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    Joined by Grace: A Catholic Prayer Book for Engaged and Newly Married Couples
    Joined by Grace: A Catholic Prayer Book for Engaged and Newly Married Couples
    Joined by Grace: A Catholic Prayer Book for Engaged and Newly Married Couples
    Ebook178 pages1 hour

    Joined by Grace: A Catholic Prayer Book for Engaged and Newly Married Couples

    By John Bosio and Teri Bosio

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    About this ebook

    Joined by Grace introduces engaged and newly married couples to the rich traditions of Catholic prayer: how Catholics pray, texts of our most commonly used prayers, and a primer on devotions.

    A warm invitation to the faith and a simple approach to Catholicism, Joined by Grace is a book for beginners and those who want to know more about Catholic prayer life. The book offers guidance about the ways to pray, background information on prayers and devotions, and simple how-to-instructions. Family members and friends, as well as pastors, mentor couples, and others working in marriage ministries will find this a perfect gift for engaged and newly married couples.

    Couples can learn how to pray spontaneously, offer thanks and praise, petition God, and express sorrow. There is guidance on blessings, praying with scripture, and liturgical prayer. The book also can be used to learn common Catholic prayers such as the Our Father, Doxology, and Hail Mary. Beyond the most essential Catholic prayers, the book offers insight and instruction for participating in the great devotions of the Church such as the Stations of the Cross, the Rosary, the Angelus, and Eucharistic Adoration. The last part of the book offers meditations on the seven sacraments as conduits of grace in our everyday lives.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherAve Maria Press
    Release dateApr 28, 2017
    ISBN9781594717284
    Joined by Grace: A Catholic Prayer Book for Engaged and Newly Married Couples
    Author

    John Bosio

    John Bosio is a former marriage and family therapist, director of religious education, and diocesan family life coordinator. He worked for 23 years in international human resources in various corporations.  He is a member of the National Association of Catholic Family Life Ministers.   He and his wife, Teri, are retired but remain active in parish and family ministry, serving parishes and dioceses around the country. The Bosios lead couples retreats and workshops on family ministry for deacons and priests. They wrote Joined by Grace, a marriage preparation program from Ave Maria Press. They produced three parish-based marriage enrichment programs: Six Dates for Catholic Couples, The Beatitudes: A Couple’s Path to Greater Joy, and  Four Dates for Catholic Couples: The Virtues.   John earned his bachelor’s degree in sacred theology from Catholic University in Washington, DC, a master’s degree in theology from St. Paul’s College, also in Washington, and a master’s in education from the University of Missouri at Kansas City. He was certified as a marriage and family therapist in 1977. He is the author of three books and a number of articles on marriage, including Why Get Married in the Church: The Lifelong Blessing of a Catholic Wedding. The Bosios live in in Nashville, Tennessee, and have two daughters and one grandchild.

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      Book preview

      Joined by Grace - John Bosio

      This prayer book is like a menu in a restaurant. A menu offers many options for nourishing meals. You choose what is most appealing to you at one particular moment. It may be a simple dish or a full meal, depending on your need, your hunger, the time you have available, and how much you are willing to spend. In a restaurant, you consider how much money you are willing to spend. With prayer, you must consider what it will cost you to grow closer to God and to your spouse. You should also consider what it might cost not to grow closer to God through prayer.

      This book can help you on your spiritual journey. It offers you information about how Catholics pray, and it provides many of the Church’s most common traditional prayers. It offers suggestions on how to pray and establish regular habits of prayer.

      St. Augustine once wrote, My heart is restless until it rests in you. We all feel a hunger for God. We hunger to know that there is someone greater than us, who is wiser, who cares for us, and who wants to help us. We often ignore this hunger because of the rush of daily life and the noise that fills our days. Yet the hunger for God is there, and we need to tend to it. Prayer helps us satisfy that hunger. Prayer helps us get to know God and learn how to accept the abundant, unending love we find in him.

      To introduce prayer into your life as a couple, it is important to develop daily or weekly habits that allow you to pause whatever you are doing, quiet the noise, and remember God. From the very start of our relationship, Teri and I made it a habit to go to Mass together each Sunday and to pray each day before meals. In addition, we each have developed individual habits for spending time with God.

      Regardless of how you and your spouse choose to pray, prayer will help you grow spiritually. Such spiritual growth will be reflected in the quality of your relationship, because in prayer we experience God’s love, and from him we learn to love one another.

