grace through prayer

1. Introduction
 The author of this essay, from the time of its writing,  is a Benedictine monk in Solemn Vows from a Religious contemplative community located at the wilderness of Chama Canyon, Northern New Mexico.

 As of the present, he is officially relieved from the confines of his Religious community in order to experience life outside with the equipped tools he gathered and learned in the entire duration of his stay from both the seminary and his monastery in order to allow him to get going with life in the world.

His way of life was a life of prayer in meditation and contemplation. His everyday life was spent mostly in prayers from 4:00 o’clock in the mornings to 7:30 in the evenings for seven days of the week. His day of prayer began when all of nature was silent and he was free to meet the living God through prayer.

 His monastic day revolved around communal and solitary prayer, finding its source and apex in the grace of God.

The author offers the readers with a discussion, not on the details of his monastic encounter inside the Cloister, but a discourse on the role of prayer and grace in relation to spirituality in response to holiness.

read on...

SAINT VINCENT SEMINARY

UNDERSTANDING THE ROLE OF GRACE AND PRAYER

 IN RECOGNIZING THE NEED FOR A SPIRITUAL THEOLOGY

A THESIS PAPER

SUBMITTED TO MRS. XIMENA DEBROECK, M.A.

IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS

FOR THEOLOGY 622: INTRODUCTION TO SPIRITUALITY

BY

BROTHER LAWRENCE ALBERTO C. PILARCA, O. S. B.

SEPTEMBER 29, 2009

BENEDICTINE ABBEY OF CHRIST IN THE DESERT

ABIQUIU, NEW MEXICO 87510

Overview
 The main goal of this essay is to give light to the readers by offering a deeper understanding of the tasks of grace and prayer in one’s journey to a sound spirituality.

 The paper talks about the meaning of grace in relation to holiness through prayer. Likewise, it articulates on the relationship between the acts of prayer and the acts of receiving grace.

Its discussion focuses on prayer as an important tool in achieving a good Christian life filled with grace.

 Also, the essay gives emphasis on understanding spirituality in relation to cultivating one’s holiness. Its arguments shed light on the nature of grace which must be understood as one which is not received only by contemplative monks and nuns as well as figures in the Religious and Secular life, but as one which should be received by all Christians who believe in the Trinitarian God who is the Father almighty in union with the Son and the Holy Spirit who invites us all to the call for holiness.

 The author exercises great care in writing this article by binding his arguments confined only within the topics on prayer and grace in relation to understanding spiritual theology. In so doing, the author turns the readers away from reading it to a certain ambiguity.

 The author constrains the paper to a limited scope allowing him to clearly express his arguments within the bounds of concerns on grace and prayer.

Thus, at the end of this paper, the readers will get a glimpse of a good deal of understanding on the role of grace and prayer in understanding spiritual theology as effective means of perfecting their spiritual growth toward a passage to a higher level of sanctification.

2. Grace: Its Role in the Spiritual Life
 The introduction of this essay gives us an overview of the whole content of the paper with particular emphasis on the role of prayer and grace to one’s spiritual life.

This section talks about the definition and nature of grace as it supplies us with an essential knowledge that will enlighten our minds as we progress in reading this paper.

Nature and Meaning of Grace
 An understanding of grace shows a collective thought that pertains to an unmerited divine assistance given to human beings for their regeneration or sanctification.

Likewise, it is a virtue coming from God received by human beings who are unworthy of it. Similarly, it is a state of sanctification enjoyed by every human being who believes in the supernatural power and love of God through His divine revelation.

The book of Charles Journet entitled “The Meaning of Grace”, gives a profound explanation of the word grace. According to him, grace has three interdependent senses that congregate with one another to give sense to its meaning.

 Journet’s arguments talk about the first sense of grace as an act of wishing for someone’s well being. This means to say that the recipient of the act is the receiver and therefore, has the favor of the giver of such wish which is grace.

The action is considered an act of love because the giver freely expresses affection towards the recipient. An analogy to this describes the author’s experience when he took his Solemn monastic vows of consecration in year 200.

The well-wishers and guests who attended the celebrations expressed their lovely greetings and wishes for the author’s continued perseverance and adherence to God after the consecration. In another sense, grace, as articulated by Journet, is in itself a gift for someone’s well being.

The gift comes from someone who loves. It is received by someone who is worthy of it. It is in that something which is given freely that symbolizes and represents this well-wishing.

