Spontaneous rote prayer
I love the ending prayer of the Angelus:
Pour forth, we beseech thee, O Lord, thy grace into our hearts, that we, to whom the incarnation of Christ thy Son was made known by the message of an angel, may by his passion and cross be brought to the glory of his resurrection. Through the same Christ Our Lord. Amen.
In one sentence you have the following ideas: God gives grace; we can pray to Him; He will give us this grace if we ask; He became man; He did this at a specific moment in history; angels exist; He died; the cross is meaningful; He rose again; He is now in a glorified body.
Of course, each of these points could be expanded upon in volumes. But, luckily for us, the simple remembrance of this prayer doesn’t require to us haul volumes of books around. The prayer itself is sufficient for a lifetime of meditation.
So too the Lord’s prayer, the Creed, the Hail Mary, etc. While criticisms get leveled at Catholics that we rely too heavily on rote prayer, I don’t believe the criticisms carry much weight. For people who object to rote prayers and only believe spontaneous prayer to be valid, I assume that the only greeting cards they buy are blank inside.
Why do we pray? What is prayer? Essentially, prayer is our personal or corporate conversation with and worship of God (and the saints too, minus the worship). It is “a vital and personal relationship with the living and true God (CCC 2558).” Is my conversation with another, even a highly beloved other, lessened if I use rote formulas repetitively instead of spontaneous prose? Possibly, but how often have I said “I love you” to my wife? Is the statement sapped of meaning because of the frequency with which I say it? If I challenge myself to say something unique every time I speak with my wife, is that evidence of a more genuine love, or do I do it to subconsciously (or consciously) give myself points for originality?
Jean-François Millet - L'Angélus.jpg at wikimedia commons
Even the simple phrase “I love you” takes on different meaning depending on which word you stress, how emphatically you say it, etc. So a rote prayer can have varied meanings and intensity, often unknown to everyone but the pray-er and the recipient of his prayer.
Many if not all rote prayers are centuries old, and are time-tested for theological accuracy. The Creed is recited today because it is true; it helps us assess the veracity of novel claims that contradict it. I don’t need to know a ton about the history or theology of Mormonism; enough to know that it contradicts the Creed’s “only begotten Son of God” which I say every week. Rote prayers are the layman’s apologetics toolbox, just as stained-glass windows were the (illiterate) layman’s Bible.
Rote prayers can be beautiful, meaningful, and deeply personal. But if we could conclude that spontaneous prayer is superior, why use rote prayer at all even if it isn’t necessarily bad? I don’t intend what follows to be offensive to anyone, but I’ve noticed that the same criticisms that get made about rote prayer can often also be made against what I’ve observed of spontaneous prayer in practice.
While the rote prayer may begin “Bless us, O Lord, for these thy gifts…,” how often have you heard “spontaneous” prayers that rarely deviate from “God, bless this food for our bodies…?” While a rote intercessory prayer may include “pray for us sinners, now…,” a “spontaneous” intercessory prayer usually doesn’t deviate much from “please lift up ____ in prayer.”
So, rote prayer can be spontaneous and spontaneous prayer can be rote. Which of course confirms the Catholic maxim of “both/and:” which prayer is best? Both!
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About the Author
Tim Shaughnessy is a cradle Catholic who began to take his faith seriously after meeting his then-Baptist future wife. She is now the wonderful Catholic mom to his two sons. Tim has undergraduate degrees in economics and political science, and a Master’s and Ph.D. in economics. He teaches economics at the undergraduate and graduate level, and is a faculty advisor for the campus Catholic student organization.
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Rote prayers expresses more deeply into words than what I can concieve from my spontaneous prayer and becomes more alive and meaningful when I personalize it as exemplified below.
Anima Christi Expanded
Soul of Christ, sanctify me.
Body of Christ, (Incarnate, suffered, died on the cross, buried, resurrected, seated at the right hand of the Father, Who will judge the living and the dead) save me.
Blood of Christ, (the Blood of the new and eternal covenant, poured out for the many for the forgiveness of sins) inebriate me.
Water from the side of Christ, wash me (take away my inequities as in my baptism).
Passion of Christ, (Who love me and died on the cross for me, comfort me) strengthen me (my will and teach me to overcome my weaknesses).
O Good (merciful) Jesus, hear me.
Within Thy wounds (Your body scourge, Your hands and feet nailed to the cross, Your head crowned with thorns, your heart pierced by a lance) hide me (from the snares of the devil, from the wickedness of this world).
Suffer me not to be separated from thee (let not this sheep stray away from Thee).
From the malignant enemy defend me (the Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want).
In the hour of my death (with the Blessed Mother at Thy side) call me.
(May it please Thee, O Lord) And bid me come unto Thee,
That with all (angels and) Thy saints,
I may praise thee (love Thee, worship Thee and give Thee thanks)
Forever and ever (in all eternity).
Amen.
Rote prayers also connects us to the communion of saints. Their prayers are composed from their deep encounter with Christ.
Thank you for bringing this up.
liked what i saw and read
And when you are praying for someone who is dying, a Hail Mary or so can be reassuring. Good to ask for favors from the King & Judge by talking to His mother.
TeaPot562
Tim, you make some wonderful points in your post. Part of the treasure house of our Catholic tradition are thousands of prayers written and handed down to us by well-known saints as well as obscure or anonymous Christians. On my spirituality blog http://heartsonfire33.word press.com I started a file “Anthology of Prayer” as a kind of Hall of Fame for prayers. Elsehere there are suggestions on how to pray spontaneously. It IS a matter of BOTH/AND.
Ric does something that Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton did many years ago — improvising upon the Anima Christi and making it her own. Both versions are in my “Anthology of Prayer.”
I couldn’t agree more! Rote prayers can be incredibly moving. I heard it described once that the Sacred Liturgy is not the prayer of the Priest, but rather, the Priest prays the prayer of the Church, with the Church’s voice, all under the omnipotent action of Christ who is the principle High Priest who offers the Mass. When we pray prayers that have been written before us by the Church through her members, what we are doing is, in a smaller way, imitating the Liturgy by praying the prayers of the Church, with the Church’s voice. It is not solely us, but rather, it expresses our communion with the Blessed Mother and all the Saints as we pray in common. That is an encouraging thought when praying!
Personally, my favorite prayer right now is the Gloria from the Mass. It is one of the most ancient and most moving prayers ever composed, and it builds to a crescendo in the last stanza that is palpable. It is suggested in the Apostolic Constitutions that it be prayed as a morning prayer, and I plan to acquire that habit :)
As Ven. Fulton Sheen once translated the last stanza straight from the Latin: “For thou alone are Holy, thou only art the Lord, thou alone O Jesus Christ art Most High, together with the Holy Ghost, in the glory of God the Father.”
These are my favorite ejaculatory rote prayers: Jesus and Mary I love you: Save souls. (Got that one from Mother Angelica.) Oh Mary, conceived without sin, pray for us who have recourse to thee. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner. Jesus hide me in your wounds.
Rote prayer–it has only happened twice. Stopped and asked if I have “received Jesus as my Savior” I reply “yes, repeatedly and often” (I don’t think they realize I speak of confession). When asked to pray the “Sinner’s Prayer” I reply “OK, but I lead” then recite the Act of Contrition. Both Sinner’s Prayer and Act are rote, but they just don’t get it.