      First Steps

      Our Catholic tradition tells us that the family is the fundamental cell of society and of the Church. Each family, each home, is the Church in miniature; it is the place where the Gospel is taught and practiced. God resides there, and prayers are offered to him. The family is the domestic church. Before you dig into developing a richer prayer life, here are a few ideas about how to make your home more conducive to prayer so that your domestic church might flourish.

      Make Your House a Sacred Space

      In developing a Christian lifestyle that is enriched by prayer, the place to start is in the way you decorate your house—the home of your domestic church. Decorating your home with religious art, such as with crucifixes or images of Mary or the saints, or placing a Bible in a corner with a candle will constantly remind you that God lives there with you. These reminders are invitations to speak to God about your daily needs and to thank him for your blessings.

      When John and I moved to Nashville, the kitchen of our new home had a multipurpose island. I decorated it with a plant, a candle, and a small icon of Mary that John had purchased for me in Russia while on a business trip. I made it a habit to light the candle when anyone asked me to pray for them and for our own special intentions.

      I lit the candle when John traveled and when Laura, our youngest daughter, went out in the evenings. If she came home late, we would leave a note: Laura, blow out the candle. It is lit for you.

      At the time Laura was in high school, and many of her friends were not Catholic. One day she asked, Do you know how weird this looks? I was a little surprised that she might be embarrassed by our custom and explained that these religious symbols represent who we are.

      Years later during one of Laura’s visits home from college, John and I were out one evening. When we returned home, we found the candle lit with a note that said, Mom and Dad, please blow out the candle. It is lit for you. To this day both our daughters call or text to ask us to light the candle and to pray for their intentions.

      Surround Yourself with Positive Things

      The environment in which we live includes the music we listen to in our homes or in the car; the books, articles and blogs we read; the TV shows and movies we watch; the sites we visit on the Internet; what we post on social media; the electronic games we play; and more. Create an environment around you that is positive and a constant reminder to you and to the people who come in contact with you that you have a relationship with God—you are a child of God.

      Stop right now, at least mentally, to take inventory of what you have in your home that reminds you of God and what might exist in your environment that is not as positive as you would like. What can you change to shift toward God?

      Find the Right Time

      You may find yourselves wondering when you can find time to pray. We have friends who are early risers, and they pray first thing in the morning. We know others with long commutes to work who use that time for prayer. Some pray the Rosary (see pages 85–95), while others pray the Liturgy of the Hours (see pages 8–9) using prayer apps. Some read scripture or spiritual reflections during breaks at work or stop by a church to pray. Young parents pray when they can, some use soothing inspirational music to create an environment for quiet prayer. Still others end their day with a prayer, individually or as a couple. Each person has a preference. Discover yours.

      Make Prayer a Habit

      To create prayer habits and to reinforce them, you can remind yourself of God’s presence in your life by placing a magnet on your refrigerator, a sticky note at your desk or in your car, a holy card in a book that you are reading, or a candle in your kitchen. Use reminders that work for you. These are invitations to prayer. Prayer is not a chore; it is a conversation with a friend.

      Whether alone or together with your spouse, you can speak to God in prayer as you would to a friend, using your own words, or you can recite a favorite traditional prayer. Looking through this book, you will find prayer suggestions for various times and many needs.

      Pray with Your Spouse and for Your Spouse

      There are different ways of praying together. Some are easier than others, such as going to Mass together, praying before meals, and praying the Rosary or novenas together. These prayers are easier because they do not expose our intimate conversations with God. On the other hand, praying aloud in front of your spouse using your own words to express your feelings as you speak to God may be more difficult for some. We believe that praying together is one of the most intimate experiences a couple can share. It is a joint experience that builds your communion.

      In our relationship, John and I started with the easier ways to pray as a couple. We started by praying the Our Father together. In the same way, you should start with a form of prayer that is comfortable to you, but pray. Pray together for your common intentions, and pray individually for each other, especially during those days when your relationship is under stress.

      Join the Church in Worshiping

      One of the most important habits in the prayer life of a couple is going to Mass each Sunday. If your spouse is not Catholic, invite him or her to accompany you to Mass as a religious activity that you do together for the benefit of your marriage and one day for your children, should you be so blessed.

      Regular Mass attendance will strengthen not only your relationship with God but also your relationship with your spouse.

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