The Family that prays together, stays together In an article in our November issue, talking about Advent, we quoted Pope Francis speaking of the importance of family prayer. It’s been said that sometimes people need to be reminded more often than we need to be instructed, so here’s a reminder of his words: “Dear families: do you pray together from time to time as a family? … It is what makes the family strong: prayer”. Lent, like Advent, is a graced time to draw closer to Christ; to reflect on our prayer life as individuals and as families or communities, whatever shape our particular family takes, and commit to going deeper. I asked some of our people about prayer in their families, and some common themes came through. Here’s what they shared with us.
DEACON HENK GIELEN PARISH OF ALL SAINTS-BY-THE-SEA, TAURANGA For family prayer in our house we simply said a decade of the Rosary: at times it was difficult but this was said every night, come what may. To pray each night with children is difficult and perseverance is required. As I turned the tv off for prayer the children would have many distractions and it was hard to settle them down, but I believed this was so important I would let nothing stand in the way of family prayer. The goal behind family prayer was for the family
to experience Christ and for each child to know Christ personally, and I was always seeking the Holy Spirit to this end .The Holy Spirit too wants us to experience Jesus personally for ourselves. I think this is the crux of prayer: this was always foremost in my mind and for me prayer was about a type of waiting on the Lord, so as we prayed it was always about waiting and expecting God to show up, as it were, which he always did. We went to Mass each Friday at 5pm then had fish and chips, and our Sunday obligation was always followed by cream buns and some treats: the idea was that Mass was remembered as something nice. God was an important part of our lives and we always prayed for his direction when faced with important decisions. As I was growing up my Dad would lead us in a family Rosary each night. As we prayed there would be a change, l would sense God in the prayer so God was not taught but caught, as it were. So in my turn I was doing the same for my family, “passing God on”. To pass Jesus on in this way is a gift from the Holy Spirit that doesn’t come from ourselves but from God. I believe God wants everyone to have this gift which comes through prayer and knowing Jesus personally.
EVE MCKOY ST PIUS X PARISH, HAMILTON Thank you for the opportunity to share our experience of family prayer time with you. Sam and I have been married for nine years, and God has blessed us with Trevor, 8, Clare, 5, and Bethany, 2. We do our family prayer every day after dinner, sitting around the table after the kids finish doing their little home chores. Family prayer time is important to us because we have learnt from other experienced parents that it’s more effective to start forming our children’s prayer life and love of God when they are little. This is a golden age when they are very receptive, just like a sponge, and they’re capable of absorbing what we teach them. It’s also beneficial for
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