This is shown in another analogy that tells us the story about the author’s monastic consecration illustrating the second sense of grace. He received gifts both from the affective love of God and a multitude of guests who witnessed the significant occasion.

The gift he received that was given freely by the Former is Himself and His love, while a bunch of letter-envelopes and boxes of chocolates and tangible gifts were given freely by the latter.

These gifts are manifestations of grace. The third sense of grace refers to that of gratitude on the part of the receiver who has been given the favor.

 A sense of gratitude from someone who receives favor is the act of giving thanks. This act of thanksgiving that comes from the recipient who receives the favor is also grace. These three senses are mutually supporting and equally dependent from each other forming a relationship of interdependence.

 As Journet puts it, the favor comes first and goes before the gift, which after having been received by someone who is worthy of it, makes an act of acknowledgment and thanksgiving after receiving the gift from the giver.

Significance of Grace in the Spiritual Life The previous section talks about the meaning and nature of grace as a significant aspect in reaching the depths of one’s holiness.

Grace is one of the major elements in the establishment of a good prayer life towards holiness. Journet speaks about two kinds of grace in his book.

The first is called habitual grace with the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. This involves God Himself pouring out in us through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Since God does not dwell directly in us, He sends down the Holy Spirit to come upon us and fill us with His grace, which causes our souls to be transformed and makes us worthy of the indwelling.

 The other kind of grace is called actual grace which refers to the human being’s capacity to accept God freely which brings the human being to a higher level of sanctification. Journet makes a clear argument in his book about the significance of actual grace.

His argument talks about actual grace as a great possibility for us to exercise such openness and docility to accept God freely. For it is only in accepting God that we can be delivered from sin and finally be given justification. Journet says, “Actual grace is the divine impulse that produces in us acts of free adherence to God, of free acceptance and consent.” So, the realization of an actual grace would require a strong conviction from our spirit and our free will to humble ourselves to God.

This free adherence to God will eventually empower us to achieve a higher stage of sanctification. The whole process influences our human experience in our response to the call for holiness.

Prayer: Important Factor in Response to Grace
The Role of Prayer in Response to Grace The previous section tells us how grace influences our whole human experience in dealing with our spirituality as a journey to holiness.

 Our human experience of opening ourselves to God in response to grace makes us worthy to acquire a life filled with holiness. It is through emptying ourselves through prayer that we can achieve such zealous endeavor.

Working towards developing a good prayer life requires an enormous effort to be able to accept and sustain the grace from God.

 Prayer is a saving act of lifting up our hearts and minds, opening them up to respond to the possibility of the Triune God coming down to fill us with His Holy Spirit in order to bestow us the gift of grace.

 In the same way, prayer is fundamental in our Christian life because it is our doorway in entering into a deep personal relationship with God.

 The prayer of adoration allows us to raise our praises to God. Offering them to God allows us to humble ourselves so that our contrite hearts can eloquently express our prayer of contrition.

 The prayer of contrition softens our hardened hearts and takes away our infirmities. Cleansing us from our infirmities through the act of contrition invigorates us. In return, we offer an act of thanksgiving to God so that our whole being can purely pray for a well-merited prayer of supplication.

When our hearts and minds have already been attuned to these approaches of prayer, as introduced by Prof. DeBroeck in our class discussion, then and only then we can worthily receive and sustain the grace that God offers us.

3. CONCLUSION
The preceding discussion in this paper, though concise and limited, offers the readers a backdrop of knowledge on the significant role of both grace and prayer in understanding our spirituality.

 Also, it articulates on the relationship between grace and prayer in establishing an appropriate understanding of the nature of human spirituality.

 The arguments in this paper will guide us somehow in increasing our awareness and knowledge of the relationship between grace and prayer as we climb to the ladder of a much higher stage of sanctification. Thus, prayer and grace work together as one unified factor that helps us to deepen our understanding with the nature of our spirituality in response to the call for universal holiness.

Also, with prayer and grace, we will come to the end of our earthly life filled with holiness and sanctification. This will be our sure passport to a clear passage in God’s Heavenly Kingdom where He dwells and reigns with His Son and the Holy Spirit in the company of all the Saints and Angels together with the most holy ones who have long been gone before us.

