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WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 32326 [post_author] => 43 [post_date] => 2023-03-13 15:48:33 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-03-13 15:48:33 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Read about the history of St. Patrick, the great "Apostle of Ireland," and learn his famous Breastplate Prayer: "Christ with me, Christ before me."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>Table of Contents</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#introduction">Introduction</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#About-St-Patrick">About St. Patrick</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Prayer-of-St-Patrick">Prayer of St. Patrick</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#The-Irish-Blessing">The Irish Blessing</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="http://every-day-irish-blessings">Short Irish blessings for Every Day</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="Introduction">Introduction</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">St. Patrick’s Day (March 17)&nbsp; is one of the most globally celebrated feast days. From the city of Chicago that dyes its river green to the many parades in Ireland, North American cities, and elsewhere, this day commemorates the saint who introduced Ireland to Christianity.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Outside of Ireland, those cities include Boston, Chicago, and New York, just to name a few. All are home to large parades and streets lined with green decor to celebrate “St. Paddy,” typically on the weekend before or after the feast day on March 17.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Overall, this day has transformed into more of a cultural celebration than a religious one per se, though there are many prayers and Irish blessings we’ll share with you to prayerfully celebrate this Catholic saint aside from the corned beef and cabbage.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="About-St-Patrick">About St. Patrick</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">St. Patrick is one of the most well-known saints worldwide, with millions who share his name (Pádraig, Patricio, Patrício to name a few translations) and many churches named after him. Ever visited <a href="https://saintpatrickscathedral.org/live">St. Patrick’s Cathedral</a> in Manhattan?&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Born in the late fourth century A.D. in Roman Britain (either Scotland or Wales, historians <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/religion/religions/christianity/saints/patrick_1.shtml#:~:text=Enslaved%20by%20pirates&amp;text=He%20was%20put%20to%20work,much%20of%20his%20time%20praying.">debate</a>), legend holds this saint drove all snakes out of Ireland, though we know there have never been snakes in Ireland. This legend likely arose from the credit to St. Patrick’s for spreading Christianity in Ireland; he is known as the great “Apostle of Ireland.”&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">St. Patrick was actually kidnapped when he was 16 by <a href="https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/saint/st-patrick-of-ireland-180">Irish raiders</a> in his homeland and taken to Ireland where he was enslaved for several years. According to tradition, he spent six years in the Slemish Mountain region in Northern Ireland as a shepherd of pigs and sheep. He eventually escaped and journeyed back to his homeland as a stowaway across the North Channel.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Upon returning, he studied Christianity and became a deacon and, ultimately, a bishop. After a <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/saints/03/17/st--patrick--bishop--disciple-of-ireland-.html">great vision</a>, St. Patrick returned to Ireland to evangelize.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As we read in his <a href="https://www.confessio.ie/etexts/confessio_english#"><em>Confessio</em></a>,</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>So I am first of all a simple country person, a refugee, and unlearned. I do not know how to provide for the future. But this I know for certain, that before I was brought low, I was like a stone lying deep in the mud. Then he who is powerful came and in his mercy pulled me out, and lifted me up and placed me on the very top of the wall. That is why I must shout aloud in return to the Lord for such great good deeds of his, here and now and forever, which the human mind cannot measure.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>St. Patrick</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Many believe that St. Patrick used the symbol of the shamrock – the three-leafed clover – as a means of evangelization; the three leaves represent the Holy Trinity of God the Father, the Son, and the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-to-the-holy-spirit/">Holy Spirit</a>.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/0EjxYley8xb">Download Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="Prayer-of-St-Patrick">Prayer of St. Patrick</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This Prayer of St. Patrick is also known as the Breastplate Prayer or “Lorica” Prayer – Latin for “a Roman cuirass of leather or metal.” It is a beautiful prayer to say in the morning and remind yourself of the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-for-strength/">strength</a> of Christ that works through you, and of course, an excellent prayer for St. Patrick’s Day.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Many variations shorten the bolded portion of the full prayer below into a shorter prayer:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me, Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me, Christ on my right, Christ on my left, Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down, Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me, Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks of me, Christ in the eye that sees me, Christ in the ear that hears me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Here’s the full Prayer of St. Patrick:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I arise today</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through a belief in the Threeness,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through confession of the Oneness</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Of the Creator of creation.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I arise today</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through the strength of Christ's birth and His baptism,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through the strength of His crucifixion and His burial,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through the strength of His resurrection and His ascension,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through the strength of His descent for the judgment of doom.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I arise today</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through the strength of the love of cherubim,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>In obedience of angels,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>In service of archangels,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>In the hope of resurrection to meet with reward,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>In the prayers of patriarchs,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>In preachings of the apostles,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>In faiths of confessors,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>In innocence of virgins,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>In deeds of righteous men.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I arise today</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through the strength of heaven;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Light of the sun,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Splendor of fire,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Speed of lightning,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Swiftness of the wind,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Depth of the sea,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Stability of the earth,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Firmness of the rock.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I arise today</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through God's strength to pilot me;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's might to uphold me,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's wisdom to guide me,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's eye to look before me,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's ear to hear me,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's word to speak for me,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's hand to guard me,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's way to lie before me,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's shield to protect me,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God's hosts to save me</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>From snares of the devil,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>From temptations of vices,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>From every one who desires me ill,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Afar and anear,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Alone or in a multitude.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I summon today all these powers between me and evil,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against every cruel merciless power that opposes my body and soul,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against incantations of false prophets,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against black laws of pagandom,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against false laws of heretics,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against craft of idolatry,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against spells of women and smiths and wizards,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against every knowledge that corrupts man's body and soul.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Christ shield me today</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against poison, against burning,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Against drowning, against wounding,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>So that reward may come to me in abundance.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Christ with me, Christ before me, Christ behind me,</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Christ in me, Christ beneath me, Christ above me,</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Christ on my right, Christ on my left,</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Christ when I lie down, Christ when I sit down,</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Christ in the heart of every man who thinks of me,</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Christ in the mouth of every man who speaks of me,</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Christ in the eye that sees me,</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Christ in the ear that hears me.</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I arise today</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through a mighty strength, the invocation of the Trinity,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through a belief in the Threeness,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Through a confession of the Oneness</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Of the Creator of creation.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/0EjxYley8xb">Pray with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="The-Irish-Blessing">The Irish Blessing</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Both famous and anonymous, the Irish Blessing is common around departures or new beginnings, such as weddings, funerals, or goodbyes to friends and family moving away to a new place. It is a prayer of strength, protection, and best wishes. The Irish Blessing has a handful of Scriptural references as well, James Wilson for Irish Central <a href="https://www.irishcentral.com/culture/may-the-road-rise-meet-you-irish-blessing-meaning">writes</a>,&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>The reference to the wind is thought to be a reference to the Holy Spirit, who came as a “mighty wind” at <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/pentecost/">Pentecost</a>. The sun’s warmth alludes to God’s Mercy which the New Testament (Luke 1:78, NIV) tells us “by which the rising sun will come to us from heaven.” The mention of rain is thought to be symbolic of God’s provision – nothing will grow without rain.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>James Wilson</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:pullquote --> <figure class="wp-block-pullquote"><blockquote><p><strong><em>May the road rise up to meet you.</em></strong><br><strong><em>May the wind be always at your back.</em></strong><br><strong><em>May the sun shine warm upon your face;</em></strong><br><strong><em>the rains fall soft upon your fields and until we meet again,</em></strong><br><strong><em>May God hold you in the palm of His hand.</em></strong></p></blockquote></figure> <!-- /wp:pullquote --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="every-day-irish-blessings">Irish blessings for St. Patrick’s Day and Every Day</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Many of these Irish blessings remain anonymous, passed down among generations. Most center around blessing friends and family to live a life of growing joy and abundance.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><em>“May the best day of your past be the worst day of your future.”</em>&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><em>“May green be the grass you walk on, may blue be the skies above you, may pure be the joys that surround you, may true be the hearts that love you.”&nbsp;</em></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><em>“May you have the hindsight to know where you’ve been, the foresight to know where you’re going, and the insight to know when you’re going too far.”</em></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><em>“May peace and plenty be the first to lift the latch to your door and Happiness be your guest today and evermore.”</em></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/0EjxYley8xb">Pray with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Before you go, don’t “Irish Goodbye!” Click <a href="https://hallow.app.link/0EjxYley8xb">here</a> to download Hallow and check out the 10,000+ prayers and meditations on the app. God bless!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>Other Resources:&nbsp;</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-for-hope/">Prayers for Hope</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-for-healing/">Prayers for Healing</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/padre-pio-prayers-feast-day/">St. Padre Pio</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-with-saints/">How to Pray With Saints</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-prayers/">Lent Prayers for 2024</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> [post_title] => St. Patrick's Day Prayers and Irish Blessings 2024 [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => st-patricks-day-prayers-irish-blessings [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-03-18 14:59:08 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-03-18 14:59:08 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=32326 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 31898 [post_author] => 24 [post_date] => 2023-02-23 19:40:11 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-02-23 19:40:11 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Praying with the daily readings is a beautiful way to encounter God's word each day. You can even pray Lectio Divina&nbsp;with the daily readings by focusing on a particular passage, sentence, or even just a word that sticks out to you. This ancient method of prayer helps us let go of our own agendas and open ourselves to what God is trying to say to us. <br><br>Daily Readings:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Tuesday-March-7">Tuesday, March 7</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Wednesday-March-8">Wednesday, March 8</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Thursday-March-9">Thursday, March 9</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Friday-March-10">Friday, March 10</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Saturday-March-11">Saturday, March 11</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Sunday-March-12">Sunday, March 12</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Monday-March-13">Monday, March 13</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="http://Tuesday-March-14">Tuesday, March 14</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="" id="Tuesday-March-7">Daily Readings: Tuesday, March 7</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">First Reading (Isaiah 1: 10, 16-20)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">10 Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom! Listen to the teaching of our God, you people of Gomorrah!<br>16 Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil, 17 learn to do good; seek justice, rescue the oppressed, defend the orphan, plead for the widow.<br><br>18 Come now, let us argue it out, says the Lord: though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be like snow; though they are red like crimson, they shall become like wool. 19 If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land; 20 but if you refuse and rebel, you shall be devoured by the sword; for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Psalm (Psalms 50: 8-9, 16bc-17, 21, 23)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">8 Not for your sacrifices do I rebuke you; your burnt offerings are continually before me. <br>9 I will not accept a bull from your house, or goats from your folds. <br>16 But to the wicked God says: “What right have you to recite my statutes, or take my covenant on your lips? <br>17 For you hate discipline, and you cast my words behind you. <br>21 These things you have done and I have been silent; you thought that I was one just like yourself. But now I rebuke you, and lay the charge before you. <br>23 Those who bring thanksgiving as their sacrifice honor me; to those who go the right way I will show the salvation of God.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Gospel (Matthew 23: 1-12)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, 2 “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; 3 therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. 4 They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. 5 They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. 6 They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, 7 and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi. 8 But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students. 9 And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father—the one in heaven. 10 Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah. 11 The greatest among you will be your servant. 12 All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="" id="Wednesday-March-8">Daily Readings: Wednesday, March 8</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">First Reading (Jer 18:18-20)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">18 Then they [The people of Judah and the citizens of Jerusalem said] said, “Come, let us make plots against Jeremiah—for instruction shall not perish from the priest, nor counsel from the wise, nor the word from the prophet. Come, let us bring charges against him, and let us not heed any of his words.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">19 Give heed to me, O Lord,<br>and listen to what my adversaries say!<br>20 Is evil a recompense for good?<br>Yet they have dug a pit for my life.<br>Remember how I stood before you<br>to speak good for them,<br>to turn away your wrath from them.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Psalm (Psalms 115: 1-2, 3-4, 15-16)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">1 Not to us, O Lord, not to us, but to your name give glory,<br>for the sake of your steadfast love and your faithfulness.<br>2 Why should the nations say,<br>“Where is their God?”<br>3 Our God is in the heavens;<br>he does whatever he pleases.<br>4 Their idols are silver and gold,<br>the work of human hands.<br>15 May you be blessed by the Lord,<br>who made heaven and earth.<br>16 The heavens are the Lord’s heavens,<br>but the earth he has given to human beings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Gospel (Matthew 20:17-28)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">¹⁷While Jesus was going up to Jerusalem, he took the twelve disciples aside by themselves, and said to them on the way, ¹⁸“See, we are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be handed over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death; ¹⁹then they will hand him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified; and on the third day he will be raised.”<br><br>²⁰Then the mother of the sons of Zebedee came to him with her sons, and kneeling before him, she asked a favor of him. ²¹And he said to her, “What do you want?” She said to him, “Declare that these two sons of mine will sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” ²²But Jesus answered, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I am about to drink?” They said to him, “We are able.” ²³He said to them, “You will indeed drink my cup, but to sit at my right hand and at my left, this is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared by my Father.”<br><br>²⁴When the ten heard it, they were angry with the two brothers. ²⁵But Jesus called them to him and said, “You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. ²⁶It will not be so among you; but whoever wishes to be great among you must be your servant, ²⁷and whoever wishes to be first among you must be your slave; ²⁸just as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life a ransom for many.”<br></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="" id="Thursday-March-9">Daily Readings: Thursday, March 9</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">First Reading (Jeremiah 17: 5-10)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">5 Thus says the Lord: Cursed are those who trust in mere mortals and make mere flesh their strength, whose hearts turn away from the Lord. 6 They shall be like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see when relief comes. They shall live in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land. 7 Blessed are those who trust in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord. 8 They shall be like a tree planted by water, sending out its roots by the stream. It shall not fear when heat comes, and its leaves shall stay green; in the year of drought it is not anxious, and it does not cease to bear fruit. 9 The heart is devious above all else; it is perverse—who can understand it? 10 I the Lord test the mind and search the heart, to give to all according to their ways, according to the fruit of their doings.