Prayers

23/12/2024

Laudes

22/12/2024

Vesperae

22/12/2024

Completorium

“When we pray, God opens our eyes renews and changes our hearts, heals our wounds and grants us the grace we need.”
(Pope Francis)
“The prayer of thanksgiving begins by recognizing that we were thought of before we learned how to think; we were loved before we learned how to love. If we view life like this, then “thank you” becomes the driving force of our day.”
(Pope Francis)
“The one who prays is never alone. In fact, Jesus welcomes us in His prayer so that we might pray in Him and through Him. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. The Gospel invites us to pray to the Father in Jesus’s name.”
(Pope Francis)
“The best prayer is that of gratitude and praise.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer presents itself as a cry; and we all know this inner voice that may remain silent for a long time, but one day awakens and cries out.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is the soul of hope.”
(Pope Francis)
“When we pray, we light a candle in the darkness. Prayer rouses us from the tepidity of a purely horizontal existence and makes us lift our gaze to higher things; it makes us attuned to the Lord. Prayer allows God to be close to us; it frees us from our solitude and gives us hope.”
(Pope Francis)
“How can we rouse ourselves from the slumber of mediocrity? With the vigilance of prayer.”
(Pope Francis)
“‘God, come to my assistance’. The first step of faith is to tell God that we need him, that we need him to be close to us.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is vital for life: just as we cannot live without breathing, so we cannot be Christians without praying.”
(Pope Francis)
“God expects that when we pray we will also be mindful of those who do not think as we do, those who have slammed the door in our face, those whom we find it hard to forgive. Only prayer unlocks chains, as it did for Peter; only prayer paves the way to unity.”
(Pope Francis)
“Unity is the fruit of prayer, for prayer allows the Holy Spirit to intervene, opening our hearts to hope, shortening distances and holding us together at times of difficulty.”
(Pope Francis)
“From prayer came a unity more powerful than any threat.”
(Pope Francis)
“Giving praise is like breathing pure oxygen: it purifies the soul, it makes you look far ahead, it does not leave you imprisoned in the difficult and dark moment of hardship.”
(Pope Francis)
“Let us pray for each other. It will do us good and do good for everyone.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is offered only in the spirit of love. Those who do not love pretend to pray, they believe they are praying, but they are not praying because they lack the proper spirit, which is love.”
(Pope Francis)
“Jesus is our intercessor and to pray is to be a bit like Jesus: to intercede in Jesus to the Father, for others.”
(Pope Francis)
“When we pray we are in tune with God’s mercy; having mercy regarding our sins.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer comes from our hearts and our voices and gives heart and voice to so many people do not know how to pray or who do not want to pray or for whom it is impossible to pray: we are the heart and the voice of these people, rising to Jesus, rising to the Father as intercessors.”
(Pope Francis)
“In prayer, God “takes us, blesses us, then breaks us and gives us”, to satisfy everyone’s hunger. Every Christian is called to become in God’s hands bread, broken and shared.”
(Pope Francis)
“Those who pray never turn their backs on the world. If prayer does not gather the joys and sorrows, the hopes and the anxieties of humanity, it becomes a “decorative” activity, a superficial, theatrical, solitary way of behaving.”
(Pope Francis)
“Even death trembles when a Christian prays, because it knows that everyone who prays has an ally who is stronger than it: the Risen Lord.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer of petition goes in step with acceptance of our limitations and our nature as creatures.”
(Pope Francis)
“One should not be ashamed to pray and to say: “Lord, help me!”: It is the cry of the heart to God who is the Father. And we have to learn to do so also in happy moments, to thank God for everything that is given to us, and not to take anything for granted: everything is grace.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer can open up a sliver of light in the densest darkness. “Lord, help me!”. This opens up the road, it opens up the path.”
(Pope Francis)
“When Jesus taught his disciples to pray, he did so with the “Our Father”, so that we might place ourselves in a relationship of filial trust with God, and ask him all our questions.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is joy and thanksgiving.”
(Pope Francis)
“The prayer of adoration is the prayer that makes us recognize God as the beginning and the end of all of History. And this prayer is the living flame of the Spirit that gives strength to witness and to mission.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is the space of dialogue with the Father, through Christ in the Holy Spirit.”
(Pope Francis)
“If in prayer we understand that each day given by God is a call, our hearts will then widen and we will accept everything.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer knows how to calm restlessness, knows how to transform it into availability. When we are restless, I pray and prayer opens my heart and makes me open to God’s will.”
(Pope Francis)
“There is no better way to pray than to place oneself like Mary in an attitude of openness, with a heart open to God: ‘Lord, what you want, when you want, and how you want’.”
(Pope Francis)
“We need to pray always, even when everything seems in vain, when God appears to be deaf and mute and it seems we are wasting time. Even if heaven is overshadowed, the Christian does not stop praying.”
(Pope Francis)
“There is no true prayer without a spirit of humility. It is precisely humility that leads us to ask in prayer.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is like the oxygen of life. Prayer draws down upon us the presence of the Holy Spirit who always leads us forward.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer helps us to find the right dimension in our relationship with God, our Father, and with all creation.”
(Pope Francis)
“Consistent prayer produces progressive transformation, makes us strong in times of tribulation, gives us the grace to be supported by the One who loves us and always protects us.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer has the power to transform into good what in life would otherwise be a sentence; prayer has the power to open the mind to a great horizon and to broaden the heart.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is primarily listening and encountering God. The problems of everyday life, then, do not become obstacles, but appeals from God himself to listen to and encounter those who are in front of us. The trials of life thus change into opportunities to grow in faith and charity.”
