words mean, just do the drill.

The prayer is to enable you to just rest in God and you can be sure that each word and each breath is an act of love of God. Repeat the phrase say, 50 times [rosary beads can be used to help you]. Resting in God. This is a prayer of contemplation. You dont have to use any set prayer or book to raise your heart and mind to God. They are only methods, anyway, by which we hang on to Him, if He is not engaging us directly. But if you are content simply to look at the Blessed Sacrament, at Jesus Christ present before you, or to close your eyes, secure in the knowledge of His loving presence and gaze, and hold your soul thus before God - then theres no need to do anything else. The Divine Mercy Chaplet. Through this prayer, you submit yourself to the power of Christs mercy, and ask for His mercy for all mankind, as well as for your own personal intentions. It is prayed using rosary beads. Begin by praying Our Father, Hail Mary, & The Apostles Creed which goes: I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is

seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy Catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen. On each of the large beads say: Eternal Father, I offer you the Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity of your dearly beloved Son, Our Lord Jesus Christ, in atonement for our sins and those of the whole world. On the ten small beads say: For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world. And so on for the five decades. Conclude with: Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One, have mercy on us and on the whole world (said three times). When You Have Finished However long you spend before the Lord in prayer, it will have been supremely worthwhile. Whatever you may or may not feel, you have been in the presence of the Lord of your life, your Friend whom one day you will see as He is. And if that is so, then Jesus has been at work in you, moulding you into His image. You will always leave the church changed in some way. You could end by praying something like: Lord Jesus Christ - I thank you for calling me here to visit you in this church. Help me to be aware of your presence with me when I leave.

LORD, TEACH US TO PRAY

Getting Started When you come into a church, you enter the Temple of the Living God. However, your mind is likely to be filled with many other thoughts and cares, depending on how the day is going. It is important, then, to prepare body and soul for what you are going to do. In the pew, relax your body, kneel or sit and slow your breathing. Focus on the Blessed Sacrament or close your eyes. It is the Lord who has inspired you to come here into His Presence: you are deeply loved and welcomed by Him. Now your spiritual preparation: first make an act of Faith in the presence of Christ. Use your own words or something like this: [Sign of the Cross] My Lord and my God - I firmly believe that you are here, that you see me and that you hear me. I adore you with profound reverence. I ask you for pardon of my sins and grace to make this time of prayer fruitful. Mary, my Mother Immaculate, St. Joseph and all the Saints and Angels: pray for me. You have now placed yourself in Gods hands for however long you want to pray. It is He who is in charge - trust Him. During the course of your prayer, if you need to renew your loving attention to God, you can do it simply by saying softly or silently things like:

Jesus, I trust in you! Lord I believe in you! Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, be merciful to me a sinner! Lord Jesus, help me to pray. My Lord and my God! Lord Jesus I praise you. Lord Jesus, I thank you for dying for me. I love you Jesus, increase my love! Lord, come to my aid. If you find that more time is needed to help focus your mind on Christ, you can pray one of the Litanies from the sheets available, e.g. Litany of the Sacred Heart, or the Divine Mercy or the Blessed Virgin. Take your time, there is no rush to complete it, and stop if you feel you want to dwell on something. Beyond these stages, how you pray is up to you and God. Some Suggestions Use one of the several books in the office which have prayers for adoration such as: O Lord Jesus Christ, this day is very busy. I am distracted and pulled in many directions. There are concerns, worries, even fears. I am troubled about duties, failures, things to do that are beyond me. I come to your presence from the din of life, the noise of the street, from the pleas and demands of others. And you are here, saying Come to Me all you who labour and are overburdened and I

will refresh you. Your presence in the Eucharist reassures me that this is true. You will be with me when I leave the church, but here in the silence, I am with you. Give me, in these few moments, the fullness of your Spirit, that I may know that you are with me, that I may go back to the tasks of life assured that you are beside me. Then I shall be at peace to do your will. Amen. Pray the rosary, as this will lead you into the mystery of the person of Christ. For an increase in faith, hope and charity say: one Our Father, three Hail Marys, a Glory Be on the beads between the crucifix and the circle of beads. Now begin the mysteries of the day. Start each decade by announcing the mystery. For each decade: On the large bead say the Our Father; on the ten small beads say ten Hail Marys; then pray the Glory Be. After five decades it is usual to pray the Hail Holy Queen and the concluding prayer.
The Joyful Mysteries 1. The Annunciation of Our Lord to Mary by the angel Gabriel 2. The Visitation of Mary to her cousin Elizabeth 3. The Nativity 4. The Presentation of the Child Jesus in the Temple 5. The Finding of the Child Jesus in the Temple The Sorrowful Mysteries 1. The Agony in the Garden 2. The Scourging at the Pillar 3. The Crowning with Thorns 4. The Carrying of the Cross 5. The Crucifixion

The Glorious Mysteries 1. The Resurrection 2. The Ascension 3. Descent of the Holy Spirit on Our Lady and the Apostles 4. The Assumption of Our Lady body and soul into heaven 5. The Coronation of Our Lady as Queen of heaven and earth The Mysteries of Light 1. Jesus Baptism in the Jordan 2. Jesus Self-manifestation at the wedding at Cana 3. Jesus Proclamation of the Kingdom of God and the Call to Repentance 4. The Transfiguration 5. The Institution of the Eucharist Hail Holy Queen, Mother of mercy; hail, our life, our sweetness and our hope! To thee do we cry, poor banished children of Eve; to thee do we send up our sighs, mourning and weeping in this vale of tears. Turn then, most gracious advocate, thine eyes of mercy towards us; and after this our exile, show unto us the blessed fruit of thy womb, Jesus. O Clement, O loving, O sweet Virgin Mary. V. Pray for us, O holy Mother of God. R. That we may be made worthy of the promises of Christ. Let us pray. O God, whose only begotten Son, by his life, death, and resurrection, has purchased for us the rewards of eternal life; grant, we beseech thee, that meditating on these Mysteries of the most holy Rosary of the Blessed Virgin Mary, we may both imitate what they contain and obtain what they promise, through the same Christ our Lord. R. Amen.

Read a passage slowly, put the book down and reflect a minute. Then read it again and pause again. Then keep silence for as long as you can - avoid all deliberate holy thoughts. It may be that the Lord will speak to you through what you are meditating on. The Stations of the Cross. These can be done at any time of the year, not just Lent. It is always good and fruitful to contemplate the Passion and Death of Christ prayerfully, as it helps us to understand the depths of His love. It is quite okay to walk round the church doing the Stations, even with the Blessed Sacrament exposed. The Jesus Prayer. This is a prayer of the Eastern Church, and is a marvellous way to join body and soul in the contemplation of God, and is so simple anyone can do it. Taking note of your breathing pattern, you pray one of these phrases: Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me. Or Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. The phrases are divided up, so that you pray one part breathing IN and another breathing OUT. Keep your breathing natural, and use whichever phrase best suits you. Do not think holy thoughts or what the

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