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Psalm (Psalms 1: 1-2, 3, 4, 6)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">1 Happy are those who do not follow the advice of the wicked, or take the path that sinners tread, or sit in the seat of scoffers; <br>2 but their delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law they meditate day and night. <br>3 They are like trees planted by streams of water, which yield their fruit in its season, and their leaves do not wither. In all that they do, they prosper. <br>4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away. <br>6 for the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Gospel (Luke 16: 19-31)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">[Jesus said:] 19 “There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen and who feasted sumptuously every day. 20 And at his gate lay a poor man named Lazarus, covered with sores, 21 who longed to satisfy his hunger with what fell from the rich man’s table; even the dogs would come and lick his sores. 22 The poor man died and was carried away by the angels to be with Abraham. The rich man also died and was buried. 23 In Hades, where he was being tormented, he looked up and saw Abraham far away with Lazarus by his side. 24 He called out, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue; for I am in agony in these flames.’ 25 But Abraham said, ‘Child, remember that during your lifetime you received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner evil things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in agony. 26 Besides all this, between you and us a great chasm has been fixed, so that those who might want to pass from here to you cannot do so, and no one can cross from there to us.’ <br><br>27 He said, ‘Then, father, I beg you to send him to my father’s house— 28 for I have five brothers—that he may warn them, so that they will not also come into this place of torment.’ 29 Abraham replied, ‘They have Moses and the prophets; they should listen to them.’ 30 He said, ‘No, father Abraham; but if someone goes to them from the dead, they will repent.’ 31 He said to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the prophets, neither will they be convinced even if someone rises from the dead.’”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="" id="Friday-March-10">Daily Readings: Friday, March 10</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">First Reading (Genesis 37: 3-4, 12-13a, 17b-28)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">3 Now Israel loved Joseph more than any other of his children, because he was the son of his old age; and he had made him a long robe with sleeves. 4 But when his brothers saw that their father loved him more than all his brothers, they hated him, and could not speak peaceably to him. 12 Now his brothers went to pasture their father’s flock near Shechem. 13 And Israel said to Joseph, “Are not your brothers pasturing the flock at Shechem? Come, I will send you to them.” He answered, “Here I am.” <br><br>17 The man said, “They have gone away, for I heard them say, ‘Let us go to Dothan.’” So Joseph went after his brothers, and found them at Dothan. 18 They saw him from a distance, and before he came near to them, they conspired to kill him. 19 They said to one another, “Here comes this dreamer. 20 Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits; then we shall say that a wild animal has devoured him, and we shall see what will become of his dreams.” 21 But when Reuben heard it, he delivered him out of their hands, saying, “Let us not take his life.” 22 Reuben said to them, “Shed no blood; throw him into this pit here in the wilderness, but lay no hand on him”—that he might rescue him out of their hand and restore him to his father. 23 So when Joseph came to his brothers, they stripped him of his robe, the long robe with sleeves that he wore; 24 and they took him and threw him into a pit. The pit was empty; there was no water in it. <br><br>25 Then they sat down to eat; and looking up they saw a caravan of Ishmaelites coming from Gilead, with their camels carrying gum, balm, and resin, on their way to carry it down to Egypt. 26 Then Judah said to his brothers, “What profit is it if we kill our brother and conceal his blood? 27 Come, let us sell him to the Ishmaelites, and not lay our hands on him, for he is our brother, our own flesh.” And his brothers agreed. 28 When some Midianite traders passed by, they drew Joseph up, lifting him out of the pit, and sold him to the Ishmaelites for twenty pieces of silver. And they took Joseph to Egypt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Psalm (Psalms 105: 16-17, 18-19, 20-21)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">16 When he summoned famine against the land, and broke every staff of bread, <br>17 he had sent a man ahead of them, Joseph, who was sold as a slave. <br>18 His feet were hurt with fetters, his neck was put in a collar of iron; <br>19 until what he had said came to pass, the word of the Lord kept testing him. <br>20 The king sent and released him; the ruler of the peoples set him free. <br>21 He made him lord of his house, and ruler of all his possessions.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Gospel (Matthew 21: 33-43, 45-46)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">[Jesus said:] 33 “Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country. 34 When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. 35 But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 36 Again he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they treated them in the same way. 37 Finally he sent his son to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’ 38 But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, ‘This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance.’ 39 So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 40 Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?” 41 They said to him, “He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.” <br><br>42 Jesus said to them, “Have you never read in the scriptures: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes’? <br><br>43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom. 45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. 46 They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="" id="Saturday-March-11">Daily Readings: Saturday, March 11</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">First Reading (Micah 7: 14-15, 18-20)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">14 Shepherd your people with your staff, the flock that belongs to you, which lives alone in a forest in the midst of a garden land; let them feed in Bashan and Gilead as in the days of old. 15 As in the days when you came out of the land of Egypt, show us marvelous things. 18 Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over the transgression of the remnant of your possession? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in showing clemency. 19 He will again have compassion upon us; he will tread our iniquities under foot. You will cast all our sins into the depths of the sea. 20 You will show faithfulness to Jacob and unswerving loyalty to Abraham, as you have sworn to our ancestors from the days of old.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Psalm (Psalms 103: 1-2, 3-4, 9-10, 11-12)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">1 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name. <br>2 Bless the Lord, O my soul, and do not forget all his benefits— <br>3 who forgives all your iniquity, who heals all your diseases, <br>4 who redeems your life from the Pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, <br>9 He will not always accuse, nor will he keep his anger forever. <br>10 He does not deal with us according to our sins, nor repay us according to our iniquities. <br>11 For as the heavens are high above the earth, so great is his steadfast love toward those who fear him; <br>12 as far as the east is from the west, so far he removes our transgressions from us.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Gospel (Luke 15: 1-3, 11-32)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">1 Now all the tax collectors and sinners were coming near to listen to him. 2 And the Pharisees and the scribes were grumbling and saying, “This fellow welcomes sinners and eats with them.” <br><br>3 So he told them this parable: 11 Then Jesus said, “There was a man who had two sons. 12 The younger of them said to his father, ‘Father, give me the share of the property that will belong to me.’ So he divided his property between them. 13 A few days later the younger son gathered all he had and traveled to a distant country, and there he squandered his property in dissolute living. 14 When he had spent everything, a severe famine took place throughout that country, and he began to be in need. 15 So he went and hired himself out to one of the citizens of that country, who sent him to his fields to feed the pigs. 16 He would gladly have filled himself with the pods that the pigs were eating; and no one gave him anything. 17 But when he came to himself he said, ‘How many of my father’s hired hands have bread enough and to spare, but here I am dying of hunger! 18 I will get up and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; 19 I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”’ <br><br>20 So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. 21 Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ 22 But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. 23 And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; 24 for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate. 25 “Now his elder son was in the field; and when he came and approached the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 He called one of the slaves and asked what was going on. 27 He replied, ‘Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fatted calf, because he has got him back safe and sound.’ 28 Then he became angry and refused to go in. His father came out and began to plead with him. 29 But he answered his father, ‘Listen! For all these years I have been working like a slave for you, and I have never disobeyed your command; yet you have never given me even a young goat so that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came back, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fatted calf for him!’ 31 Then the father said to him, ‘Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and rejoice, because this brother of yours was dead and has come to life; he was lost and has been found.’”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="" id="Sunday-March-12">Daily Readings: Sunday, March 12</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">First Reading (Exodus 17: 3-7)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">3 But the people thirsted there for water; and the people complained against Moses and said, “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” 4 So Moses cried out to the Lord, “What shall I do with this people? They are almost ready to stone me.” 5 The Lord said to Moses, “Go on ahead of the people, and take some of the elders of Israel with you; take in your hand the staff with which you struck the Nile, and go. 6 I will be standing there in front of you on the rock at Horeb. Strike the rock, and water will come out of it, so that the people may drink.” Moses did so, in the sight of the elders of Israel. 7 He called the place Massah and Meribah, because the Israelites quarreled and tested the Lord, saying, “Is the Lord among us or not?”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Psalm (Psalms 95: 1-2, 6-7, 8-9)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">1 O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation! <br>2 Let us come into his presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to him with songs of praise! <br>6 O come, let us worship and bow down, let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! <br>7 For he is our God, and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. O that today you would listen to his voice! <br>8 Do not harden your hearts, as at Meribah, as on the day at Massah in the wilderness, <br>9 when your ancestors tested me, and put me to the proof, though they had seen my work.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Second Reading (Romans 5: 1-2, 5-8)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">1 Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom we have obtained access to this grace in which we stand; and we boast in our hope of sharing the glory of God. 5 and hope does not disappoint us, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit that has been given to us. <br><br>6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person someone might actually dare to die. 8 But God proves his love for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Gospel (John 4: 5-42)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">5 So he [Jesus] came to a Samaritan city called Sychar, near the plot of ground that Jacob had given to his son Joseph. 6 Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired out by his journey, was sitting by the well. It was about noon.<br><br>7 A Samaritan woman came to draw water, and Jesus said to her, “Give me a drink.” 8 (His disciples had gone to the city to buy food.) 9 The Samaritan woman said to him, “How is it that you, a Jew, ask a drink of me, a woman of Samaria?” (Jews do not share things in common with Samaritans.)[a] 10 Jesus answered her, “If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water.” 11 The woman said to him, “Sir, you have no bucket, and the well is deep. Where do you get that living water? 12 Are you greater than our ancestor Jacob, who gave us the well, and with his sons and his flocks drank from it?” 13 Jesus said to her, “Everyone who drinks of this water will be thirsty again, 14 but those who drink of the water that I will give them will never be thirsty. The water that I will give will become in them a spring of water gushing up to eternal life.” 15 The woman said to him, “Sir, give me this water, so that I may never be thirsty or have to keep coming here to draw water.” <br><br>16 Jesus said to her, “Go, call your husband, and come back.” 17 The woman answered him, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You are right in saying, ‘I have no husband’; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one you have now is not your husband. What you have said is true!” 19 The woman said to him, “Sir, I see that you are a prophet. 20 Our ancestors worshiped on this mountain, but you[b] say that the place where people must worship is in Jerusalem.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe me, the hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But the hour is coming, and is now here, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for the Father seeks such as these to worship him. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25 The woman said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming” (who is called Christ). “When he comes, he will proclaim all things to us.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I am he,[c] the one who is speaking to you.” <br><br>27 Just then his disciples came. They were astonished that he was speaking with a woman, but no one said, “What do you want?” or, “Why are you speaking with her?” 28 Then the woman left her water jar and went back to the city. She said to the people, 29 “Come and see a man who told me everything I have ever done! He cannot be the Messiah,[d] can he?” 30 They left the city and were on their way to him. 31 Meanwhile the disciples were urging him, “Rabbi, eat something.” 32 But he said to them, “I have food to eat that you do not know about.” 33 So the disciples said to one another, “Surely no one has brought him something to eat?” 34 Jesus said to them, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work. 35 Do you not say, ‘Four months more, then comes the harvest’? But I tell you, look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting. 36 The reaper is already receiving[e] wages and is gathering fruit for eternal life, so that sower and reaper may rejoice together. 37 For here the saying holds true, ‘One sows and another reaps.’ 38 I sent you to reap that for which you did not labor. Others have labored, and you have entered into their labor.” <br><br>39 Many Samaritans from that city believed in him because of the woman’s testimony, “He told me everything I have ever done.” 40 So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them; and he stayed there two days. 41 And many more believed because of his word. 42 They said to the woman, “It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is truly the Savior of the world.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="" id="Monday-March-13">Daily Readings: Monday, March 13</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">First Reading (2 Kings 5: 1-15)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">1 Naaman, commander of the army of the king of Aram, was a great man and in high favor with his master, because by him the Lord had given victory to Aram. The man, though a mighty warrior, suffered from leprosy. 2 Now the Arameans on one of their raids had taken a young girl captive from the land of Israel, and she served Naaman’s wife. 3 She said to her mistress, “If only my lord were with the prophet who is in Samaria! He would cure him of his leprosy.” 4 So Naaman went in and told his lord just what the girl from the land of Israel had said. 5 And the king of Aram said, “Go then, and I will send along a letter to the king of Israel.” <br><br>He went, taking with him ten talents of silver, six thousand shekels of gold, and ten sets of garments. 6 He brought the letter to the king of Israel, which read, “When this letter reaches you, know that I have sent to you my servant Naaman, that you may cure him of his leprosy.” 7 When the king of Israel read the letter, he tore his clothes and said, “Am I God, to give death or life, that this man sends word to me to cure a man of his leprosy? Just look and see how he is trying to pick a quarrel with me.” <br><br>8 But when Elisha the man of God heard that the king of Israel had torn his clothes, he sent a message to the king, “Why have you torn your clothes? Let him come to me, that he may learn that there is a prophet in Israel.” 9 So Naaman came with his horses and chariots, and halted at the entrance of Elisha’s house. 10 Elisha sent a messenger to him, saying, “Go, wash in the Jordan seven times, and your flesh shall be restored and you shall be clean.” 11 But Naaman became angry and went away, saying, “I thought that for me he would surely come out, and stand and call on the name of the Lord his God, and would wave his hand over the spot, and cure the leprosy! 12 Are not Abana and Pharpar, the rivers of Damascus, better than all the waters of Israel? Could I not wash in them, and be clean?” He turned and went away in a rage. 13 But his servants approached and said to him, “Father, if the prophet had commanded you to do something difficult, would you not have done it? How much more, when all he said to you was, ‘Wash, and be clean’?” 14 So he went down and immersed himself seven times in the Jordan, according to the word of the man of God; his flesh was restored like the flesh of a young boy, and he was clean. <br><br>15 Then he returned to the man of God, he and all his company; he came and stood before him and said, “Now I know that there is no God in all the earth except in Israel; please accept a present from your servant.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Psalm (Psalms 42: 2, 3; 43: 3, 4)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and behold the face of God? <br>3 My tears have been my food day and night, while people say to me continually, “Where is your God?” <br>3 O send out your light and your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to your holy hill and to your dwelling. <br>4 Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; and I will praise you with the harp, O God, my God.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Gospel (Luke 4: 24-30)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">24 And he [Jesus] said, “Truly I tell you, no prophet is accepted in the prophet’s hometown. 25 But the truth is, there were many widows in Israel in the time of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three years and six months, and there was a severe famine over all the land; 26 yet Elijah was sent to none of them except to a widow at Zarephath in Sidon. 27 There were also many lepers in Israel in the time of the prophet Elisha, and none of them was cleansed except Naaman the Syrian.” 28 When they heard this, all in the synagogue were filled with rage. 29 They got up, drove him out of the town, and led him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they might hurl him off the cliff. 30 But he passed through the midst of them and went on his way.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="" id="Tuesday-March-14">Daily Readings: Tuesday, March 14</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">First Reading (Daniel 3: 25, 34-43)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">25 Then Azariah stood still in the fire and prayed aloud: 34 For your name’s sake do not give us up forever, and do not annul your covenant. 35 Do not withdraw your mercy from us, for the sake of Abraham your beloved and for the sake of your servant Isaac and Israel your holy one, 36 to whom you promised to multiply their descendants like the stars of heaven and like the sand on the shore of the sea. 37 For we, O Lord, have become fewer than any other nation, and are brought low this day in all the world because of our sins. 38 In our day we have no ruler, or prophet, or leader, no burnt offering, or sacrifice, or oblation, or incense, no place to make an offering before you and to find mercy. 39 Yet with a contrite heart and a humble spirit may we be accepted, 40 as though it were with burnt offerings of rams and bulls, or with tens of thousands of fat lambs; such may our sacrifice be in your sight today, and may we unreservedly follow you, for no shame will come to those who trust in you. 41 And now with all our heart we follow you; we fear you and seek your presence. 42 Do not put us to shame, but deal with us in your patience and in your abundant mercy. 43 Deliver us in accordance with your marvelous works, and bring glory to your name, O Lord.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Psalm (Psalms 25: 4-5ab, 6, 7bc, 8-9)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">4 Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths. <br>5 Lead me in your truth, and teach me, for you are the God of my salvation; for you I wait all day long. <br>6 Be mindful of your mercy, O Lord, and of your steadfast love, for they have been from of old. <br>7 Do not remember the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to your steadfast love remember me, for your goodness’ sake, O Lord! <br>8 Good and upright is the Lord; therefore he instructs sinners in the way. <br>9 He leads the humble in what is right, and teaches the humble his way. <br>10 All the paths of the Lord are steadfast love and faithfulness, for those who keep his covenant and his decrees.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="">Gospel (Matthew 18: 21-35)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">21 Then Peter came and said to him [Jesus], “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” 22 Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times. <br><br>23 “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. 