Learning Mental Prayer
John Paul II in his program for the new millennium said in his message for the 42nd "World Day of Prayer" said:
- "We have to learn to pray: as it were learning this art ever anew from the lips of the Divine Master himself, like the first disciples: 'Lord, teach us to pray!' (Lk 11:1)."
Since sanctity is for everyone, according to Catholic doctrine, anyone can learn mental prayer, whether young or old. St. Therese of the Lisieux learned mental prayer when she was eleven years old. "Mental prayer is not just for priests and nuns, but is for everyone. The youngest of children are capable of reaching great heights through mental prayer," is the teaching of the Franciscan Friar Minors.
Read more about this topic: Mental Prayer
Famous quotes containing the words learning, mental and/or prayer:
“Every act of conscious learning requires the willingness to suffer an injury to one’s self-esteem. That is why young children, before they are aware of their own self-importance, learn so easily; and why older persons, especially if vain or important, cannot learn at all.”
—Thomas Szasz (b. 1920)
“[T]hat moment of evening when the light and the darkness are so evenly balanced that the constraint of day and the suspense of night neutralize each other, leaving absolute mental liberty. It is then that the plight of being alive becomes attenuated to its least possible dimensions.”
—Thomas Hardy (1840–1928)
“To give thanks in solitude is enough. Thanksgiving has wings and goes where it must go. Your prayer knows much more about it than you do.”
—Victor Hugo (1802–1885)