I thought I learned how to pray from my childhood, attending mass in the Catholic Church. We had catechism during the school year, I think once a week. I honestly don’t remember what I learned or if it was a social gathering. Wow, I’m blowing my mind right now, not being able to conjure up any memories of those catechism classes. There’s a very faint memory of a book, but I have no idea what it was. I know it was not the Bible.

Anyway, I learned prayers from the church. I had a little white prayer book that I received when I received First Holy Communion. That happened in second grade, when I was 7 or 8 years old. I said the prayers. I listened to the mass. I paid attention to everything around me, but I still can’t remember those classes. Wow.

I feared the church. I was very anxious walking into those masses – every single time. I felt so judged and singled out. I was probably not, but that’s what my mind thought. I think I felt shame without even realizing it. I walked the line in church, read from the missalette, sang along to the songs (not too loudly), and followed every cue with everyone else, such as kneeling. Today, I’m not sure if my right knee can take it.

I walked away from the church, but not praying. But I learned how to pray—or at least I thought I had.

I’m not pushing a religion here. I’m sharing the prayers I use to help me stay grounded, sane, and calmer.

Prayers

I’d say the Our Father, Hail Mary, and Glory Be. Then I added in the prayer to St. Michael. That was around my twenties. Then I added the Salve Regina, the “Hail Holy Queen” prayer, and have been sticking with those. Occasionally, I’ll do a short novena to St. Anthony or, now, Nine Days of Prayer to St. Dymphna.

Here is the little booklet.

It has to be decades old. I have no idea where I got it. I just know I’ve prayed the prayers before and got the help I needed—the same with the novena to St. Anthony. I truly believe my prayers are heard and answered.

Side note: there is a prayer to St. Anothy that is used to help find lost things, and I’ve said it many times seeking help from a higher power. The only time it didn’t work was when I lost a gold cross. However, my sister said she found a gold crucifix ring on the street in Pittsburgh and gave it to me. So, maybe it did work?

Here is the prayer:

Dear St. Anthony, please come around, something is lost and it cannot be found. [say what is lost]

I’m telling you, I couldn’t find something, said the prayer, and then found it. It truly is amazing.

 

Benefits of Prayer

I believe there’s a truth in prayers that can benefit anyone who prays them. We all need humility to understand ourselves and others. Without that, what are we? What are our lives for?

I often interact with people who are not there. Seriously, I look in their eyes and they are not there. They’ve checked out. I don’t know how, it doesn’t matter. They’ve checked out of living life. They just exist.

I thought I felt like that, but for me, it was different. I chose to find peace in solitude to heal and rebuild my life, and I may have come across as checked out, but I was never truly checked out; I was just protecting myself.

There is something greater than us out there. I’m not going to tell you what that is; it’s different for each of us. And that’s okay. Religions formed to protect people from themselves (you know, left to our own defenses, we have shown how we can get pretty messed up.) Somehow, it got out of control when greedy individuals realized they could profit from people’s beliefs and exploited their fears to keep them in line. (You’re good, you go to heaven; bad, you spend eternity with Satan.)

Once I listened to myself and honored what I felt, I realized I was not getting anything good out of going to Mass. I don’t mean to offend anyone. I am telling my truth and how I felt about the church. I believe it was my experiences with the priests being rude, apathetic, and “not being there” that turned me away, not the praying or reverence to Jesus Christ. I am still a strong believer in JC, Mary, and the saints.

Prayers Special to You

Praying is whatever brings you peace. It could be a mantra, an affirmation, a prayer from a Catholic booklet, or whatever that makes you a better human being. Prayers were created to help us stay open, always willing to learn and evolve to a better version of ourselves. Don’t we owe that to ourselves? Think of what your life will be like when you wake up every single day knowing everything will be okay because you have faith in something bigger than you.

Thank you for reading this. Namaste *

To praying,

Francesca

 

*”Namaste” is a Sanskrit greeting that translates to ” I bow to you”. It is a respectful way to greet someone, often accompanied by placing the palms together at the chest (the Anjali Mudra). The greeting holds spiritual significance, acknowledging the divine or a shared soul in another person and can be used for both hello and goodbye.  It is a greeting that promotes peace through its deeper meaning of “I bow to the divine in you”. It’s a respectful salutation that acknowledges the shared divine spark within everyone, fostering unity and peace among individuals.

 

 

 

 

Written by a human for humans.

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