24 When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; 25 and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. 26 So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ 27 And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. 28 But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ 29 Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ 30 But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. 31 When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. 32 Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. 33 Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ 34 And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. 35 So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> [post_title] => Daily Readings: Tuesday, March 7 - Tuesday, March 14 [post_excerpt] => Daily Readings: Tuesday, March 7 - Tuesday, March 14 [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => daily-readings [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2023-03-03 21:08:10 [post_modified_gmt] => 2023-03-03 21:08:10 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=31898 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 31811 [post_author] => 43 [post_date] => 2023-02-22 16:38:28 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-02-22 16:38:28 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Most commonly prayed at the end of <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-go-to-confession-the-sacrament-of-penance-reconciliation/">confession</a>, the Act of Contrition is a short Catholic prayer of penance and mercy. To express your “contrition” is to share your sorrow or remorse; the Act of Contrition is an apologetic prayer. There are several forms of the Act of Contrition, though the traditional version is likely the most popular. Other modern forms, however, might be more comfortable for you to pray.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="">Where did the Act of Contrition come from?</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2018-11/act-of-contrition-spirituality-confession-penance.html">As Sr Bernadette Mary Reis, fsp points out</a> for Vatican News, the roots of the Act of Contrition trace back to the Old Testament, most notably through the “Penitential Psalms.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Praying for God’s forgiveness “became the path for re-admittance into God’s presence, lost because of sin.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In the New Testament, we see examples of the power of contrition in the Gospel of Luke, with the penitent woman whom Jesus forgives. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In more recent times, many Catholics are familiar with the Act of Contrition as it appeared in the Baltimore Catechism.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/HyaBr3ugAxb">Pray the Act of Contrition</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="">When do you say the Act of Contrition?</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Those seeking the sacrament of Penance usually say the Act of Contrition before the priest offers absolution of sin. In this case, the Act of Contrition helps us focus on God’s love and forgiveness over our sinfulness.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The prayer, however, is not confined to the formal sacrament, nor is it always required during Reconciliation. The priest may ask you to recite it, or he may not.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Many people will pray the Act of Contrition <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/falling-asleep-with-god/">before bed</a> or at some other regular time during the day. As with most prayers, there’s no “wrong” time to pray the Act of Contrition!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="">Striving for “Metanoia”</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Praying the Act of Contrition helps us strive towards “metanoia.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The <a href="https://www.usccb.org/committees/cultural-diversity-church/intercultural-competencies-module-5">USCCB describes</a> metanoia as conversion or “to turn one's mind around.” When we confess and demonstrate contrition, we turn our hearts and minds towards God, away from our own selfishness.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Praying the Act of Contrition can be the first step in undergoing this powerful change that encompasses our thoughts and actions. As Pope Francis said in one of his first homilies, <em>“The Lord never tires of forgiving. It is we who tire of asking for forgiveness.”</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="">Act of Contrition - Traditional&nbsp;</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The traditional Act of Contrition is likely the most commonly prayed version.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>O my God, I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins because of thy just punishments, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, who art all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve with the help of Thy grace to sin no more and to avoid the near occasion of sin. Amen.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="">Act of Contrition - Modern</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This more modern version of the Act of Contrition can also be found in the Rite of Penance.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>My God, I am sorry for my sins with all my heart. In choosing to do wrong and failing to do good,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I have sinned against you whom I should love above all things. I firmly intend, with your help, to do penance, to sin no more, and to avoid whatever leads me to sin. Our Savior Jesus Christ suffered and died for us. In his name, my God, have mercy.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="">Act of Contrition - The Jesus Prayer</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This simple yet powerful prayer of contrition helps us ask Jesus for His mercy; it’s a great prayer to begin or <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-for-sleep/">end</a> your day or to conclude your time in prayer.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Lord Jesus, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/HyaBr3ugAxb">Pray with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">On Hallow, you can pray the Act of Contrition with Jonathan Roumie, the actor who portrays Jesus in The Chosen. Click <a href="https://hallow.app.link/HyaBr3ugAxb">here</a> to download the app and start praying!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>Also, check out:</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-prayers/">Lent Prayers</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/morning-prayer/">Morning Prayer: Catholic Prayers to Start Your Day</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-surrender-novena/">Surrender Novena</a>&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-litany-of-humility/">Litany of Humility</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-litany-of-trust/">Litany of Trust</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> [post_title] => How to Pray the Act of Contrition [post_excerpt] => A short Catholic prayer of penance and mercy. [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => how-to-pray-act-of-contrition [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2023-02-22 16:38:48 [post_modified_gmt] => 2023-02-22 16:38:48 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=31811 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 31261 [post_author] => 24 [post_date] => 2023-02-12 17:27:59 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-02-12 17:27:59 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">He hung there.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">On the cross, tortured. Dying. The hard metal of the nails fastening his legs and feet in place.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As he struggled for air and was barely able to breathe, Jesus didn’t hang in silence.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">He spoke to those around him, to complete strangers and to his family and friends.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Jesus was speaking <em>to us</em> in his final hours.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In his Seven Last Words, Jesus shows us how he has fulfilled his saving mission and sends us forth to follow in his footsteps.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-are-the-7-last-words-of-christ">What are the 7 Last Words of Christ?</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":"lent-embed"} --> <p class="lent-embed">Traditionally, these seven words (which are more like “sayings” that contain more than a single word) are known as words of Forgiveness, Salvation, Relationship, Abandonment, Distress, Triumph and Reunion.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Throughout the #Pray40 Lent Challenge in 2022, Hallow users spent time reflecting on all seven. Together, they anchored our prayer to Jesus’ time on the cross, keeping our hearts fixed on Jesus's sacrifice.&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">It begins with a word that our minds come to know more easily than our hearts.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/7lastwords">Pray With Hallow Today</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-father-forgive-them-they-know-not-what-they-do-the-first-word-forgiveness">“Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” - The First Word (Forgiveness)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:video {"id":20226,"align":"center","className":"word-video"} --> <figure class="wp-block-video aligncenter word-video"><video autoplay loop muted src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/1st-Word-Compressed.mp4"></video></figure> <!-- /wp:video --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>“When they came to the place called the Skull, they crucified him and the criminals there, one on his right, the other on his left. Then Jesus said, </em><strong><em>“Father, forgive them, they know not what they do.” </em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Luke 23:34 </cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We’re familiar with Lent being a season of repentance; in fact, we hear “Repent, and believe in the Gospel” as we receive ashes on our foreheads.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">During Lent, we seek forgiveness. But how often do we offer it?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As Jesus hung on the cross, he pleaded with his Father to forgive his tormentors, at whose hands he suffered unimaginable pain.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Sometimes, in our relationships with others, the only thing more difficult than humbling ourselves to ask forgiveness is to truly grant it. To fully forgive. To not let resentment continue to linger inside of us.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Jesus’s last words remind us that God’s forgiveness knows no boundaries. We need God’s help and grace to be able to forgive in such a way.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Do we place limits on what <em>we </em>are willing to forgive?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We will start this week with the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-litany-of-humility/">Litany of Humility</a> on <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/ash-wednesday/">Ash Wednesday</a> and continue with reflections from Archbishop Fulton Sheen and meditations on forgiveness, forgiveness of ourselves, others, and from God.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-amen-i-say-to-you-today-you-will-be-with-me-in-paradise-the-second-word-salvation">“Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise” - The Second Word (Salvation)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:video {"id":20230,"align":"center","className":"word-video"} --> <figure class="wp-block-video aligncenter word-video"><video autoplay loop muted src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/2nd-Word-Compressed.mp4"></video></figure> <!-- /wp:video --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Now one of the criminals hanging there reviled Jesus, saying, “Are you not the Messiah? Save yourself and us.” The other, however, rebuking him, said in reply, “Have you no fear of God, for you are subject to the same condemnation? And indeed, we have been condemned justly, for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes, but this man has done nothing criminal.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He replied to him, </em><strong><em>“Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.” </em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Luke 23: 39-43</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The good thief, known as St. Dismas, shows us the power of conversion.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Along with its reward.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">A convicted thief, St. Dismas presumably did not lead the most holy life. Yet as he hung alongside Jesus, his eyes were opened to the presence of God. With his final dying breaths, he proclaimed Jesus as Lord of all creation.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Jesus recognizes this act of faith and affirms to St. Dismas that he will join him in heaven.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The promise of God’s kingdom is so great. St. Dismas realized this as he was at the side of Jesus. During Lent, when we find time to be present with Jesus, we’re reminded of the beautiful gift of our salvation and our call to bring God’s kingdom to earth, as it is in heaven.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Jesus's words remind us that no matter how many times you’ve sinned, or how long it’s been since you prayed, God is always looking to forgive you.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In this second week of Lent, we will reflect on Jesus as King as we seek to have the same faith as the good thief. We will pray with the names of Jesus in the Litany of Christ the King and offer up our sins and praises to God.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-woman-behold-your-son-behold-your-mother-the-third-word-relationship">“Woman, behold, your son....Behold, your mother.” - The Third Word (Relationship)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:video {"id":20234,"align":"center","className":"word-video"} --> <figure class="wp-block-video aligncenter word-video"><video autoplay loop muted src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/3rd-Word-Compressed.mp4"></video></figure> <!-- /wp:video --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>“Standing by the cross of Jesus were his mother and his mother’s sister, Mary the wife of Clopas, and Mary of Magdala. When Jesus saw his mother and the disciple there whom he loved, he said to his mother, “</em><strong><em>Woman, behold, your son</em></strong><em>.” Then he said to the disciple, “</em><strong><em>Behold, your mother.</em></strong><em>” And from that hour the disciple took her into his home.” </em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>John 19: 25-27</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Why did Jesus address Mary as “woman” on the cross?</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Some <a href="https://bustedhalo.com/questionbox/why-does-jesus-refer-to-mary-as-%E2%80%9Cwoman%E2%80%9D-at-the-wedding-feast-at-cana">suggest</a> that it was a term of honor and respect. Others <a href="https://aleteia.org/2018/06/09/why-did-jesus-call-the-blessed-mother-woman/">believe</a> that by saying “woman” and not “mother,” Jesus shows that Mary is not simply his mother, but who Catholics believe to be the Blessed Mother of us all, given to us as Jesus hung on the cross.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In his most agonizing moments, Jesus gives all of us, as his disciples, the gift of his mother. He entrusts us to each other. We can turn to Mary with confidence, knowing that she loves us as a mother and wants nothing more for us than to remain close to her son. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We can be assured of her prayers for us and find comfort in her heart, a heart completely full of love for Jesus.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We will pray alongside Mary, our Mother this week with Hallow’s most popular prayer, the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/">Rosary</a>, and connect to her agony through the Litany of Our Lady of Sorrows.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-i-thirst-the-fourth-word-distress">“I thirst.” - The Fourth Word (Distress)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:video {"id":20220,"align":"center","className":"word-video"} --> <figure class="wp-block-video aligncenter word-video"><video autoplay loop muted src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/4th-Word-Compressed.mp4"></video></figure> <!-- /wp:video --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>“After this, aware that everything was now finished, in order that the scripture might be fulfilled, Jesus said, “</em><strong><em>I thirst.</em></strong><em>” There was a vessel filled with common wine. So they put a sponge soaked in wine on a sprig of hyssop and put it up to his mouth.” </em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>John 19: 28-29</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Water, thirst and drinking are all part of a common motif throughout the Gospels, especially in John.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Jesus tells us in John 7: “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In this moment on the cross, Jesus, who offers us the promise of living waters through the Holy Spirit, is dry.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Parched.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Empty.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We can all relate to the feeling of both physical thirst and inner emptiness.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">But what else was Jesus thirsting for? In this moment, Jesus was betrayed by humanity and feeling forsaken by his heavenly Father.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">He thirsts for us, he wants nothing more than for us to fully understand just how much he loves us and for us to love him in return. When Jesus called out his thirst upon the cross, he was given the sour taste of vinegar. In the same way, we too often respond to Jesus’s thirst not with our love, but with the vinegar of a heart hardened to God.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This week, reflect with an Examen on what it means to thirst for God and offer prayers and petitions for those who thirst physically and spiritually this week.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-my-god-my-god-why-have-you-forsaken-me-the-fifth-word-abandonment">“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” - The Fifth Word (Abandonment)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:video {"id":20243,"align":"center","className":"word-video"} --> <figure class="wp-block-video aligncenter word-video"><video autoplay loop muted src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/5th-Word-Compressed.mp4"></video></figure> <!-- /wp:video --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>“At noon darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon. And at three o’clock Jesus cried out in a loud voice, </em><strong><em>“Eloi, Eloi, lema sabachthani?”</em></strong><em> which is translated, </em><strong><em>“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” </em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Mark 15: 33-34</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Utter humanity.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">When God feels far off and distant, or when we struggle to feel connected to Jesus, these words can help remind us of just how human Jesus was.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Have we not all felt forsaken at times?&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In this, his most human and vulnerable moment, Jesus is quoting Psalm 22, which we sing on Good Friday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">When we feel abandoned, as Jesus did when he cried out to his Father, the conclusion of Psalm 22 reminds us that darkness does not get the final word.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations will bow down before him, for dominion belongs to the Lord and he rules over the nations. All the rich of the earth will feast and worship; all who go down to the dust will kneel before him— those who cannot keep themselves alive. Posterity will serve him; future generations will be told about the Lord. They will proclaim his righteousness, declaring to a people yet unborn: He has done it!</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Psalm 22: 27-31</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This week, we will pray the powerful Litany of Trust, reflecting on what it means to give everything to God.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-it-is-finished-the-sixth-word-triumph">“It is finished.” - The Sixth Word (Triumph)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:video {"id":20247,"align":"center","className":"word-video"} --> <figure class="wp-block-video aligncenter word-video"><video autoplay loop muted src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/6th-Word-Compressed.mp4"></video></figure> <!-- /wp:video --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>“When Jesus had taken the wine, he said, “</em><strong><em>It is finished</em></strong><em>.” And bowing his head, he handed over the spirit.” </em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>John 19:30</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Each year at the Easter Vigil, before we hear the Gospel of the Resurrection, we read a passage from Isaiah 55 where the Lord speaks to us:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">“Yet just as from the heavens the rain and snow come down And do not return there till they have watered the earth, making it fertile and fruitful, Giving seed to the one who sows and bread to the one who eats, 11 So shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; It shall not return to me empty, but shall do what pleases me, achieving the end for which I sent it.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">While he hung on the cross, Jesus, Word made flesh, had accomplished everything he needed to. Having taken the full weight of humanity’s sins, he’s given himself fully. He achieved the end for which he was sent.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Jesus has triumphed. His work is complete. These words are his earthly farewell.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This week, pray the Litany of Burying the Dead alongside reflections on how to give of yourself with love.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-father-into-your-hands-i-commend-my-spirit-the-seventh-word-reunion">“Father, into your hands I commend my spirit.” - The Seventh Word (Reunion)</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:video {"id":20251,"align":"center","className":"word-video"} --> <figure class="wp-block-video aligncenter word-video"><video autoplay loop muted src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/02/7th-Word-Compressed.mp4"></video></figure> <!