Traditional prayer and ritual

Traditional prayers

There are some prayers, aspirations and hymns which have emerged from the story of the Church in various times and places and have become an integral part of the ongoing prayer life of the Church: they represent a common or unifying link for all Catholics and have become, in essence, part of what it is to “be” Catholic. These are the prayers all Catholics are encouraged to know and use; they form the basis of individual and institutional prayer. Examples are The Sign of the Cross, the Lord’s Prayer, Hail Mary; Glory Be (Trinity Prayer); the Morning Offering; Act of Sorrow; and the Apostles’ Creed. Other denominations of Christianity also have favoured prayers and hymns which come out of their tradition and history and help them to remain unified in and identify with, their particular tradition.

Some traditional and formal prayers have developed as a result of particular social, historical, political and religious contexts, while other traditional prayers have evolved from Scripture (the Magnificat, Stations of the Cross). Some evolved from particular charisms, such as the Monastic life (e.g. the Prayer of St Francis of Assisi; The Prayer of St Ignatius), or devotion to particular saints e.g. Marian Spirituality (the Hail Mary; The Rosary, the Salve Regina, the Memorare).

Our Father (Lord’s Prayer)

In response to the request of his followers “Lord, teach us to pray as you do”, Jesus gave them the ‘Our Father’ or the Lord’s Prayer. Even though the Our Father is recounted in different words in the Gospels of Luke (11.2-4) and Matthew (6.9-13), this essentially reinforces the argument that the spirit of prayer is more important than the formula of words. The ‘Our Father’, itself providing a pattern of prayer for contemporary followers of Christ, captures key elements in the Christian understanding of the purposes of prayer - praising God, petitioning God, maintaining a relationship with God and a yearning for the coming of God’s reign in the ‘here and now’. The Catechism of the Catholic Church identifies seven petitions (seven is the perfect number) in The Lord’s Prayer. These are:

1. May your holy name be honoured;

2. May your kingdom come;

3. May your will be done on earth just as it is in heaven;

4. Give us today the food we need;

5. Forgive us the wrongs we have done, just as we forgive the wrongs others have done to us;

6. Do not put us to hard testing

7. Keep us safe from all that is evil

The place of Mary and the saints in prayer

All Christian denominations and other faith traditions tend to develop their relationship with God or their particular deity through practices of praying that have as their purpose adoration, thanksgiving, petition and contrition. Praying in the Catholic tradition reflects its richness and uniqueness through an inclusion of prayer that recognises the special devotion afforded to Mary, the angels and the saints as well as prayer addressed to God. Prayers and rituals such as litanies, the Angelus, the Hail Mary and various prayers to specific saints generally include statements of praise for God for the great things that have been done for those honoured. This is followed by a request for the intercession of Mary or the saints on behalf of all people that they too may follow the path of faith, hope and love that once found daily expression in the lives of those now with God, to whom devotion is shown.

The Second Vatican Council (1962-1966) articulated with clarity that while all prayers are ultimately addressed to God, prayers to Mary, the angels and saints in heaven are requests for them to intercede before God for us. (cf. Lumen Gentium #50).

“At the same time, let the faithful be instructed that our communion with those in heaven, provided that it is understood in the more adequate light of faith, in no way weakens, but rather on the contrary, more thoroughly enriches the supreme worship we give to God the Father, through Christ, in the Spirit” (Lumen Gentium #51).

To God, whom we give absolute worship, we pray: “Have mercy on us,” while to Mary and the saints to whom we show a different kind of honour, we ask: “Pray for us.” (cf. Lumen Gentium #67).

The Hail Mary

The early history of the Hail Mary is not clear, as the words are taken from Scripture and it is difficult to ascertain when the greeting/prayer was distinctly used. One source attributes the distinct use of the first half to St. Ildefonsus of Toledo in the 7th century. Its use as a salutation and prayer begin to appear frequently in the 11th and 12th centuries, though the first half only was regarded as the 'Hail Mary'. Here are the parts of the prayer:

• Hail Mary, full of grace. The Lord is with thee (Luke 1:28 with 'Mary' gradually added by the Church)

• Blessed art thou amongst women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus (Luke 1:42 with 'Jesus' being added by Pope Urban IV in 1261)

• Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen (based on the declaration of the Council of Ephesus in 431, this part of the prayer appeared in the mid-15th century, being codified by the Council of Trent in 1568)

The Apostles’ Creed

For hundreds of years, Christians believed that the twelve apostles were the authors of the widely known creed that bears their name. According to an ancient theory, the twelve composed the creed with each apostle adding a clause to form the whole. Today, practically all scholars understand this theory of apostolic composition to be legendary. Nevertheless, many continue to think of the creed as apostolic in nature because its basic teachings are agreeable to the theological formulations of the apostolic age.

