometimes people pray for things they *think * they need, temporal things, when God knows what they should be asking for is spiritual grace. Your pastor was showing you that God does not always answer these prayers, knowing that when we ask for these things, it will not help us in our spiritual journey. Remember that some of the RCIA group is brand new to religion and may need a more simplified version of these things. You already have a good grasp on things. Be patient with those who need to catch up!
 
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paramedicgirl:
I think you could mention to Father that you feel called to cover your head while praying. Explain to him that you have very traditional viewpoints and, and that you are drawn to the beauty of Catholic Tradition. Maybe he will encourage you to wear a head covering, or maybe he will try to discourage you. At any rate, it is no longer required by the CC, but is a personal devotion that many women feel called to.

Here, I think your pastor was making the point that sometimes people pray for things they *think * they need, temporal things, when God knows what they should be asking for is spiritual grace. Your pastor was showing you that God does not always answer these prayers, knowing that when we ask for these things, it will not help us in our spiritual journey. Remember that some of the RCIA group is brand new to religion and may need a more simplified version of these things. You already have a good grasp on things. Be patient with those who need to catch up!
Click to expand...
Good points to rememeber! Indeed, I’d love to wear a head covering, but it might not be appropriate in this case, as the
new people would not understand the head covering. I went
to support Frank 🙂 He asked me to go with him:) I only felt out
of sorts when asked to pray as I did not have a head covering.
As for what you said in regards to father’s point, I think you all
are correct. Thank you for clarifying this for me.🙂
 
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paramedicgirl:
I think you could mention to Father that you feel called to cover your head while praying.
Click to expand...
Ditto. The priest may have had no idea that you desired to cover your head before praying. It is not at all common in my parish.

I also second the suggestion to keep a head covering in your purse, if you desire to continue the practice. Anytime you are attending a church function, you should be prepared to pray!
 
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paramedicgirl:
Here, I think your pastor was making the point that sometimes people pray for things they *think *they need, temporal things, when God knows what they should be asking for is spiritual grace. Your pastor was showing you that God does not always answer these prayers, knowing that when we ask for these things, it will not help us in our spiritual journey. Remember that some of the RCIA group is brand new to religion and may need a more simplified version of these things. You already have a good grasp on things. Be patient with those who need to catch up!
Click to expand...
Just to add to this thought – I think God does answer ALL prayers. He just might not answer them the way we want . . .:whacky:
 
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JGheen:
Just to add to this thought – I think God does answer ALL prayers. He just might not answer them the way we want . . .:whacky:
Click to expand...
Yeah. And in the case of lotteries the anwer might be, ***“In your dreams!!!” 😃 ***
 
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