-- /wp:video --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>It was now about noon and darkness came over the whole land until three in the afternoon because of an eclipse of the sun. Then the veil of the temple was torn down the middle. Jesus cried out in a loud voice, “</em><strong><em>Father, into your hands I commend my spirit</em></strong><em>”; and when he had said this he breathed his last”. </em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Luke 23: 44-46</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Sr. Marie Veritas, SV <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PFv3QNtigb8">points to the magnitude</a> of Jesus' final words, and the symbolism they offer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">"What does Jesus say with his last words that he has on earth to us? What does he do? He points us to the Father. He throws himself into the arms of the Father. And then he lets go."</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In the sixth word, Jesus triumphs. Now he enters into heaven, received by his Father, who lovingly welcomes us all into his kingdom.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Jesus points us to the Father so that we too can throw ourselves into His arms, surrendering to Him, knowing He loves us and will not lead us astray. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">And when we place ourselves in God’s arms, we’ll share in the joy that Jesus felt upon His reunion with the Father.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">When we place ourselves in God’s arms, we’ll be close to him and share in the joy that Jesus felt upon his reunion with the Father.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>SEE MORE:</strong> <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-prayers/">Lent Prayers for 2023</a> | <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/what-to-give-up-for-lent/">What to Give Up for Lent</a> | <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-fasting-rules/">Lent Fasting Rules</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We know that death isn’t the final word. Following the seventh word, we eagerly await the joy of the empty tomb.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">For this final week, we give it all back to God through the Surrender Prayer. We move from <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/palm-sunday/">Palm Sunday</a> into the Triduum, walking with Jesus from darkness into the light of Salvation on Easter Sunday.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This Lent, renew your faith and deepen your relationship with God through reflecting and meditating on the greatest sermon ever given, the Seven Last Words of Christ.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Peace be with you this Lent.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:block {"ref":31265} /--> [post_title] => The 7 Last Words of Christ [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => 7-last-words-of-christ [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-02-13 02:39:37 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-02-13 02:39:37 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=31261 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 31239 [post_author] => 43 [post_date] => 2023-02-06 19:35:41 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-02-06 19:35:41 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">It sometimes can seem like everybody is talking about creating the perfect “morning routine” these days. Many include prayer in that perfect morning routine, but often getting started with a full-fledged habit can feel a bit daunting. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">When it comes to morning prayer, we recommend picking a prayer and sticking with it for a week. A popular practice when it comes to developing new habits is “stacking” what you’re working on with something you already do every day. Try “habit-stacking” morning prayer with your morning cup of coffee, brushing your teeth, or even while you get dressed for the day. You might even find that you’re more consistent with prayer by praying before you get out of bed in the morning.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Try a few different places, times, and prayers, and see what works best for you. What brings you peace? What helps you invite God into your day so you can be present with Him throughout it?&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":"lent-embed"} --> <p class="lent-embed">Don’t be afraid to offer everything to Him in your morning prayer – both big and small moments of the day ahead. As <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/st-teresa-of-avila-prayers-quotes-feast-day/">St. Teresa of Ávila</a> said, <strong><em>“You pay God a compliment by asking great things of him.”</em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We put together a few of our favorite Catholic morning prayers to help get you started. Remember, your prayer can be as simple as <em>“Come, Holy Spirit”</em> or <em>“Jesus, I trust in You.”</em> No matter how we call on Him or when we call on Him, God is always with us, listening.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>Table of Contents</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Prayers-to-Start-Your-Day">Prayers to Start Your Day</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Short-morning-prayers">Short morning prayers</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Powerful-morning-prayers-saints">Powerful morning prayers from the saints</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="http://Other-Resources">Other Resources</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/H6Dls6EX7wb">Pray with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="Prayers-to-Start-Your-Day"><strong>Prayers to Start Your Day</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Morning Offering&nbsp;</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This beautiful Morning Offering was written by Fr. François-Xavier Gautrelet in 1844. It helps us to offer everything on our hearts and minds to Him and <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-litany-of-trust/">trust</a> that Jesus will take care of us.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>O Jesus, through the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/immaculate-heart-of-mary/">Immaculate Heart of Mary</a>, 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, for the salvation of souls, the reparation of sins, the reunion of all Christians, and in particular for the intentions of the Holy Father. Amen.&nbsp;&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/H6Dls6EX7wb">Morning Offering Prayer</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Serenity Prayer</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Originally written as a prayer for those suffering from addiction, the Serenity Prayer is a powerful morning prayer to lean on God and find comfort knowing you are not alone.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Anima Christi</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This prayer was a favorite of <a href="https://hallow.com/saints/ignatius-loyola/">St. Ignatius of Loyola</a>; he included it at the beginning of his well-known book, <em><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/ignatian-spirituality-and-the-spiritual-exercises/">Spiritual Exercises</a></em>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Soul of Christ, sanctify me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Body of Christ, save me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Blood of Christ, inebriate me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Water from the side of Christ, wash me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Passion of Christ, strengthen me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>O Good Jesus, hear me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Within your wounds hide me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Permit me not to be separated from you.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>From the wicked foe, defend me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>At the hour of my death, call me</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>and bid me come to you</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>That with your saints I may praise you</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>For ever and ever. Amen.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>A Traditional Chaldean Morning Prayer&nbsp;</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This morning prayer comes from Chaldean liturgy of the Eastern Catholic Church. The words of this traditional prayer remind us to place our trust in the Lord at the beginning of the day; we start the day by praising Him and asking Him to sow love in our hearts.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>As morning dawns, we praise you, Lord, for you have saved your whole creation. In mercy, grant a day of peace; bestow forgiveness for our sins.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>May you not ever cut off hope, nor shut the door before our face. Do not withhold your care from us, for you alone know our weakness.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Sow love, peace, and harmony; uphold our priests and calm our kings; heal all our sick and guard the strong; forgive the sins of all mankind.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:block {"ref":42529} /--> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="Short-morning-prayers"><strong>Short morning prayers</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Come, Holy Spirit.&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Jesus, I trust in You.&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><em>“O Lord, sea of love and goodness, let me not fear too much the storms and winds of my daily life, and let me know there is ebb and flow but the sea remains the sea. Amen.” - Henri Nouwen (Read the full prayer </em><a href="https://henrinouwen.org/meditations/a-prayer-7/"><em>here</em></a><em>.)&nbsp;</em></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><em>“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have mercy on me, a sinner.” (The Jesus Prayer)</em></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><em>“Holy Spirit, make my heart open to the word of God, make my heart open to goodness, make my heart open to the beauty of God every day.” - Pope Francis</em></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Turn to any of the Psalms – they are rich with beautiful morning meditations!</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">To speak openly with God about whatever is on your heart in the morning, consider turning to the popular <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-acts/">ACTS Prayer Method</a>: Adoration, Contrition, Thankfulness, and Supplication. You can make your time in prayer as long or short as you like!&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/H6Dls6EX7wb">Pray with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="Powerful-morning-prayers-saints"><strong>Powerful morning prayers from the saints</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">When struggling, we can always turn to the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-with-saints/">saints</a> as prayer guides. Pray with some of the following beautiful prayers for the morning from the saints.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Holy Spirit Prayer by <a href="https://hallow.com/saints/augustine-of-hippo/">St. Augustine</a></strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Breathe into me, Holy Spirit,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>that my thoughts may all be holy.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Move in me, Holy Spirit,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>that my work, too, may be holy.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Attract my heart, Holy Spirit,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>that I may love only what is holy.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Strengthen me, Holy Spirit,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>that I may defend all that is holy.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Protect me, Holy Spirit,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>that I may always be holy.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Pray More: <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-to-the-holy-spirit/">Prayers to the Holy Spirit</a></em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Morning Offering of St. Thérèse of Lisieux&nbsp;</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>O my God, I offer Thee all my actions of this day for the intentions and for the glory of the&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Sacred Heart of Jesus.&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I desire to sanctify every beat of my heart, my every thought, my simplest works, by uniting them to His infinite merits; and I wish to make reparation for my sins by casting them into the furnace of His Merciful Love.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>O my God, I ask of Thee for myself and for those whom I hold dear, the grace to fulfill perfectly Thy Holy Will, to accept for love of Thee the joys and sorrows of this passing life, so that we may one day be united together in heaven for all Eternity.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Amen.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em><br><strong>Also Pray: </strong></em><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-sacred-heart-novena/"><strong><em>Sacred Heart Novena</em></strong></a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Come Into My Heart Prayer by St. Catherine of Siena</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Holy Spirit, come into my heart;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Draw it to Thee by Thy power, O my God,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>And grant me charity with filial fear.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Preserve me, O beautiful love, from every evil thought;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Warm me, inflame me with Thy dear love,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>And every pain will seem light to me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>My Father, my sweet Lord, help me in all my actions.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Jesus, love.&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Jesus, love.&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong><em>Read more: <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/st-catherine-of-siena-feast-prayers-quotes-feast-day/">St. Catherine of Siena</a></em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading"><strong>Lord, Make Me An Instrument of Your Peace by St. Francis of Assisi</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Lord, make me an instrument of your peace.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where there is hatred, let me bring love.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where there is offense, let me bring pardon.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where there is discord, let me bring union.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where there is error, let me bring truth.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where there is doubt, let me bring faith.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where there is despair, let me bring hope.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where there is darkness, let me bring your light.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where there is sadness, let me bring joy.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>O Master, let me not seek as much</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>to be consoled as to console,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>to be understood as to understand,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>to be loved as to love,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>for it is in giving that one receives,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>it is in self-forgetting that one finds,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>it is in pardoning that one is pardoned,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>it is in dying that one is raised to eternal life.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="" id="Other-Resources"><strong>Other Resources</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-prayers/">Lent Prayers</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/daily-prayer-prayers-for-today/">Daily Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-night-prayer/">Night Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-hail-mary/">Hail Mary Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-our-father/">Our Father Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/">How to Pray the Rosary</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-go-to-confession-the-sacrament-of-penance-reconciliation/">Catholic Confession Guide</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Hallow offers a large variety of minute prayers and other short meditations to get your day started with God.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>“I don't quite remember if I have experienced the Lord Jesus like this before. </em><strong><em>I can't help but literally look forward to my next prayer with Him!</em></strong><em> While prayer seemed to be a dreadful chore before, it has now become something that I am excited about! It's the excitement of meeting again someone you really love whom you miss so much.”</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/H6Dls6EX7wb">Download Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Hallow is the #1 Christian prayer app in the world and is an amazing resource for all Christians looking to grow deeper in their relationship with God. With over 6,000 audio-guided prayers and meditations, Hallow will help you grow closer to God than ever before.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> [post_title] => Morning Prayer: Catholic Prayers to Start Your Day [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => morning-prayer [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-07-24 17:30:12 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-07-24 17:30:12 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=31239 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 11241 [post_author] => 32 [post_date] => 2023-02-04 19:01:00 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-02-04 19:01:00 [post_content] => <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#intro">Introduction</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#short-lent-prayers">Short Lent Prayers</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#bible-verses-reflections">Lent Bible Verses for Reflection</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#daily-readings">Daily Readings for Lent</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#stations-of-the-cross">Stations of the Cross</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#seven-last-words">Seven Last Words</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#faq">Lent Prayers FAQ</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="" id="intro">When <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/ash-wednesday/">Ash Wednesday</a> rolls around each year, it can catch us off guard when it comes to our prayer life.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We <em>know</em> Lent is important and that it helps prepare us for Easter. Most Catholics recognize Lent as a solemn period where we repent.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As such, during <a href="https://hallow.com/lent/">Lent</a>, we might feel pressure to “up our game” when it comes to prayer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The reality is that prayer<em> is</em> important during Lent. Very important. But <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-fasting-rules/">fasting</a> and almsgiving matter too. So do all the other actions we might take to help us let go of our own desires and align with God’s call for us.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":"lent-embed"} --> <p class="lent-embed">God doesn’t call us to pray *longer* during this time. Or pray “better”—whatever that means. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">A great starting point for drawing closer to God and improving our prayer life during Lent is simply the <em>desire</em> to improve our prayer life during Lent. If you’re reading this, chances are you already have that desire.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">So let’s start there.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center","orientation":"horizontal"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/lentprayers">Christians: Pray with Hallow this Lent</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="short-lent-prayers">Short Lent Prayers&nbsp;</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Short Lent prayers are an easy way to go from <em>desiring</em> to pray more during Lent to actually doing so.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">After all, Lent includes (and prepares us for) some of the longest liturgies of the year.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/palm-sunday/">Palm Sunday</a> features the first reading of the Passion of Christ before we hear it again on <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/good-friday-the-passion-of-christ/">Good Friday</a>. <a href="https://hallow.com/lent/">Holy Week</a> also features Holy Thursday and the Easter Vigil, two liturgies that are unique and beautiful.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">And longer than normal.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">When we’re not at Mass, sometimes we just need short, simple prayers to remain close to God during our busy days.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Lent is no different.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Here are some easy prayers you can say to feel connected to God during Lent this year:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>“God, may Your light guide my day, and your spirit bring me peace. Amen.”</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>“God, may my sacrifice of today of (state your Lenten sacrifice) remind me of my dependence on You for all the blessings I enjoy. Amen.”</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>”May I stand in solidarity today with all my brothers and sisters around the world who are suffering. May we be united in your love, and may I work to build your kingdom here on earth.”</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>“Heavenly Father, I’m truly sorry for the moments today where I missed the mark. I ask for your forgiveness and the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-for-strength/">strength</a> to better follow Your call tomorrow. Amen.”</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>”God, I lift up (name of the person you’d like to pray for) today. I ask that you bless them abundantly today and throughout Lent. Amen.”</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>“Oh Jesus, I surrender myself to you, take care of everything. Amen.”