Lord, teach us to pray! Course is answer to your prayers
Have you ever struggled with prayer? Maybe you don’t think you are doing it often enough or the right way. Maybe you want to take your prayer time to another level, or you don’t even know where to start with making prayer a daily habit.
Starting in September, the Office for Evangelization will offer a seven-session School of Prayer to enrich each participant’s spiritual life.
Father John Gordon, Secretary for Evangelization for the Archdiocese of Newark, who will be presenting the course, said many people lack confidence when it comes to their prayer time.
“Some feel frustrated over prayer and then the focus becomes that prayer is not fruitful,” said Father Gordon.
Prayer is at the core of our relationship with God. So how does prayer get us closer to God?
Father Gordon reminds us that even the apostles asked Jesus to teach them how to pray.
“Prayer is not the goal of the Christian life. The goal is oneness with God. Prayer deepens that union,” Father Gordon said.
Through the course, participants will learn why we pray, the traditions of prayer, models of prayer, various ways to pray, and the heroes of prayer. Participants will hopefully gain confidence in prayer and ease their restlessness, Father Gordon said.
The course, which will meet on the third Wednesday 7-9 p.m. of each month, at the Archdiocesan Youth Center in Kearny, will be offered as a series running through May with no sessions in December and March.
To sign up, visit the Office for Evangelization on rcan.org or click here.
Father Gordon discusses the School of Prayer:
The Sessions:
- Session 1 – Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023
- Why we pray: Man’s Desire, God’s initiation
- Session 2 – Wednesday, Oct. 18, 2023
- To Whom do we pray: Jesus Christ
- The embodiment of prayer, fully human, fully Divine
- Session 3 – Wednesday, Nov. 15, 2023
- How do we pray: Church, Holy Spirit, and Mary
- Session 4 – Wednesday, Jan. 17, 2024
- Who prays with us: The Saints and Prayer
- Session 5 – Wednesday, Feb. 21, 2024
- Who joins us in prayer: The Schools of Spirituality
- Session 6 – Wednesday, April 17, 2024
- Traditions of prayer: Popular piety and devotions of peoples
- Session 7 – Wednesday, May 15, 2024
- Prayer changes us: Personal transformation and teaching prayer
The cost is $50 for the full course and registration is recommended. But participants can pay $10 per session. Participants who complete the course will not only receive a certificate but also a better union with God.
