Praying together as a couple and praying individually for your spouse is one of the most powerful weapons you have against divorce and for building intimacy in your marriage. Praying together not only brings us closer to each other, it deeply reinforces our relationship with the Lord.
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Act of Contrition
The Act of Contrition is part of the Sacrament of Penance and is prayed by the penitent after the priest assigns a penance and before he gives the penitent absolution. It is also customarily said especially before one goes to bed at night. It is generally supposed that individuals might have recourse to an Act of Contrition when they find themselves in extremis.
The prayer expresses in words a deeply personal “act” that engages a person’s affections and will. Catholic teaching holds that “imperfect” contrition, is also a gift of God. Born of fear of eternal damnation or other penalties, it is nonetheless sufficient to inspire a valid Act of Contrition. There are different versions of the Act of Contrition, but all generally include an expression of sorrow, an acknowledgment of wrongdoing and a promise to amend one’s life and avoid sin.
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Holy Rosary – Sorrowful Mysteries
The Five Sorrowful Mysteries are traditionally prayed on the Tuesdays, Fridays, and Sundays during Lent. Each details the The Agony in the Garden, The Scourging at the Pillar, The Crowning with Thorns, The Carrying of the Cross, and The Crucifixion and Death of Jesus. In this video, the viewer is guided through all five Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, offering a unique way to pray and meditate on Jesus’s journey from the Garden of Gethsemane to the Cross. Join us in prayer as we reflect on Jesus’s sacrifice for all sinners.
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Prayer for Lent
There are traditionally 40 days in Lent; these are marked by fasting, both from foods and festivities, and by other acts of penance. The three traditional practices to be taken up with renewed vigor during Lent are prayer (justice towards God), fasting (justice towards self), and almsgiving (justice towards neighbors).
Lent, which comes from the Teutonic (Germanic) word for springtime, can be viewed as a spiritual spring cleaning: a time for taking spiritual inventory and then cleaning out those things which hinder our corporate and personal relationships with Jesus Christ and our service to him.
In addition, some believers add a regular spiritual discipline, to bring them closer to God, such as reading a Lenten daily devotional.