</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Hallow offers “Minute Meditations”--short, simple prayers that can help build your Lenten prayer habit in just a few minutes each day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>RELATED:</strong> <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/easter-prayers/">Easter Prayers for 2023</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="bible-verses-reflections">Lenten Bible Study: Verses to Reflect on</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Just as short prayers can help enrich our faith lives during Lent, Bible passages can also help us reflect on and draw meaning from the season.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">And as with short prayers, just because a Bible verse is not long or complex does not mean it lacks substance. Some of the most powerful scriptures or Sermons in the Bible and directly from Jesus are a few simple words such as the 7 last words of Christ.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">You can also consider these short Bible verses to reflect on this Lent:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>“Then Job replied to the Lord: 2 “I know that you can do all things; no purpose of yours can be thwarted. 3 You asked, ‘Who is this that obscures my plans without knowledge?’ Surely I spoke of things I did not understand, things too wonderful for me to know. 4 “You said, ‘Listen now, and I will speak; I will question you, and you shall answer me.’ 5 My ears had heard of you but now my eyes have seen you. 6 Therefore I despise myself and repent in dust and ashes.”</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Job 42: 1-6</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">"Is this not, rather, the fast that I choose: releasing those bound unjustly, untying the thongs of the yoke; Setting free the oppressed, breaking off every yoke? 7 Is it not sharing your bread with the hungry, bringing the afflicted and the homeless into your house; Clothing the naked when you see them, and not turning your back on your own flesh? 8 Then your light shall break forth like the dawn, and your wound shall quickly be healed; Your vindication shall go before you, and the glory of the Lord shall be your rear guard. 9 Then you shall call, and the Lord will answer, you shall cry for help, and he will say: “Here I am!”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Isaiah 58: 6-9 “</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">“By the sweat of your brow you shall eat bread, Until you return to the ground, from which you were taken; For you are dust, and to dust you shall return.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Genesis 3:19</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">“So submit yourselves to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you of two minds. 9 Begin to lament, to mourn, to weep. Let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy into dejection. 10 Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>James 4: 7-10</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="daily-readings">Daily Readings for Lent</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Like all daily readings at Mass, Bible passages for the season of Lent revolve around a calendar cycle.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Sunday readings are on a three-year rotation of readings identified by the letters A, B, and C. In 2024, the Church follows Year B readings, which highlight the Gospel of Luke.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Daily Mass readings—that form the basis of the Liturgy of the Word for weekday Masses—operate on a two-year cycle. In 2024, the Church will use readings from Cycle II for weekday liturgies.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The USCCB is a <a href="https://bible.usccb.org/">helpful resource</a> for all daily Mass readings from the Bible, and the same is true during Lent.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The Hallow app also offers daily Mass readings, morning prayers, <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/daily-prayer-prayers-for-today/">daily reflections</a> and more each day. Listen to and reflect on each reading right from your phone.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center","orientation":"horizontal"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/lentprayers">Start Praying with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="stations-of-the-cross">Praying the Stations of the Cross</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-stations-of-the-cross/">Stations of the Cross</a> are a popular devotion during Lent.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Known as <em>Via Crucis</em> in Latin, this form of prayer commemorates the journey Jesus made to Calvary, and the various steps he made in that journey. Fourteen “stations” are featured in total.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Each station usually begins with a verse by someone leading the prayer. The group responds in unison. Short words of meditation then lead into a shared prayer, recited by all.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Those gathered process around the church, stopping at the artwork depicting each step in Jesus’ path to the cross.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Stations of the Cross have a rich history within the Church. In modern times, Stations of the Cross often take place on Friday evenings during Lent.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Many churches will hold a special service for the Stations of the Cross on Good Friday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="seven-last-words">7 Last Words</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The seven last words, or sayings, of Jesus refer to the final phrases he gave us before he handed over his spirit on the cross.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Lent is a popular time to reflect on these words. Hallow will have plenty of prayer resources devoted to helping you spend time with Jesus’ final words.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="faq">Lent Prayers FAQ</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Let Hallow guide you through common questions or misconceptions about Lent prayers so you can have no doubts about getting started in deepening your prayer life.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:yoast/faq-block {"questions":[{"id":"faq-question-1644083241490","question":[{"type":"strong","props":{"children":["What does the Bible say about Lent? "]}}," "],"answer":["Lent is rooted in Jesus’ time in the desert when he prayed and fasted for 40 days and overcame the Devil’s temptation. The Bible does not specifically mention Lent. However, it’s worth remembering the importance of Scripture ",{"type":"em","props":{"children":["and "]}},"tradition in the Church. The early church existed for decades before the first written Gospel (Mark). "],"jsonQuestion":"\u003cstrong\u003eWhat does the Bible say about Lent? \u003c/strong\u003e ","jsonAnswer":"Lent is rooted in Jesus’ time in the desert when he prayed and fasted for 40 days and overcame the Devil’s temptation. The Bible does not specifically mention Lent. However, it’s worth remembering the importance of Scripture \u003cem\u003eand \u003c/em\u003etradition in the Church. The early church existed for decades before the first written Gospel (Mark). "},{"id":"faq-question-1644083274355","question":[{"type":"strong","props":{"children":["What special prayers or practices are associated with Lent?"]}}," "],"answer":["There are not many (if any!) prayers that are entirely reserved just for Lent. Liturgical practices have more obvious changes. For example, the Gloria is omitted from Mass, as is the Alleluia before the Gospel. Prayers like the ",{"type":"a","props":{"href":"https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-hail-mary/","children":["Hail Mary"]}}," and ",{"type":"a","props":{"href":"https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-our-father/","children":["Our Father"]}}," are always acceptable during Lent (and outside of it)."],"jsonQuestion":"\u003cstrong\u003eWhat special prayers or practices are associated with Lent?\u003c/strong\u003e ","jsonAnswer":"There are not many (if any!) prayers that are entirely reserved just for Lent. Liturgical practices have more obvious changes. For example, the Gloria is omitted from Mass, as is the Alleluia before the Gospel. Prayers like the \u003ca href=\u0022https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-hail-mary/\u0022\u003eHail Mary\u003c/a\u003e and \u003ca href=\u0022https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-our-father/\u0022\u003eOur Father\u003c/a\u003e are always acceptable during Lent (and outside of it)."},{"id":"faq-question-1644083292492","question":[{"type":"strong","props":{"children":["What rosary prayers are said during Lent?"]}}," "],"answer":["The sorrowful mysteries are popular for ",{"type":"a","props":{"href":"https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/","children":["rosary"]}}," prayers offered during Lent. The ",{"type":"a","props":{"href":"https://hallow.com/blog/7-sorrows/","children":["7 Sorrows Rosary"]}}," is also common during this time.  "],"jsonQuestion":"\u003cstrong\u003eWhat rosary prayers are said during Lent?\u003c/strong\u003e ","jsonAnswer":"The sorrowful mysteries are popular for \u003ca href=\u0022https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/\u0022\u003erosary\u003c/a\u003e prayers offered during Lent. The \u003ca href=\u0022https://hallow.com/blog/7-sorrows/\u0022\u003e7 Sorrows Rosary\u003c/a\u003e is also common during this time.  "},{"id":"faq-question-1644083528169","question":[{"type":"strong","props":{"children":["How many prayers should I say for eating meat on Fridays during Lent?"]}}," "],"answer":["There’s no set number of prayers or even how you should pray. Ask for God’s forgiveness and in addition to abstaining from meat on Fridays. And ",{"type":"a","props":{"href":"https://hallow.com/blog/what-to-give-up-for-lent/","children":["what to give up for Lent"]}}," is a personal choice. In addition, you can also add to others in the spirit of almsgiving by volunteering, helping a charity, or simply doing a chore for a loved one.  "],"jsonQuestion":"\u003cstrong\u003eHow many prayers should I say for eating meat on Fridays during Lent?\u003c/strong\u003e ","jsonAnswer":"There’s no set number of prayers or even how you should pray. Ask for God’s forgiveness and in addition to abstaining from meat on Fridays. And \u003ca href=\u0022https://hallow.com/blog/what-to-give-up-for-lent/\u0022\u003ewhat to give up for Lent\u003c/a\u003e is a personal choice. In addition, you can also add to others in the spirit of almsgiving by volunteering, helping a charity, or simply doing a chore for a loved one.  "},{"id":"faq-question-1644083547084","question":[{"type":"strong","props":{"children":["How do you pray the Stations of the Cross?"]}}," "],"answer":["The Stations of the Cross are most commonly prayed at church or an outdoor shrine. You can also use the Hallow app and ",{"type":"a","props":{"href":"https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-stations-of-the-cross/","children":["pray the Stations of the Cross"]}}," at home. "],"jsonQuestion":"\u003cstrong\u003eHow do you pray the Stations of the Cross?\u003c/strong\u003e ","jsonAnswer":"The Stations of the Cross are most commonly prayed at church or an outdoor shrine. You can also use the Hallow app and \u003ca href=\u0022https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-stations-of-the-cross/\u0022\u003epray the Stations of the Cross\u003c/a\u003e at home. "}]} --> <div class="schema-faq wp-block-yoast-faq-block"><div class="schema-faq-section" id="faq-question-1644083241490"><strong class="schema-faq-question"><strong>What does the Bible say about Lent? </strong> </strong> <p class="schema-faq-answer">Lent is rooted in Jesus’ time in the desert when he prayed and fasted for 40 days and overcame the Devil’s temptation. The Bible does not specifically mention Lent. However, it’s worth remembering the importance of Scripture <em>and </em>tradition in the Church. The early church existed for decades before the first written Gospel (Mark). </p> </div> <div class="schema-faq-section" id="faq-question-1644083274355"><strong class="schema-faq-question"><strong>What special prayers or practices are associated with Lent?</strong> </strong> <p class="schema-faq-answer">There are not many (if any!) prayers that are entirely reserved just for Lent. Liturgical practices have more obvious changes. For example, the Gloria is omitted from Mass, as is the Alleluia before the Gospel. Prayers like the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-hail-mary/">Hail Mary</a> and <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-our-father/">Our Father</a> are always acceptable during Lent (and outside of it).</p> </div> <div class="schema-faq-section" id="faq-question-1644083292492"><strong class="schema-faq-question"><strong>What rosary prayers are said during Lent?</strong> </strong> <p class="schema-faq-answer">The sorrowful mysteries are popular for <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/">rosary</a> prayers offered during Lent. The <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/7-sorrows/">7 Sorrows Rosary</a> is also common during this time.  </p> </div> <div class="schema-faq-section" id="faq-question-1644083528169"><strong class="schema-faq-question"><strong>How many prayers should I say for eating meat on Fridays during Lent?</strong> </strong> <p class="schema-faq-answer">There’s no set number of prayers or even how you should pray. Ask for God’s forgiveness and in addition to abstaining from meat on Fridays. And <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/what-to-give-up-for-lent/">what to give up for Lent</a> is a personal choice. In addition, you can also add to others in the spirit of almsgiving by volunteering, helping a charity, or simply doing a chore for a loved one.  </p> </div> <div class="schema-faq-section" id="faq-question-1644083547084"><strong class="schema-faq-question"><strong>How do you pray the Stations of the Cross?</strong> </strong> <p class="schema-faq-answer">The Stations of the Cross are most commonly prayed at church or an outdoor shrine. You can also use the Hallow app and <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-stations-of-the-cross/">pray the Stations of the Cross</a> at home. </p> </div> </div> <!-- /wp:yoast/faq-block --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Make your 2024 Lent your best one yet. Pray with Hallow--the leading <a href="https://hallow.com/">Catholic prayer app</a>--and find peace this Lent.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> [post_title] => Lent Prayers for 2024 [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => lent-prayers [to_ping] => [pinged] => https://hallow.com/2020/03/17/how-to-pray-stations-of-the-cross/ https://hallow.com/2019/09/23/how-to-pray-the-rosary/ https://hallow.com/2022/01/19/how-to-pray-the-hail-mary/ https://hallow.com/2021/02/10/7-sorrows/ https://hallow.com/2020/02/12/how-to-pray-our-father/ [post_modified] => 2024-02-13 21:10:31 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-02-13 21:10:31 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=11241 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 30963 [post_author] => 43 [post_date] => 2023-02-03 16:03:39 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-02-03 16:03:39 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">St. Joseph, the spouse of Mary and the foster father of Jesus, is celebrated individually on two feast days. We celebrate St. Joseph, the Spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary, on March 19 and <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-st-joseph-worker-novena/">St. Joseph the Worker</a> a few months later on May 1. There are also other feast days on which we recognize St. Joseph as a member of the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/holy-family-novena/">Holy Family</a> and a model of holiness, humility, hard work, and loyalty. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Pray the Litany of St. Joseph on his feasts or any day to ask for his intercession in your life. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>I have a great love for St. Joseph, because he is a man of silence and strength. On my table, I have an image of St. Joseph sleeping. Even when he is asleep, he is taking care of the Church! Yes! We know that he can do that. So when I have a problem, a difficulty, I write a little note and I put it underneath St. Joseph, so that he can dream about it! In other words, I tell him: </em>“<em>Pray for this problem!</em>”&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>Pope Francis</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>Table of Contents</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#About-St-Joseph">About St. Joseph</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Litany-St-Joseph">Litany of St. Joseph&nbsp;</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Prayer-for-Protection">St. Joseph Prayer for Protection</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#Other-St-Joseph-Prayers">Other St. Joseph Prayers</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="About-St-Joseph"><strong>About St. Joseph&nbsp;</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">St. Joseph is the spouse of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the foster father of Jesus. As we read in the Gospels, Joseph was from the line of David – <a href="https://catholicstraightanswers.com/who-was-st-joseph/">connecting</a> God’s promise in the Old Testament (the old covenant) with His promise in the New Testament (the new covenant, Jesus). Though we never hear from Joseph in the Gospels, we do know much about him through the stories we read of him. As St. (then Pope) John Paul II <a href="https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_15081989_redemptoris-custos.html">exclaimed</a> in <em>Redemptoris Custos</em>,&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>The Gospels speak exclusively of what Joseph "did." Still, they allow us to discover in his "actions" - shrouded in silence as they are - an aura of deep contemplation. Joseph was in daily contact with the mystery "hidden from ages past," and which "dwelt" under his roof.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --><cite>JPII, Redemptoris Custos (August 15, 1989)</cite></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This first instance of silent action in the Gospels is Joseph’s first “yes” to God (<a href="https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Matthew+1&amp;version=NRSVUE">Matthew 18</a>).&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>"Now the birth of Jesus the Messiah took place in this way. When his mother Mary had been engaged to Joseph, but before they lived together, she was found to be pregnant from the Holy Spirit. Her husband Joseph, being a righteous man and unwilling to expose her to public disgrace, planned to divorce her quietly. But just when he had resolved to do this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream and said, “Joseph, son of David, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, for the child conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will bear a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”&nbsp; … </em><strong><em>When Joseph awoke from sleep, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him; </em></strong><em>he took her as his wife but had no marital relations with her until she had given birth to a son and he named him Jesus.</em>"</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The Lord speaks to Joseph through a dream; Joseph gently discerns what to do and how to respond to this call. Joseph’s graceful acceptance of his vocation as a father, husband, and worker is present throughout the Gospels detailing the early life of Christ.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:pullquote --> <figure class="wp-block-pullquote"><blockquote><p><em>“The figure of St Joseph recalls the urgent need to give a soul to the world of work. His life, marked by listening to God and by familiarity with Christ, appears as a harmonious synthesis of faith and life, of personal fulfillment and love for one's brothers and sisters, of daily commitment and of trust in the future.”</em> </p><cite>St. (Pope) John Paul II on the Solemnity of St. Joseph, 1997&nbsp;</cite></blockquote></figure> <!-- /wp:pullquote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Many scholars <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/saints/05/01/st-joseph--the-worker--spouse-of-the-blessede-virigin-mary---pat.html">believe</a> Joseph passed away before Jesus began his ministry, given Mary’s presence in many Gospel stories without him. However, this hasn’t diminished his life as a robust model for holiness, discernment, and vocation among saints, theologians, and the greater Church. Devotion to St. Joseph also experienced a resurgence in 2021, which was declared the Year of St. Joseph by Pope Francis.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/vxY2dXUF4wb">Pray with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="St-Joseph-the-Worker"><strong>Litany of St. Joseph</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Pray this litany on the feasts of St. Joseph, or any day, to invoke his intercession in your life. Often called "The Worker," many turn to St. Joseph for guidance in their work or professional lives. You can also turn to Him for intercession in your marriage or family life, as Joseph was chosen by God as the foster father of His Son, Jesus. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:yoast/how-to-block {"hasDuration":true,"minutes":"5","steps":[{"id":"how-to-step-1675373122291","name":["Begin the litany by asking for mercy. "],"text":["Lord, have mercy.",{"type":"em","props":{"children":[" R: Lord, have mercy."]}},{"type":"br","props":{"children":[]}},"Christ, have mercy. ",{"type":"em","props":{"children":["R: Christ, have mercy."]}},{"type":"br","props":{"children":[]}},"Lord, have mercy.",{"type":"em","props":{"children":[{"type":"em","props":{"children":[" R: Lord, have mercy."]}}]}},{"type":"br","props":{"children":[]}},"Christ, hear us. ",{"type":"em","props":{"children":["R: Christ, hear us."]}},{"type":"br","props":{"children":[]}},"Christ, graciously hear us. ",{"type":"em","props":{"children":["R: Christ, graciously hear us."]}}],"jsonName":"Begin the litany by asking for mercy. 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"],"text":[{"type":"em","props":{"children":["God made him master of his household and put him in charge of all that he owned.",{"type":"br","props":{"children":[]}}]}}],"jsonName":"Acknowledge God's plan for Joseph. ","jsonText":"\u003cem\u003eGod made him master of his household and put him in charge of all that he owned.\u003cbr/\u003e\u003c/em\u003e"},{"id":"how-to-step-1675374240581","name":["Conclude in prayer. "],"text":[{"type":"em","props":{"children":["O God, who in your inexpressible providence, were pleased to choose Saint Joseph as spouse of the most holy mother of your son. Grant we pray that we who revere him as our protector on earth may be worthy of his heavenly intercession through Christ our Lord. Amen."]}}],"jsonName":"Conclude in prayer. ","jsonText":"\u003cem\u003eO God, who in your inexpressible providence, were pleased to choose Saint Joseph as spouse of the most holy mother of your son. Grant we pray that we who revere him as our protector on earth may be worthy of his heavenly intercession through Christ our Lord. Amen.