When you pray, do you pray out loud or can you just pray in your head?

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Vocal prayer and mental prayer are both key components of our spiritual lives. It is also important to remember that prayer is a dialog; a conversation with God.

If the only time we pray is vocal prayer, then we are having a one sided conversation, and not giving God a chance to respond.

God speaks to us in the silence. It is in the silence that we may hear His voice.
1 Kings 19:11-12
11 And he said, “Go forth, and stand upon the mount before the LORD.” And behold, the LORD passed by, and a great and strong wind rent the mountains, and broke in pieces the rocks before the LORD, but the LORD was not in the wind; and after the wind an earthquake, but the LORD was not in the earthquake;
12 and after the earthquake a fire, but the LORD was not in the fire; and after the fire a still small voice.
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The world is filled with noise; and not just audible noise, but visual and mental noise as well. The world is a constant assault of stimulation and distraction. To hear the voice of God, we must search for His still small voice in silence.

In his fictional novel The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis depicts a master demon writing to his inexperienced demon nephew. He gives him the following advice to keep Christians far from God:
“Music and silence–how I detest them both! How thankful we should be that ever since our father (that is Lucifer) entered hell no square inch of infernal space and no moment of infernal time has been surrendered to either of those abominable forces, but all has been occupied by Noise – Noise, the grand dynamism, the audible expression of all that is exultant, ruthless and virile – Noise which alone defends us from silly qualms, despairing scruples and impossible desires. We will make the whole universe a noise in the end. We have already made great strides in this direction as regards the earth. The melodies and silences of heaven will be shouted down in the end.”
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I highly recommend the book The Power of Silence: Against the Dictatorship of Noise by Cardinal Sarah. In it, he explains how beautiful and necessary finding silence is in building a relationship with God and having true, genuine dialog with him through prayer.
 
You can pray in your head. I note that while some of the indulgences in the current Enchiridion require you to “recite” the indulgenced prayers which presumably means out loud (and I say those out loud), there are also indulgences available for people who “piously spend some time in mental prayer” or say a pious invocation during their daily life even if only “mentally”, so it’s quite acceptable.
 
I pray in my head when I am in public (Like for example in a bus) or when I don’t feel like talking which happens sometimes (Might be a problem of mine)
I pray out loud at mass with everyone else of course and when I am alone cause thats usually when I feel the most comfortable to talking with God.
 
I like praying in my head better than actually saying it out loud. When I’m alone I also pray in my head because I feel more connected and intimate that way. I only pray out loud during mass and prayers that are done together with my family/friends.

I think it’s important to find out in what way you feel most connected to God by prayers. God calls us in different ways and usually your preferance can give clarity on how God is calling you to get to know him more.
 
I like praying in my head in my own words, just talking to God. I find that I can grasp words quicker and speak more efficiently and expressively. It definitely does feel more intimate.

I like vocal prayer when I am reciting Hail Mary’s and Our Fathers and the likes because it helps me know where I’m at so I can meditate on certain things like Heaven or Hell or whatnot.

When I’m alone I have at times talked out loud to God in a free manner, like a friend.
 
I think most of my prayers are mental, but I always pray the rosary vocally (though almost at a whisper).
 
I do all and both. There are three levels of Prayer
Vocal, meditative and contemplative
 
Here is another question:

When you pray, do you pray to God within you or outside you?

I have been thinking more on this relationship between my conscious praying ego, my deeper broader soul, and the Holy Spirit who dwells within me.

When I pray “in my head” or in my heart, in my soul, with my mouth silent and my eyes closed, everything seems more within.
 
I pray silently most of the time. Even when I’m alone, I still do it silently. Once in a while I’ll pray out loud if I am desperate.
 
When alone I sometimes pray aloud, sometimes quietly. When I am with other people I pray quietly.

In the car aloud when alone, when my child is with me I pray quietly otherwise I will be questioned again as to why I an talking to myself!
 
I usually pray quietly, unless I’m by myself. Prayer is something very personal for me.
 
I mostly pray silently, but not always. I see nothing wrong with either one.
 
I say very simply to God what I wish to say, without composing beautiful sentences, and he always understands me.

-St. Therese
 
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I do both. When I pray the rosary I pray vocally and apply most of my mind to the mystery which is being presented; I also usually pray chaplets aloud. When not doing a memorized prayer I pray mentally and say things in my own words and keep them to myself as I feel meditative and mental prayer are my strong points. Sometimes when I pray the rosary I go OCD mode on my hail Marys and question if I got it exactly correct (99.9% of the time I do) and it’s sometimes really annoying. I think I just know the Hail Mary too well, to the point where I question myself. Does this ever happen to anyone else?
 
I pray silently most all the time. Sometimes, I think perhaps, I pray best when I say nothing at all and am simply quiet before the Blessed Sacrament but I don’t get to that place as often as I would like. Very often, I am distracted, and am not quite sure if I’m just thinking to myself or actually praying.

I want to get back to praying the rosary, however, which is vocal and mental prayer at the same time. I believe I have lost something important by neglecting it.
 
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