(Pope Francis)
“A day lived without prayer risks being transformed into a bothersome or tedious experience: everything that happens to us could turn into a badly endured and blind fate for us.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is the first desire of the day, something that is practiced at dawn, before the world awakens. It restores a soul to what otherwise would be without breath.”
(Pope Francis)
“Jesus gave us his own prayer, which is his loving dialogue with the Father. He gave it to us like a seed of the Trinity, which he wants to take root in our hearts. Let us welcome him!”
(Pope Francis)
“It takes humility to pray.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer can begin in the half light of a church’s nave, but then come to an end on the city streets. And vice versa, it can blossom during the day’s activities and reach its fulfillment in the liturgy.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is not a sedative to alleviate life’s anxieties. Rather, prayer makes each of us responsible.”
(Pope Francis)
“When one prays, everything acquires “depth”. This is interesting in prayer, perhaps something subtle begins but in prayer that thing acquires depth, it becomes weighty, as if God takes it in hand and transforms it.”
(Pope Francis)
“When the true spirit of prayer is sincerely received and enters the heart, it then lets us contemplate reality with God’s very eyes.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is the salvation of the human being.”
(Pope Francis)
“When we pray, we do so because we know we are precious in God’s eyes. It is the grace of the Holy Spirit that, from within, inspires in us this awareness: of being precious in the eyes of God.”
(Pope Francis)
“We must not forget that to pray well we must pray as we are, without embellishment. One must not embellish the soul to pray.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is a confrontation with God, and allowing oneself to be sent to serve one’s brothers and sisters. The touchstone of prayer is concrete love towards our neighbour.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is the lifeblood that constantly nourishes the existence.”
(Pope Francis)
“The nobility of prayer leaves us in God’s hands. Those hands wounded by love: the only sure hands we have.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer gives us nobility. It is capable of securing our relationship with God who is the true Companion on the journey of every man and woman, amid life’s thousand adversities, good or bad: but always prayer. Thank you, Lord. I am afraid, Lord. Help me, Lord. Forgive me, Lord.”
(Pope Francis)
“That is exactly where prayer arises: from the conviction that life is not something that takes us by surprise, but an astonishing mystery that inspires poetry, music, gratitude, praise, even lament and supplication in us.”
(Pope Francis)
“Let us learn from Abraham to pray with faith, to dialogue and to argue, but always willing to accept the Word of God and to put it into practice. With God, let us learn to speak like a child with his dad.”
(Pope Francis)
“The first prayers learned as a child remain in the heart, because they are a seed of life, the seed of dialogue with God.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is always a chain of life: many men and women who pray sow life.”
(Pope Francis)
“When prayer is authentic, it frees one from the instincts of violence and it is a gaze directed to God, that he may return to take care of the heart of mankind.”
(Pope Francis)
“Men and women of prayer bear gleaming reflections of light on their faces: because, the sun does not stop illuminating them. Prayer illuminates the souls, it illuminates the heart and it illuminates the face. Even in the darkest times, even in times of greatest suffering.”
(Pope Francis)
“Men and women who pray know that hope is stronger than discouragement. They believe that love is more powerful than death, and that surely one day it will triumph, even if in times and ways that we do not understand.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is the first strength of hope. You pray and hope grows, it moves forward … prayer opens the door to hope. There is hope but I open the door with my prayer.”
(Pope Francis)
“Mankind’s prayer is closely linked to the sentiment of wonder.”
(Pope Francis)
“In prayer one can establish an intimate relationship with him, so much so that in the “Our Father” Jesus taught us to address to him a series of questions. We can ask God everything, everything; explain everything, recount everything.”
(Pope Francis)
“The prayer of a Christian enters into a relationship with the God of the most tender face, who does not wish to instill any fear in men and women. This is the first characteristic of Christian prayer.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is an impulse; it is an invocation that goes beyond ourselves: something that is born in the intimacy of our person and extends, because it senses the nostalgia of an encounter.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer arises in our innermost self, in that interior place that spiritual authors call 'heart'.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is the breath of faith; it is its most proper expression. Like a cry that issues from the heart of those who believe and entrust themselves to God.”
(Pope Francis)
“Our witness opens the doors of the people and our prayer opens the heart of the Father, so that it may attract people.”
(Pope Francis)
“And how does one prepare to be reborn? With prayer. Prayer is what opens the door to the Spirit and gives us this freedom, this boldness, this courage of the Holy Spirit. You will never know where it will take you. But it is the Spirit.”
(Pope Francis)
“To pray is to stand before God’s eyes – it is God looking at me when I pray – without illusions, excuses or justifications.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is the door of faith; prayer is medicine for the heart.”
(Pope Francis)
“We must remember God more often than we draw breath.”
(Saint Gregory of Nazianzus)
“It is possible to offer frequent and fervent prayer even at the market place or strolling alone.”
(Saint John Chrysostom)
“Christian prayer is not a way of being more at peace with oneself or finding some inner harmony. We pray in order to take everything to God, to entrust the world to him.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer is intercession. It is not tranquility; it is charity. It is asking, seeking, knocking. It is putting ourselves on the line to intercede, insisting assiduously with God, one for the other.”
(Pope Francis)
“Prayer does not work like a magic wand! It helps us keep faith in God, and to entrust ourselves to him even when we do not understand his will.”
(Pope Francis)
“The life of prayer consists in being habitually in God’s presence and being aware of it, in living in a relationship with God as we live our customary relationships in life.”
(Pope Benedict XVI)
“Prayer is, as it were, an open window that enables us to keep our gaze turned to God.”
(Pope Benedict XVI)