\u003c/em\u003e"}],"defaultDurationText":"Time needed:"} --> <div class="schema-how-to wp-block-yoast-how-to-block"><p class="schema-how-to-total-time"><span class="schema-how-to-duration-time-text">Time needed: </span>5 minutes. </p><p class="schema-how-to-description"></p> <ol class="schema-how-to-steps"><li class="schema-how-to-step" id="how-to-step-1675373122291"><strong class="schema-how-to-step-name">Begin the litany by asking for mercy. </strong> <p class="schema-how-to-step-text">Lord, have mercy.<em> R: Lord, have mercy.</em><br/>Christ, have mercy. <em>R: Christ, have mercy.</em><br/>Lord, have mercy.<em><em> R: Lord, have mercy.</em></em><br/>Christ, hear us. <em>R: Christ, hear us.</em><br/>Christ, graciously hear us. <em>R: Christ, graciously hear us.</em></p> </li><li class="schema-how-to-step" id="how-to-step-1675373271371"><strong class="schema-how-to-step-name">Address the Holy Trinity. </strong> <p class="schema-how-to-step-text">God the Father in heaven, <em>have mercy on us.</em><br/>God the Son, Redeemer of the world, <em>have mercy on us.</em><br/>God the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-to-the-holy-spirit/">Holy Spirit</a>, <em>have mercy on us.</em><br/>Holy Trinity, One God, <em>have mercy on us.</em></p> </li><li class="schema-how-to-step" id="how-to-step-1675373388050"><strong class="schema-how-to-step-name">Recite the petitions for St. Joseph's intercession. </strong> <p class="schema-how-to-step-text"><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-hail-mary/">Holy Mary</a>, <em>pray for us</em> <br/>Saint Joseph, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Noble son of the house of David, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Light of Patriarchs, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Husband of the Mother of God, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Guardian of the Virgin, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Foster-father of the Son of God, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Faithful guardian of Christ, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Head of the Holy Family, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Joseph chaste and just, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Joseph prudent and brave, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Joseph obedient and loyal, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Pattern of patience, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Lover of poverty, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Model of workers, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Example to parents, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Guardian of virgins, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Pillar of family life, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Comfort of the troubled, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Hope of the sick, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Patron of the dying, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Terror of evil spirits, <em>pray for us</em><br/>Protector of the Church, <em>pray for us</em><br/></p> </li><li class="schema-how-to-step" id="how-to-step-1675373554434"><strong class="schema-how-to-step-name">Ask Jesus for His grace and mercy. </strong> <p class="schema-how-to-step-text">Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, <em>have mercy on us.</em><br/>Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, <em><em>have mercy on us.</em></em><br/>Lamb of God, you take away the sins of the world, <em>have mercy on us. </em><br/></p> </li><li class="schema-how-to-step" id="how-to-step-1675374116848"><strong class="schema-how-to-step-name">Acknowledge God's plan for Joseph. </strong> <p class="schema-how-to-step-text"><em>God made him master of his household and put him in charge of all that he owned.<br/></em></p> </li><li class="schema-how-to-step" id="how-to-step-1675374240581"><strong class="schema-how-to-step-name">Conclude in prayer. </strong> <p class="schema-how-to-step-text"><em>O God, who in your inexpressible providence, were pleased to choose Saint Joseph as spouse of the most holy mother of your son. Grant we pray that we who revere him as our protector on earth may be worthy of his heavenly intercession through Christ our Lord. Amen.</em></p> </li></ol></div> <!-- /wp:yoast/how-to-block --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/vxY2dXUF4wb">Pray the Litany of St. Joseph</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">After praying the litany, consider praying the following St. Joseph Prayer for Protection, which is <a href="https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/devotions/prayer-for-st-josephs-protection-329">thought</a> to be from the first century AD.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="Prayer-for-Protection"><strong>St. Joseph Prayer for Protection</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>Oh, St. Joseph, whose protection is so great, so prompt, so strong,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>before the throne of God, I place in you all my interests and desires.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>Oh, St. Joseph, do assist me by your powerful intercession,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>and obtain for me from your Divine Son</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>all spiritual blessings, through Jesus Christ, our Lord.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>So that, having engaged here below your heavenly power,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>I may offer my thanksgiving and homage to the most loving of fathers.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>Oh, St. Joseph, I never weary contemplating you and Jesus asleep in your arms;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>I dare not approach while he reposes near your heart.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>Press him in my name and kiss his fine head for me and</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>ask him to return the kiss when I draw my dying breath.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>St. Joseph, patron of departing souls - pray for me.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"align":"center","className":""} --> <p class="has-text-align-center"><em>Amen.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="Other-St-Joseph-Prayers"><strong>Other St. Joseph Prayers</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In addition to the Litany of St. Joseph and Prayer for Protection, you can also ask for St. Joseph's intercession in your life with the <a href="https://aleteia.org/2017/03/19/the-powerful-30-day-prayer-to-st-joseph-2/">30-Day Prayer</a> or commit to consecrating yourself to St. Joseph, similar to a <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-marian-consecration/">Marian consecration</a>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/vxY2dXUF4wb">Pray with St. Joseph</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>Related Prayers</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-prayers/">Lent Prayers for 2023</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-mary-undoer-of-knots-novena/">Mary, Undoer of Knots Novena</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-surrender-novena/">Surrender Novena</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-st-jude-novena/">St. Jude Novena</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/">The Rosary</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> [post_title] => How to Pray the Litany of St. Joseph [post_excerpt] => Pray this litany on the feasts of St. Joseph to invoke his intercession in your life. [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => how-to-pray-litany-of-st-joseph [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2023-12-21 20:36:16 [post_modified_gmt] => 2023-12-21 20:36:16 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=30963 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 7979 [post_author] => 18 [post_date] => 2023-02-02 16:38:00 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-02-02 16:38:00 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">So often, when we think of prayer, we imagine someone sitting or kneeling in perfect stillness. But this isn’t what prayer has to look like for you. Prayer certainly is not something that is or needs to be perfect. Instead, God wants us to meet Him when we can, where we can, and how we can. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-prayer">What is prayer?</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":7981,"width":"400px","height":"400px","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","align":"center","className":"is-style-rounded"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized is-style-rounded"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/10-01-2020_square.png" alt="&quot;Prayer is a surge of the heart&quot;" class="wp-image-7981" style="width:400px;height:400px"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The Merriam-Webster dictionary <a href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/prayer">defines</a> <em>prayer</em> as "an address (such as a petition) to God in word or thought." At Hallow, we don't think it has to be so serious. <strong>Prayer is simply having a conversation with God, just like you would talk with a friend. </strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As <a href="https://www.littleflower.org/therese/" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">St. Therese of Lisieux</a> relayed, prayer can be about love, trial, joy, or anything on your heart and mind. What matters is that you turn your heart towards God, just as you would a friend in conversation, and let the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-to-the-holy-spirit/">Holy Spirit</a> guide you. Sometimes prayer is a way for us to ask God for something (petition), but other times it's just about expressing our gratitude for where we see good in our lives (thanksgiving). </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-why-should-we-pray">Why should we pray?</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We pray to place our trust in God. This reliance on God and believing in His will brings us peace, protection, and understanding of our purpose on this earth — to love God and love others. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">At Hallow, we believe prayer helps our heart and minds be "hallowed" — made holy. Because when we're open to the Holy Spirit working through us, we begin to see life as a beautiful gift from God, allowing our hearts, minds, and spirits to be changed and find peace and joy. &nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-should-we-pray">When should we pray?</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The best part about prayer is that you can pray anytime, anywhere. God is always with you, so you can always talk to Him. If you're just getting started, or you prefer to have a consistent routine, praying right after you wake up, on your commute, before meals, or before you <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/falling-asleep-with-god/">fall asleep</a> might work well for you. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-how-to-pray-6-tips-to-start-praying">How to Pray: 6 tips to start praying</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:columns {"verticalAlignment":"center"} --> <div class="wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center"><!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"33.33%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:33.33%"><!-- wp:image {"id":7993,"width":"288px","height":"512px","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Copy-of-6-16-2021_story-2-1-576x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-7993" style="width:288px;height:512px"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --></div> <!-- /wp:column --> <!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"66.66%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:66.66%"><!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-1-start-small">1. Start small. </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>"You don’t climb a mountain in leaps and bounds, but by taking it slowly."</em> - St. Gregory the Great</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If you're new to prayer or jumping back into it after some time away, don't try to do too much all at once! As Saint Gregory encourages us, think of prayer as a journey with God. Start with a light walk before you start sprinting. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Begin with a short prayer in the morning, thanking God for the day ahead of you. Or begin praying at night — <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-examen/">examining</a> where you saw God in your day before you fall asleep. Don't force anything — focus on being present with God and listening for His voice.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></div> <!-- /wp:column --></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> <!-- wp:columns {"verticalAlignment":"center"} --> <div class="wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center"><!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"66.66%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:66.66%"><!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-2-think-of-prayer-as-developing-a-habit">2. Think of prayer as developing a habit. </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>“If a man wants to be always in God’s company, he must pray regularly and read regularly."</em> - St. Isidore of Seville</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Just like making your bed every morning or washing the dishes after dinner, purposefully praying each day helps make it a habit. The more we talk with God, the more natural it becomes to lean on Him in times of worry or thank Him in times of joy. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In Hallow, we recommend listening to our guest session with Mike St. Pierre on his 5 Habits of Prayerful People. You can also set a reminder for any time of the day in the app to help you stay on track in developing your new (or renewed) prayer habit!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></div> <!-- /wp:column --> <!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"33.33%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:33.33%"><!-- wp:image {"id":8013,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none"} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Copy-of-6-16-2021_story-3-576x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8013" width="NaN" height="NaN"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --></div> <!-- /wp:column --></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> <!-- wp:columns --> <div class="wp-block-columns"></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> <!-- wp:columns {"verticalAlignment":"center"} --> <div class="wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center"><!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"33.33%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:33.33%"><!-- wp:image {"id":8099,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Copy-of-6-16-2021_story-8-4-576x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8099"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --></div> <!-- /wp:column --> <!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"66.66%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:66.66%"><!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-3-don-t-think-too-hard-about-making-prayer-perfect">3. Don’t think too hard about making prayer perfect.</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em><em>"Prayer is the raising of the mind to God. We must always remember this. The actual words matter less." </em>- Pope John XXIII</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">It's hard to do anything perfectly when we put pressure on ourselves. The same goes for prayer. Focus on resting in His presence rather than making what you say or how you pray perfect. God wants to meet us right where we are.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We recommend praying with the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-examen/">Examen</a> if you're struggling with how to rest in prayer. Your guide will lead you with questions, and you can talk to God about your day, just as you would a friend. This daily prayer helps you notice where God moved through your day, ending the day with God while also looking to the next with Him.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></div> <!-- /wp:column --></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> <!-- wp:columns {"verticalAlignment":"center"} --> <div class="wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center"><!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"66.66%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:66.66%"><!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-4-listen-more-talk-less">4. Listen more, talk less. </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>"In prayer, more is accomplished by listening than by talking."</em> - St. Jane Frances de Chantal</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Rather than thinking of prayer as our talking with God, consider listening as the main purpose. When we truly rest with God and turn our gaze to Him, we are able to better hear His voice. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If you're looking to listen better, we recommend praying <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-lectio-divina/">Lectio Divina</a> to hear God's voice. Lectio Divina is an ancient practice of intentionally praying with a short section or verse of Scripture. We don't usually begin Lectio Divina with a certain intention. Rather, we let the Holy Spirit lead us to certain words, images, or phrases that stick out to us in prayer. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></div> <!-- /wp:column --> <!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"33.33%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:33.33%"><!-- wp:image {"id":8017,"width":"288px","height":"512px","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Copy-of-6-16-2021_story-5-576x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8017" style="width:288px;height:512px"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --></div> <!-- /wp:column --></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> <!-- wp:columns {"verticalAlignment":"center"} --> <div class="wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center"><!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"33.33%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:33.33%"><!-- wp:image {"id":8019,"width":"288px","height":"512px","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large is-resized"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Copy-of-6-16-2021_story-7-576x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8019" style="width:288px;height:512px"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --></div> <!-- /wp:column --> <!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"66.66%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:66.66%"><!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-5-don-t-be-afraid-to-pray-all-day">5. Don’t be afraid to pray all day.</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>"We must pray without ceasing, in every occurrence and employment of our lives — that prayer which is rather a habit of lifting up the heart to God as in constant communication with Him."</em> - <a href="https://hallow.com/saints/elizabeth-ann-seton/">St. Elizabeth Ann Seton</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">There is no expectation for a certain number of minutes or prayers to say each day. However, what's amazing about prayer is that wherever you are, God is, too. So, we can — literally — pray to God all day. Anytime we rest with God, acknowledging his presence, we pray. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">One way to connect to God throughout your day is to add prayerful <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray/-with-music/">music</a> to your daily routine. You can pray with music on your commute to and from work, on a walk, or while you work throughout the day. Hallow offers a variety of music, from <a href="https://www.renewalinmotion.com/br-isaiah-1" target="_blank" rel="noreferrer noopener">Brother Isaiah's</a> upbeat praise to Gregorian Chant.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></div> <!-- /wp:column --></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> <!-- wp:columns {"verticalAlignment":"center"} --> <div class="wp-block-columns are-vertically-aligned-center"><!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"66.66%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:66.66%"><!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-6-remember-prayer-can-be-difficult">6. Remember, prayer can be difficult. </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>"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."</em> - St. Paul (Romans 8:26)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">It can be tough to pray, especially when we're experiencing loss, disappointment, trauma, or when we feel abandoned by God. In these times of sadness and grief, we encourage you to listen and pray with the words of those who suffered, too. Maybe the Psalms will speak to you, which embody both the suffering and joy of life. Or, you might find consolation in the Rosary as you meditate with the Blessed Mother on the suffering Jesus endured for us. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Remember, you can always pray for the Holy Spirit to guide you. God knows what we need even when we cannot find the words ourselves.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></div> <!-- /wp:column --> <!-- wp:column {"verticalAlignment":"center","width":"33.33%"} --> <div class="wp-block-column is-vertically-aligned-center" style="flex-basis:33.33%"><!-- wp:image {"id":8083,"width":"288px","height":"512px","sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","align":"center","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image aligncenter size-large is-resized"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/Copy-of-6-16-2021_story-1-576x1024.png" alt="" class="wp-image-8083" style="width:288px;height:512px"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --></div> <!-- /wp:column --></div> <!-- /wp:columns --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-prayer-tips-how-to-pray-nbsp">More prayer tips: how to pray&nbsp;</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Once you've begun to pray, here are some more tips to help you continue in your prayer journey. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-incorporate-prayer-into-your-daily-routine">Incorporate prayer into your daily routine.</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Pray right after you wake up to set a peaceful tone for the rest of your day</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Pray while you're doing dishes or laundry</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Pray while you're preparing your morning coffee</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Permit yourself to pray before you check your email in the morning — you can even add it to your calendar!</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-associate-prayer-with-movement">Associate prayer with movement.</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If you have trouble sitting still, go for a walk with God and tell Him about your day. Praying with a guided prayer is often helpful as you move, such as the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/">Rosary</a> or the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-divine-mercy-chaplet/">Divine Mercy Chaplet</a>. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-listen-to-your-heart">Listen to your heart.</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If your mind keeps pulling you towards another subject or moment than what you intended for your time in prayer, then yield and pray about what's on your heart instead. It might be the Holy Spirit nudging you! </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-choose-a-special-place-for-prayer">Choose a special place for prayer.</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This could be a chair in your house, or somewhere outside of the setting where you spend most of your day. If you feel God's presence among flowers or near water, listen and follow. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-pray-with-a-friend">Pray with a friend. </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Praying with others helps us hold ourselves accountable. <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-novenas/">Novenas</a>, for example, are great to pray with your partner, a family member, or a friend. You don't necessarily have to talk about it, but it can be so helpful to have a partner to motivate you in your journey to grow closer with God. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-write-it-down">Write it down. </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">When you think of something you'd like to talk to God about, write it down. It doesn't have to be pen and paper, either! You can use the notes app on your phone or journal in Hallow. Return to your list or note when you next rest with God. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-come-holy-spirit">"Come, Holy Spirit." </h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If you're struggling to get started, remember that you can always call on the Holy Spirit for some help. Simply repeat this prayer — "Come, Holy Spirit." </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:separator {"opacity":"css","className":"is-style-wide"} --> <hr class="wp-block-separator has-css-opacity is-style-wide"/> <!-- /wp:separator --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We hope these how to pray tips help you in your journey with God. Remember, prayer is a conversation. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If you're looking for more information on how to pray, return to our main page to learn more about the various kinds of prayers and meditations available to you! You can also download Hallow and try a variety of prayer types with our 2-week free trial. </p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We look forward to praying with you!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center","orientation":"horizontal"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/blogdownload">Learn How to Pray with the Hallow App</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-more-prayer-resources">More Prayer Resources</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class="wp-block-list"><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-hail-mary/">Hail Mary Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-our-father/">Our Father Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/daily-prayer-prayers-for-today/">Daily Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-st-jude-novena/">St. Jude Novena</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-litany-of-trust/">Litany of Trust</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> [post_title] => How to Pray [post_excerpt] => Prayer is simply having a conversation with God. Learn how to pray & start the conversation. [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => how-to-pray [to_ping] => [pinged] => https://hallow.com/2019/08/06/falling-asleep-with-god/ https://hallow.com/2019/09/13/how-to-pray-the-examen/ [post_modified] => 2024-08-29 20:40:55 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-08-29 20:40:55 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=7979 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 30831 [post_author] => 24 [post_date] => 2023-01-29 01:46:23 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-01-29 01:46:23 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>Daily Prayer Table of Contents</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#intro">Intro: Why is Daily Prayer Important?</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#short-simple">Short, Simple Daily Prayers for Today</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#common">Common Catholic Daily Prayers</a><!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#hail-mary">Hail Mary</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#our-father">Our Father</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#glory-be">Glory Be</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#holy-spirit">Prayers to the Holy Spirit</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#prayer-traditions">Daily Prayer Customs in Catholic Faith&nbsp;</a><!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#liturgy-of-the-hours">Liturgy of the Hours</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#daily-examen">Daily Examen</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#rosary">The Rosary</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#novenas">Novenas</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#saints">Daily Prayer Inspired by Saints</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#scripture">Praying With Scripture Each Day</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#bible-in-a-year">Bible in a Year</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#lent">Daily Prayer During Lent</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#more-resources">More Resources to Pray Today</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="" id="intro">Our habits matter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Just as habits (good and bad) can impact our health, our career and our relationships with others, they can also affect our prayer life and our relationship with God.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">And our relationship with God can impact <em>everything</em>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The roots of daily prayer predate the Church itself. <a href="https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2001/january8/2.40.html">As Christianity Today points out</a>, “The practice of daily, set prayer goes back to the Old Testament.” Early Christians then emulated Jewish customs by praying each day. The Church has echoed the message of the importance of praying often for centuries.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">More recently, Pope Francis spoke about the importance of daily prayer <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2021-02/pope-francis-general-audience-prayer-daily-events-life-today.html">during one of his papal audiences</a> in February 2021.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">“It is in the present that we encounter Him, not yesterday or tomorrow, but today.”&nbsp;&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Prayer is transformative. Praying each day is one of the most important habits we can build.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">And you can start with some very simple prayers.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="short-simple">Short Catholic Prayers for Today</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Sometimes, our days don’t always allow us the opportunity to carve out a long period of time devoted entirely to prayer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Even if we prioritize God in our lives, sometimes we need a simple way to connect with our loving Creator, who is always happy to hear from us.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">“God, help me navigate whatever challenges I encounter this day. Be my comfort and my rock. Guide me to do Your will and be an instrument of your peace today and each day. Amen.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">“Heavenly Father, as I embark on this day, I ask for Your blessing. Help me feel near to You, with my eyes open to the ways that You are at work in my life. In Your name I pray. Amen.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">“Sometimes, Father, in the midst of days like today, I can be overcome by things that I want or need. When I pause in moments like this, I know that You are what I truly need. Help me center my day on You. May I share the peace that provides me with those around me. Amen.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/dailyprayer">Start Praying Each Day. Try Hallow for Free!</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="common">Common Prayers Said Daily</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The first prayers that many Catholics and Christians learn are sometimes the ones we most often pray.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Daily prayer does not need to be complicated or complex. The simple words we learn as children can shape our prayer life each day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As you offer up these prayers each day, be aware of not mindlessly reciting the words by rote. Pray the words, don’t merely repeat them. These prayers are not long, but they are powerful.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="hail-mary"><strong>Hail Mary</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":8665,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/07/93_l-1024x611.png" alt="An Image of the Virgin Mary" class="wp-image-8665"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:pullquote --> <figure class="wp-block-pullquote"><blockquote><p>“Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee;<br>blessed are thou amongst women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.<br>Holy Mary, Mother of God,<br>pray for us sinners,<br>now and at the hour of our death.<br>Amen.”</p></blockquote></figure> <!-- /wp:pullquote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">See Hallow’s complete guide to the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-hail-mary/">Hail Mary</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="our-father"><strong>Lord’s Prayer / Our Father</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:pullquote --> <figure class="wp-block-pullquote"><blockquote><p>Our Father, Who art in heaven; hallowed be Thy name<br>Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.<br>Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us;<br>And lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil.<br>Amen.</p></blockquote></figure> <!-- /wp:pullquote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">See Hallow’s full guide to the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-our-father/">Lord’s Prayer</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="glory-be"><strong>Glory Be</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:pullquote --> <figure class="wp-block-pullquote"><blockquote><p>Glory Be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.”</p></blockquote></figure> <!-- /wp:pullquote --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="holy-spirit"><strong>Prayers to the Holy Spirit</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Come, Holy Spirit (repeated)</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">See Hallow’s full guide to <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-to-the-holy-spirit/">Holy Spirit prayers</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="prayer-traditions">Daily Prayer Traditions in Catholic Faith&nbsp;</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The Catholic faith is also rich in daily prayer traditions that transcend a single prayer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">For centuries, these forms of prayer have unified Catholics in prayer and brought millions of people closer to God.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Perhaps the most beautiful aspect of these different forms of prayer is their diversity. Some are shot; some are more involved. Some are very structured while some are more open ended.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Learn more about these various prayer customs and prayerfully consider which you might be called to exploe.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="liturgy-of-the-hours"><strong>Liturgy of the Hours</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Sometimes referred to as Divine Office, Liturgy of the Hours structures a day in prayer. Based in Scripture, Liturgy of the Hours includes a very specific format of prayers for certain times of the day, including:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/morning-prayer/">Morning Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Daytime Prayer</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Evening Prayer</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/night-prayer-bedtime/">Night Prayer</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Priests, brothers, deacons and those in formation to enter religious life are all required to recite the Liturgy of the Hours each day. Many lay people join them. If you pray the Liturgy of the Hours, you’ll be in good company!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Learn more from Hallow’s guide on praying the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/liturgy-of-the-hours/">Liturgy of the Hours at night</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="daily-examen"><strong>Daily Examen</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Examination is a ritual that dates back to the early doctors of the Church. <a href="https://hallow.com/saints/ignatius-loyola/">St. Ignatius</a> further popularized it in the 16th century, in his <em>Spiritual Exercises </em>and it remains a popular way to spend time in prayer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The examen (also called “examination of consciousness”)  in <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/ignatian-spirituality-and-the-spiritual-exercises/">Ignatian spirituality</a> guides us through our day, processing everything we did, all the conversations we had, and how we felt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As we reflect on the day, it can become clear where God is at work, where He is leading us or challenging us, as well as where we might have missed the mark.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Check out Hallow’s full guide for praying the <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-examen/">Daily Examen</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="rosary"><strong>The Rosary</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":10035,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Latin-Rosary-L-1024x611.png" alt="Hallow App How to Pray Latin Rosary" class="wp-image-10035"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Perhaps the most well-known Catholic daily prayer tradition is the Rosary.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The Rosary is not a prayer in and of itself; rather, it’s a series of prayers repeated around the structure of a pair of Rosary beads. It includes the Apostle’s Creed, Our Father, Hail Mary and Glory Be.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The Rosary can be prayed once a week, once a day or multiple times a day. Hallow makes it easy with our step-by-step guide on <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/">how to pray the Rosary</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/dailyprayer">Join Thousands of Catholics Praying the Rosary Each Day on Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="novenas"><strong>Novenas</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Novenas are nine-day series of prayer, rooted in the period of time that Mary and the disciples prayed together before the Holy Spirit came down on them (Acts 2:1).</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Often centered on a particular intention, novenas help us draw closer to God, sometimes through the intercession of a particular saint.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-st-jude-novena/">St. Jude Novena</a>, <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-st-andrew-christmas-novena/">St. Andrew’s Christmas Novena</a> and <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-54-day-novena/">54-Day Novena</a> are all popular examples of this form of prayer.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Learn more with Hallow’s full guide to <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-novenas/">novenas</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="saints">Daily Prayer Inspired by Saints</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">We recognize many saints throughout the liturgical year, and on November 1, we celebrate them all with <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/all-saints-day-faq-origin-celebrations-and-prayers/">All Saints Day</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Learning about the saints can inspire us to be more holy. It can remind us that we don’t need to make big, sweeping displays of our faith, nor must we be perfect every day.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Saints were human and experienced many of the same feelings and struggles as we do. You probably know some of the more popular saints, but there are many lesser-known saints whose stories are equally inspiring.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The <a href="https://www.vaticannews.va/en/saints.html">Vatican features</a> a Saint of the Day, and other websites offer the same. The Hallow app offers a Daily Saint section that features a short biography of a saint, followed by meditation and prayer based on that saint.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">See Hallow’s full guide on<a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-with-saints/"> praying with saints</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="scripture">Praying With Scripture Each Day</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Just as spending time with the saints each day can enrich our prayer life, so too can reading passages from the Bible.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">When we attend Mass on Sunday, we hear three readings from Scripture. Those don’t have to be the only three pieces of Scripture we take in each week!</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The USCCB publishes the<a href="https://bible.usccb.org/daily-bible-reading"> daily Mass readings</a> on its site each day. Even if you don’t attend daily Mass, you can reflect on the Bible passages (on most weekdays, there are only two.)</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">You don’t need to feel pressured to read chapter after chapter, like a normal book. With the practice of <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-lectio-divina/">Lectio Divina</a>, you can be moved by a single phrase or word.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Enjoy today's Daily Gospel below. It's also available inside of the Hallow app, but we've embedded it here for you to try:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><iframe class="hallowWidgetL" src="https://widget.hallow.com/en/l/index.html"></iframe></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">There is, however, something special about reading the <em>entire</em> Bible.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><style>iframe.hallowWidgetL {border:0;width:100%;height:230px;max-width:800px;min-width:280px;}</style></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="bible-in-a-year">Praying with Bible in a Year</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":7329,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/06/Fr.-Mike-Schmitz-1024x576.png" alt="Hallow App - Fr. Mike Schmitz" class="wp-image-7329"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Fr. Mike Schmitz’s work with the Bible in a Year podcast through Ascension Press has been nothing short of amazing.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Bible in a Year, also available inside of the Hallow app, is one of the top rated and most downloaded podcasts in the world.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Each day, Fr. Mike reads pieces of Scripture before praying with them and offering an explanation of the passages and sharing other insights.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">You don’t need to start Bible in a Year on January 1. Learn more about <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/bible-in-a-year-with-father-mike-schmitz/">Bible in a Year</a> and consider starting your journey with the Bible today.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/dailyprayer">Start Bible in a Year with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="lent">Daily Prayer During Lent</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:image {"id":11107,"sizeSlug":"large","linkDestination":"none","className":""} --> <figure class="wp-block-image size-large"><img src="https://hallow.com/wp-content/uploads/2022/01/Pray40-Forgiveness-L-1024x612.png" alt="Pray40: Hallow observes Lent 2022." class="wp-image-11107"/></figure> <!-- /wp:image --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">There’s never a bad time to begin praying each day, but <a href="https://hallow.com/lent/">Lent</a> is among the best and most popular times when people devote time to prayer on a daily basis. In fact, <a href="https://trends.google.com/trends/explore?geo=US&amp;q=daily%20prayer">Google Trends tells us</a> that people looking for daily prayer peaks ahead of <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/ash-wednesday/">Ash Wednesday</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">For many, daily prayer is a way to satisfy the question of <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/what-to-give-up-for-lent/">what to give up for Lent</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Prayer is one of the three pillars of Lent, along with fasting and almsgiving, so dedicating oneself to more consistent prayer is a great way to observe Lent. It helps us remember our reliance on God, our need for His forgiveness and His endless mercy.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Many churches will launch prayer groups during Lent, perhaps focused on a particular book or Scripture. There are always simple <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-prayers/">Lent prayers</a> you can return to on busy days leading up to Easter.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="more-resources">More Resources to Pray Today</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-go-to-confession-the-sacrament-of-penance-reconciliation/">Confession Prayers</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-for-strength/">Prayers for Strength</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-for-anxiety/">Prayers for Anxiety</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-for-hope/">Prayers for Hope</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> [post_title] => Daily Prayer: Complete Catholic and Christian Guide to Praying Every Day [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => daily-prayer-prayers-for-today [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-07-24 17:24:03 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-07-24 17:24:03 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=30831 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 11083 [post_author] => 16 [post_date] => 2023-01-25 01:45:00 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-01-25 01:45:00 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">St. (Pope) John Paul II said, <strong><em><strong>“</strong>Catholic education is above all a question of communicating Christ, of helping to form Christ in the lives of others.