The full form in which the creed now appears stems from about 700 CE However, segments of it are found in Christian writings dating as early as the second century. The most important predecessor of the Apostles' Creed was the Old Roman Creed, which was probably developed during the second half of the second century.

The Apostles' Creed functioned in many ways in the life of the Church. For one thing, it was associated with entrance into the fellowship as a confession of faith for those to be baptised. In addition, catechetical instruction was often based on the major tenets of the creed. In time, a third use developed when the creed became a "rule of faith" to give continuity to Christian teachings from place to place and to separate the true faith from heretical deviations. By the sixth or seventh century, the creed had come to be accepted as a part of the official liturgy of the Western church. Likewise, it was used by devout individuals along with the Lord's Prayer as a part of their morning and evening devotions. The churches of the Reformation gladly gave their allegiance to the creed and added it to their doctrinal collections and used it in their worship.

The Morning offering

The Apostleship of Prayer was born in 1844 out of the apostolic restlessness of a group of Jesuit seminarians at Vals, France. These young men, destined for the missions of America and India, were impatient with their dull routine of study and eager to get on with their work as missionaries. Their spiritual director, Fr. Francois Xavier Gautrelet, pointed out that the end they desired - the salvation of souls - was a supernatural end and that supernatural means were the best and quickest way to accomplish that end. Thus, their prayer, study, work, recreation, headaches, offered in union with Christ's sacrifice as renewed in the Mass, would advance the work of the missions as much as their direct work in the field. The idea quickly caught on and was spread to others and thus was developed an apostolic spirituality of prayer and activity. This soon was formalised into what we know as the Morning (or Daily) Offering, to help people unite their daily lives to the oblation of Christ for the intentions close to His Heart.

Traditional rituals

Ritual is the combination of repeated words, repeated actions and familiar symbols which define, express and strengthen the identity and/or beliefs of those participating. Ritual defines and expresses who we are, what we believe, to whom we belong and our relationship with others. (Amy Florian, Sign & Symbol Word and Song: Creating and Celebrating Classroom Rituals, 2001:15)

Ritual body language

Ritual body language used for prayer includes gesture, posture, mime, dance and movements such as proclaiming, processing and singing. Such action was used for prayer in ancient times and in ancient cultures. Christianity has a long and rich tradition of ritual body language. Along with particular words and symbols, certain actions also serve to signal key moments and transitions within prayer, liturgy and ritual. A wide variety of prayer actions can be observed on those occasions when prayer is less formal and liturgical, such as a class welcome ritual. Official Church liturgies such as the Mass have certain guidelines which dictate appropriate ritual action.

Masses with children allow for more body language of a less traditional nature. It is also worth exploring and using with students the rich repertoire of more traditional body movement and ritual action beyond occasions of official Church worship. Ritual actions and movements of blessing, the single or triple signing of the cross or processing, along with the postures of bowing, standing with hands raised and arms outstretched, or kneeling with hands joined, are considered to be prayers in their own rite as they were by St Dominic. When explored and practised outside of the formal context, such movements and actions can then be used more meaningfully and respectfully within Church worship.

Above are Eight of St Dominic’s Ways of Prayer. The postures can be identified as bowing, prostrating, kneeling, standing, standing with arms outstretched, standing with arms and hands raised, sitting and walking or processing. Further information can be found at The Nine Ways of Prayer of St Dominic

The Sign of the Cross

The Sign of the Cross is probably the most often used prayer of Christians and for many, the first prayer they learned as children - “In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.” Despite its simplicity, the sign of the Cross is an ancient prayer rich in meaning. References to it appear in writings dating back to Tertullian (d. 230 C.E.) and it is believed that it was in use during the earliest days of Christianity.

Initially, the sign of the Cross was made with the thumb, usually on the forehead but sometimes on the lips and chest. This small sign of the Cross was in common use by the end of the fourth century and is still used today, preceding the proclamation of the Gospel at the celebration of the Eucharist. In doing this, Catholics acknowledge their belief in the Word of God, their commitment to spread God’s Word in their daily lives and their awareness of God’s presence in their hearts. In other words, we pray that we should understand it with our minds, speak it with our lips and believe it in our hearts. Likewise, the sign of the Cross made with the thumb occurs when receiving the sacraments of Baptism, Confirmation and the Anointing of the Sick. It also is used for marking the forehead with ashes on Ash Wednesday. By the end of the Middle Ages, the Western Church had adopted the practice of making the large sign of the Cross with an open hand and touching the left shoulder before the right. This is the form we continue to use today. See further, Why do Catholics make the Sign of the Cross?

Genuflection/ kneeling

Genuflection involves dropping on one knee as a sign of veneration (of the cross, of the blessed sacrament) or in order to receive a blessing from a member of the clergy.

Kneeling is positioning oneself on both knees, with either body upright, or bowed. Head is often bowed as well. See further, The theology of kneeling by Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI, 2002