Transcript

In the Catholic Church, my prayer life, um, has deepened.

Um, and I guess the best example would be if we consider the mass, the, the greatest prayer, to have the opportunity to, uh, receive Christ in the Eucharist, i- in the holy sacrifice of the mass, it can't possibly but intensify a prayer life.

But also, um, my prayer life has become more rich, in that I look to particular saints whom I consider friends along the way.

I ask for their prayers of intercession.

Um, and I will say probably the most, uh, powerful example would be many years ago before I was able to come into the church, um, a friend gave me a rosary.

So, I always say that Our Lady prayed me into the Church.

So, there are so many different spiritualities in our church and so many rich ways to, um, to deepen our connection with Christ and, and the Holy Spirit that, uh, I just would say it's a richer prayer life than I've ever, ever knew possible.

As a Protestant, and, you know And I was truly a Christian Protestant.

Um, I had a prayer life, and it was something that was important to me, but there were many times when I was praying that I truly felt like I didn't know what I was doing, I didn't know if it was effective.

I, I just sort of felt lost.

I mean, we have the Lord's prayer and, of course, we can pray the Psalms, and there, there are many ways you can pray as a Protestant.

But one of the things that is helping me so much as I'm becoming Catholic is the rosary.

And that's sort of a surprise, because I never saw myself praying the rosary.

I didn't really know what it was.

I knew that it was distinctly Catholic.

But I have fallen in love with the rosary, and I try to pray it every day.

I don't know that I'm always doing it correctly.

There is a learning process involved, but it is absolutely worth every effort.

And what I've tried to do is when I've had doubts about it, I've just tried to bring a decision of faith that this is something that the Church has, uh, teaches and it's a gift to us.

And I really believe it's a powerful weapon.

And some prayers have been already answered in amazing ways, unlike anything I experienced as a, as a Protestant.

And that was one of the biggest, m- most wonderful liberating understandings that I had becoming Catholic, though the whole realm of what I would call formal prayer, prayer with a form.

That I, I learned that there was so much to be gained, not just from praying spontaneously, which I still do and, of course, always will, but also from praying prayers given to us by the Church, by the tradition, by the Scripture, that help us to pray more deeply, more profoundly.

I found that, that formal prayers were like anchors, that they would hold me onto topic, that they would remind me to pray for things that I might never have prayed for before.

Uh, I think, for example, of how the parish The, the church that I was in before when I started comparing it to the first Catholic parish I was a part of, that we prayed and prayed lots during the ser- service.

We never, ever had a corporate confession of sin.

And I thought, You know, that's an important thing to do.

But I wouldn't have thought of doing it if the Church had not given me that prayer.

I grew up, uh, with a prayer life that included my nightly prayers, my morning prayers, um, my Our prayers before meals, but the Catholic faith really has afforded me an opportunity to grow deeper in my prayer life.

The mass itself being a prayer offering, our My day-to-day vocation as a mom and a wife, the little sufferings, the little annoyances that all moms experience, it, it, it gives it It makes it so much not to be in vain.

It gives, it gives me an opportunity to turn my frustrations as into a positive thing, into an offering up for something larger than myself.

I also feel like the Catholic Church, um, through various novenas to the saints, through the gift that is the rosary, affords me an opportunity to grow deeper always in my prayer life.