<strong>”&nbsp;</strong></em></strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As Hallow seeks to help our community live a Christ-like life and grow closer to God, we are excited to celebrate Catholic Schools Week this year and support the faculty, staff, and administrators at Catholic Schools who do so much for their students.&nbsp;</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In 2024, Hallow is thrilled to offer a special deal for Catholic Schools Week. Teachers and staff members at Catholic schools* (or religious education programs) can <a href="https://share.hsforms.com/1e1bz2WsFST29MH8euLEFkQ2wr3y">redeem 50% off Hallow</a> through midnight on Saturday, February 3rd.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Those that take advantage of the “first time” offer, as well as any existing partner educator that submit <a href="https://share.hsforms.com/1e1bz2WsFST29MH8euLEFkQ2wr3y">this form</a>, will also be eligible for the 10% discount on school-wide partnerships during Catholic Schools Week.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-what-is-catholic-schools-week"><strong>What is Catholic Schools Week</strong>?</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Catholic Schools Week is an <a href="https://www.ncea.org/csw/About%20CSW/CSW/About_CSW/About_Catholic_Schools_Week.aspx?hkey=72c72a46-1c36-4711-8f18-5e1cbd87f9ff">annual initiative</a> led by the <a href="https://www.ncea.org/">National Catholic Educational Association (NCEA)</a> to celebrate the excellence and impact of Catholic schools. Each year, Catholic schools observe the celebration through a variety of activities, emphasizing the importance of Catholic education.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>More Resources:</strong> <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/back-to-school-prayers-for-teachers/">Back to School Prayers for Teachers</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-when-is-catholic-schools-week-202-4"><strong>When is Catholic Schools Week 202</strong>4?</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">January 28 – February 3, 2024. Check out the <a href="https://www.ncea.org/csw/Daily_Themes/Celebrate_Catholic_Schools_Week/CSW/Daily_Themes/Celebrate_Catholic_Schools_Week/Celebrate_Catholic_Schools_Week_Themes.aspx?hkey=ef89780c-6485-4eb0-8f33-26496f4f2378">daily themes</a> from NCEA below:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Sunday: Celebrating Your Parish</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Monday: Celebrating Your Community</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Tuesday: Celebrating Your Students</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Wednesday: Celebrating the Nation</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Thursday: Celebrating Vocations</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Friday: Celebrating Faculty, Staff, and Volunteers</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Saturday: Celebrating Families</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-top-ideas-and-activities-for-catholic-schools-week"><strong>Top Ideas and Activities</strong> for Catholic Schools Week</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-faith">Faith</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Pray with Saints like <a href="https://hallow.com/saints/elizabeth-ann-seton/">St. Elizabeth Ann Seton</a>, St. Thomas Aquinas, or your school’s patron saint.&nbsp;(Check the Hallow app to see if your school's patron saint has been featured in our Daily Saints section.)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Start your day with a different type of prayer throughout the week: <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-lectio-divina/">Lectio Divina</a>, <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-examen/">Examen</a>, <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/pray-the-litany-for-life/">Litany</a>, <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/">Rosary</a>, a <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-with-saints/">Saint Prayer</a>, etc.</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Play “Guess That Saint” with your students</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Hallow <a href="https://drive.google.com/file/d/19om5ezZzLmVSTaj4dA8iSKK1v7tTi5DJ/view?usp=sharing">Coloring Pages</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Make Rosaries with different colored beads and string</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-excellence">Excellence</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Play a game of Catholic trivia (available on Hallow!)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Create trivia questions about your school/your school’s history</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Create an acrostic of your school’s name with things students love most about your school</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Have students make a list of prayers they’d like to pray for their classmates, families, and school community</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Host a “Scavenger Hunt” throughout the week of activities students need to complete (e.g. find a particular image in your parish church’s decor, give a compliment to a classmate, etc.)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-service">Service</h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Organize a sidewalk cleanup in your school’s neighborhood</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Buddy up with another classroom for lunchtime conversations</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Have students thank their parents for sending them to Catholic school by writing a letter</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Set up a clothing or food drive for a local organization</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Write thank you notes for maintenance staff, cafeteria staff, bus drivers</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-catholic-schools-week-prayers"><strong>Catholic Schools Week Prayers</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-prayer-to-begin-the-day"><strong>Prayer to Begin the Day</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>(Sign of the Cross)</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>As we begin class together, take a moment to thank God for the gift of learning.&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Loving God,</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>You shaped us in your image and likeness</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Giving us the gift of intelligence</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>And the ability to understand the world around us.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Be with us today as we use those gifts to learn and grow.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>May all that we do in this classroom be an opportunity to praise You.&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>St. Hildegard, patron of writers, pray for us.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>St. Albert the Great, patron of scientists, pray for us.&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>St. Barbara, patron of mathematicians, pray for us.&nbsp;</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>St. Thomas Aquinas, patron of students, pray for us.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>(Sign of the cross)</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>SEE MORE:</strong> <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-with-kids/">How to Pray With Kids</a></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"level":3,"className":""} --> <h3 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-prayer-to-end-the-day"><strong>Prayer to End the Day</strong></h3> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:quote {"className":""} --> <blockquote class="wp-block-quote"><!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>As the school day comes to a close, let’s take a few moments to pray and reflect on our day together.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>(Sign of the Cross)</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Close your eyes and take a couple deep breaths. Ask the Holy Spirit to be with us as we reflect.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Reflect now silently in your mind, what are 2 or 3 things you're grateful for today?</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Where did you notice God during your day?</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>What could you have done better? Where do you need God's help?</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>Now look toward tomorrow. What are you excited about? What are you nervous about? Share with God what is on your mind.</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><em>(Sign of the Cross)</em></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --></blockquote> <!-- /wp:quote --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="h-suggested-prayers-in-the-hallow-app"><strong>Suggested Prayers in the Hallow App:</strong></h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Classroom Prayer Praylist</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Minute Psalms</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Morning Offering</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-st-michael-chaplet/">St. Michael the Archangel</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/prayers-to-the-holy-spirit/">Come, Holy Spirit</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Mental Health Content</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">—----</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> [post_title] => Catholic Schools Week 2024 [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => open [ping_status] => open [post_password] => [post_name] => catholic-schools-week [to_ping] => [pinged] => https://hallow.com/2020/01/09/how-to-pray-lectio-divina/ https://hallow.com/2021/01/25/pray-the-litany-for-life/ https://hallow.com/2019/09/23/how-to-pray-the-rosary/ https://hallow.com/2021/04/06/how-to-pray-with-saints/ [post_modified] => 2023-12-19 14:44:59 [post_modified_gmt] => 2023-12-19 14:44:59 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=11083 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )

WP_Post Object ( [ID] => 30619 [post_author] => 24 [post_date] => 2023-01-22 19:57:58 [post_date_gmt] => 2023-01-22 19:57:58 [post_content] => <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><strong>Where to Get Ashes: Table of Contents</strong></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Introduction</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#liturgies">Different Ash Wednesday Liturgies</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#right-service-for-you">Finding the Right Service</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#local-parish">Ashes at Catholic Churches and Local Parishes</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#ashes-to-go">Ashes to Go/Drive-by Ashes</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#airport-chapels">Ash Wednesday at Airports</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#college-campuses">Ash Wednesday on College Campuses&nbsp;</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="#more-resources">More Ash Wednesday Resources</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/ash-wednesday/">Ash Wednesday</a> remains an extremely popular day within the Church, as many Catholics (and non-Catholics) will receive ashes–perhaps <a href="https://www.americamagazine.org/faith/2022/03/02/ash-wednesday-catholic-242449">even if they don’t regularly make it to Mass</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Even some non-Christians know the words (“Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return”) and recognize the symbol (the dark forehead smudge of black) that mark this first day of <a href="https://hallow.com/lent/">Lent</a>.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">This solemn day “speaks to the existential experience of the human person. All of us are plagued by our choices and our sins,” <a href="https://www.ncregister.com/features/why-is-ash-wednesday-so-popular-and-other-questions-at-the-start-of-lent">according to Father Michael Kapperman</a>, parochial vicar at Sacred Heart Parish.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">To make it easier to participate in Ash Wednesday in 2024, Hallow has assembled this guide exploring where to get ashes whether at home, at college, commuting to work or traveling.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/wheretogetashes">Christians: Pray this Lent with Hallow</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading">Ash Wednesday Liturgies</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":"lent-embed"} --> <p class="lent-embed">The <a href="https://www.olog.church/uploads/8/8/4/5/8845951/ash_wednesday_liturgy_of_the_word.pdf">Book of Blessings</a>, <a href="https://www.autom.com/product/book-of-blessings-brown-cloth-edition-71810?gclid=Cj0KCQiAiJSeBhCCARIsAHnAzT_nRgvz0N9sESEVMTlc0Ox6kbDgSHD-VTCCvO99xr3jxzLGwlybDioaAl5JEALw_wcB">which contains</a> “blessings of the Roman ritual for the Universal Church as well as additional proper blessings for use in the United States,” outlines general guidelines for Ash Wednesday liturgies.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">It tells us that the “...distribution of ashes on Ash Wednesday typically takes place during the celebration of Mass. However, when circumstances require, the blessing and distribution of ashes may take place apart from Mass, during a celebration of the word of God.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In other words, you usually receive ashes at Mass, but there are other ways that parishes can distribute ashes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">“Getting ashes” can mean attending Mass, but that’s not&nbsp; always the case.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="right-service-for-you">Finding the Right Ash Wednesday Service</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">At full Ash Wednesday liturgies, Mass takes place mostly as normal, save for the omission of the Penitential Act. The distribution of ashes normally occurs after the homily.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":"lent-embed"} --> <p class="lent-embed">However, since the Book of Blessings allows for ashes to be given outside of a full Mass, there are guidelines for services that deacons or lay people lead.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">These services focus on the Liturgy of the Word and help make getting ashes more accessible since a priest is not required.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">As you look for where to get ashes, be aware of these differences and look for the right service for you. Not every service will be a full Mass.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="local-parish">Catholic Churches Near You - Ashes at Your Local Parish</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">The first place to look for a place to receive ashes on Ash Wednesday is your nearest Catholic Church.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If you’re not familiar with the local Catholic churches, you can always visit the USCCB website, which features a <a href="https://www.usccb.org/about/bishops-and-dioceses/all-dioceses">directory of dioceses around the country</a>. From there, use the map “Parish Finder” feature to locate your nearest Catholic Church and browse its website.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Since Ash Wednesday falls outside the regular weekend liturgy schedule, information on ash distribution may not appear prominently on the site. If you’re having trouble, look for a section of the website that may be called “Resources” or “Bulletin.”</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Most churches include PDF versions of the paper bulletins they hand out on Sundays. This will also certainly contain the schedule for Ash Wednesday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Other Christian churches, like those of the Lutherans and Methodist faith traditions, also distribute ashes. <a href="https://www.churchfinder.com/">ChurchFinder</a> may help you locate those options.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Not all distribution of ashes takes place inside of churches. In fact, in some places, local churches bring ashes to busy commuter spots to give ashes to people traveling to or from work.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="ashes-to-go">Where to Get Ashes as a Commuter: “Ashes to Go” and Drive-by Ashes</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Although daily Mass is beautiful and absolutely worth your time, many of us don’t attend Mass regularly on Wednesdays. Ash Wednesday is not a <a href="https://hallow.com/blog/holy-days-of-obligation/">Holy Day of Obligation</a>, and it can be a challenge to figure out where and when to get ashes.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">In many cities, local churches will meet people where they are at–literally–in bringing ashes to busy hubs of public transportation.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Ash Wednesday is a time to slow down and reflect. When you receive ashes at a train station or other public, you will not experience a full Mass. You also likely won’t participate in the Liturgy of the Word. But you’ll be able to receive ashes as you head to the office.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Here are some options for receiving ashes in cities around the country:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>New York City - Grand Central Station, Newark Penn Station</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Chicago - Union Station (Great Hall)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Washington, D.C. - Capitol Visitors’ Center (if you happen to be a member of Congress!)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Connecticut - Metro North Wilton Station</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Boston - Boston Common</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Sometimes your “commute” might not involve a train, bus or car. Luckily, there are options to get ashes even if you’re flying on Ash Wednesday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class=""></p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:buttons {"layout":{"type":"flex","justifyContent":"center"}} --> <div class="wp-block-buttons"><!-- wp:button --> <div class="wp-block-button"><a class="wp-block-button__link wp-element-button" href="https://hallow.app.link/wheretogetashes">Get Ashes. Start Praying. Download Hallow Now!</a></div> <!-- /wp:button --></div> <!-- /wp:buttons --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="airport-chapels">Ash Wednesday While Traveling: Ashes at the Airport</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Traveling can be stressful and exhausting, especially when you’ve got things to do before you depart or when you land.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">At many airports around the country, local priests will distribute ashes at airport chapels and interfaith prayer rooms to allow Catholics and other Christians to receive their ashes while on the go.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Current information regarding airport chapel plans and schedules is hard to come by. However, we’ve compiled a list of airports that have distributed ashes in the past and will likely offer them this year as well. If possible, it’s always best to confirm with your local airport before you travel:</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Atlanta Hartsfield - ATL</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Charlotte - CLT - (<a href="https://cltairportchapel.org/">Chapel</a>, third floor, Main Terminal)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Chicago O’Hare - ORD</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Chicago Midway - MDW</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Dallas - DFW <a href="http://www.dfwairportchapel.org/ash-wednesday.html">(Meadows Chapel</a>, Anglican priest)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Denver - DEN (<a href="https://www.flydenver.com/traveler_services/religious-facilities">Interfaith chapel</a>)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Houston Bush - IAH&nbsp; (<a href="https://catholicphilly.com/2017/03/news/national-news/houston-airport-chaplains-bring-ashes-sacraments-to-travelers/">Interfaith Chapel</a>, Terminal C)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Minneapolis - MSP&nbsp;</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>New York LaGuardia - LGA</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Orlando - MCO (Main Terminal <a href="https://www.facebook.com/flyMCO/posts/for-those-interested-father-bob-the-airport-chaplain-will-be-distributing-ashes-/10151278215391625/">in corridor near ArtPort</a>)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li>Pittsburgh -&nbsp; PIT (<a href="https://www.facebook.com/PITairport/posts/for-those-wishing-to-receive-ashes-on-this-ashwednesday-please-make-your-way-to-/10158511553038933/">Interfaith chapel</a>, mezzanine level, airside)</li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="college-campuses">Ashes on College Campuses</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">Nearly all Catholic (and many Christian) colleges and universities will offer some form of Ash Wednesday service.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If you’re a college student, consult your school’s campus ministry website or social media account for a schedule of activities planned around Ash Wednesday.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph {"className":""} --> <p class="">If you live near a Catholic college, it’s also worth exploring. Sometimes, Ash Wednesday services (and other liturgies) are open to local community members.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:heading {"className":""} --> <h2 class="wp-block-heading" id="more-resources">More Ash Wednesday Resources</h2> <!-- /wp:heading --> <!-- wp:list {"className":""} --> <ul class=""><!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/what-to-give-up-for-lent/">What to Give Up for Lent</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/pray40/">#Pray40</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/lent-prayers/">Lent Prayers</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --> <!-- wp:list-item --> <li><a href="https://hallow.com/blog/how-to-pray-the-rosary/">How to Pray the Rosary</a></li> <!-- /wp:list-item --></ul> <!-- /wp:list --> [post_title] => Where to Get Ashes for Ash Wednesday in 2024: Ash Wednesday Services, Ashes to Go, Drive-by Ashes and More  [post_excerpt] => [post_status] => publish [comment_status] => closed [ping_status] => closed [post_password] => [post_name] => where-to-get-ashes-on-ash-wednesday [to_ping] => [pinged] => [post_modified] => 2024-02-13 02:31:57 [post_modified_gmt] => 2024-02-13 02:31:57 [post_content_filtered] => [post_parent] => 0 [guid] => https://hallow.com/?p=30619 [menu_order] => 0 [post_type] => post [post_mime_type] => [comment_count] => 0 [filter] => raw )