The Tradition of Catholic Prayer

Catholics have a rich and ancient prayer tradition that informs contemporary practice. People gather every morning for private devotions or participate communally in the Liturgy of the Hours. People continue to go on pilgrimages and have shrines in their homes. Over time, monastics, saints, and scholars developed theologies and prayer practices that are distinctive to the Catholic imagination. By exploring the historical contexts from which these theologies and practices emerged, we can invigorate our own prayer lives and better understand our faith.

In this book the monks of St. Meinrad recount the tradition of Catholic prayer. In the early chapters they explore prayer chronologically, from Old Testament psalms, New Testament models, and early church theologies, through the period of the Counter-Reformation. The central chapters look at prayer in the communal contexts of the Mass, the Liturgical Year, and the Liturgy of the Hours. Final chapters shed more light on particular topics that deepen our understanding of the Catholic imagination and the place of prayer in the lives of the faithful. Readers at any level will come away from this book with a renewed sense of prayer as a key component of Catholic formation and growth.

The Monks of Saint Meinrad; Christian Raab, OSB, and Harry Hagan, OSB, EditorsCatholics have a rich and ancient prayer tradition that informs contemporary practice. People gather every morning for private devotions or participate communally in the Liturgy of the Hours. People continue to go on pilgrimages and have shrines in their homes. Over time, monastics, saints, and scholars developed theologies and prayer practices that are distinctive to the Catholic imagination. By exploring the historical contexts from which these theologies and practices emerged, we can invigorate our own prayer lives and better understand our faith. In this book the monks of St. Meinrad recount the tradition of Catholic prayer. In the early chapters they explore prayer chronologically, from Old Testament psalms, New Testament models, and early church theologies, through the period of the Counter-Reformation. The central chapters look at prayer in the communal contexts of the Mass, the Liturgical Year, and the Liturgy of the Hours. Final chapters shed more light on particular topics that deepen our understanding of the Catholic imagination and the place of prayer in the lives of the faithful. Readers at any level will come away from this book with a renewed sense of prayer as a key component of Catholic formation and growth. ?Congratulations to the Benedictine Monks of St. Meinrad Archabbey who have put together a comprehensive history and theological reflection on prayer in the Judeo-Christian Tradition. Thorough, and eminently readable, this book is a true find for both searchers and educators. All will find it a treasury of information about the history of prayer in both personal as well as communal forms. The Tradition of Catholic Prayer is good news for people in our contemporary Western world who are trying to understand what prayer is all about. Archbishop Roger L. Schwietz, O.M.I, D.D., S.T.L. Anchorage, Alaska?To have members of a monastic community write a book on the theory, history, and, above all, the practice of prayer is a splendid idea. To carry it off with learning, devotion, and insight is an authentic gift. That is what the Saint Meinrad monks have done for us. The Christian community can only express its gratitude for their labors. This work exemplifies Saint Benedict?s urging to ?listen readily to holy reading? and to ?devote oneself often to prayer? (RB 4.55-56). Lawrence S. Cunningham John A. O?Brien Professor of Theology The University of Notre Dame?This is not a how-to book to add to your collection of prayer books and commentary, but a solid, intelligible, readable reference. We needed this scholarship for sources of our own tradition to be in dialogue with the many ways of praying of our times. Mary Margaret Funk Our Lady of Grace Monastery Beech Grove, Indiana