Bibliography
 Garrigou-Lagrange, OP. The Three Coversions in the Spiritual Life. Rockford, Illinois. Tan Books and Publishers, Inc., 2002.

 Journet Charles. The Meaning of Grace. New York, NY: Scepter Publishers, Inc., 1996. Paul John II Pope. Catechism of the Catholic Church. 3211 Fourth St, NE, Washington: DC: United States Catholic Conference, 2007.

response from the author's professor:

faith

many are called...

No one can really be called an authentic monk until after he expires from his earthly life still wearing his  monastic habit!!!....

Many  us  were called by God to serve Him  inside  a monastic enclosure but only very  few  of  us  called were meant to survive the challenges and expectations of the life inside a monastery.

ministers

The days inside the monastery have always been so fulfilling and awesomely spent. The Liturgy of the Eucharist was always spiritually nourishing amid Gregorian music and Latin prayers....The life of a monk have become the best offering and a blessing to the whole world.

monastic feast!

St Benedict of Nursia, founder of the Benedictine Congregation throughout the whole world.

The great feast of the Benedictine congregation all over the world is that of his feast day.

On his feastday, July 11th, the Benedictines all over the world celebrate and commemorate this day to give honor and due recognition of his great contribution to the whole of the Religious: Western Monasticism!

In my community of more or less 30 Benedictine monks, the day is always a  very special day and to celebrate this day, the community brothers help one another in the preparation of its celebration. 

From the celebration of the Holy Eucharist down to food preparation, each monk  joins hands in order to help and make the day a festive day.

 Monastic silence is temporarily suspended by our Abbot superior in order for the monk to really enjoy this great gathering. 

We also invite the friends of our community (since I was the main cook of this day, July 11,2007 then it was just fitting  to invite the very few Filipinos who live nearby the county where my monastery was situated ) to  share the joy blessings of this day!

devotees

The devotees to the sacred image of the virgin Mother of Penafrancia in the Bicol Region, rushed, pushed, pinned each other as they process the icon image of Mother Mary in her special title, Virgen de la pena de Francia.

The feast of  the Lady of Penafrancia in Naga city would start in a traslacion in a September 8th and then a daily liturgy and novena prayers are being held each day at Her Shrine in Penafrancia Avenue.

The culminating fluvial procession is done at the second  week of the month of September which usually falls on a Saturday.

 The main day of the feast is on the next day after the fluvial procession when the image and icon of the virgin Mother of Penafrancia is brought to the Basilica nearby Her Shrine.

light the candle

A sacristan is an officer who is charged with the care of the sacristy, the church, and their contents.

In ancient times many duties of the sacristan were performed by the doorkeepers (ostiarii), later by the treasurers and mansionarii.

The Decretals of Gregory IX speak of the sacristan as if he had an honourable office attached to a certain benefice, and say that his duty was to care for the sacred vessels, vestments, lights, etc.

Nowadays the sacristan is elected or appointed.

The Cæremoniale episcoporum prescribed that in cathedral and collegiate churches the sacristan should be a priest, and describes his duties in regard to the sacristy, the Blessed Eucharist, the baptismal font, the holy oils, the sacred relics, the decoration of the church for the different seasons and feasts, the preparation of what is necessary for the various ceremonies, the pregustation in pontifical Mass, the ringing of the church bells, the preservation of order in the church, and the distribution of Masses; and finally it suggests that one or two canons be appointed each year to supervise the work of the sacristan and his assistants.

sacred vessel

A chalice (from Latin calix, cup, borrowed from Greek kalyx, shell, husk) is a goblet or footed cup intended to hold a drink.

In general religious terms, it is intended for quaffing during a ceremony.

In Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, Anglicanism, Lutheranism and some other Christian denominations, a chalice is a standing cup used to hold sacramental wine during the Eucharist (also called the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion).

Chalices are often made of precious metal, and they are sometimes richly enamelled and jewelled. The gold goblet was symbolic for family and tradition.

In Christian tradition the 'Holy Chalice is the vessel which Jesus used at the Last Supper to serve the wine.

New Testament texts make no mention of the cup except within the context of the Last Supper and give no significance whatever to the object itself.

monks in a row

A monk (from Greek: μοναχός, monachos, "single, solitary" is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, whilst always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose.

The concept is ancient and can be seen in many religions and in philosophy.

In the Greek language the term can apply to men or women; but in modern English it is in use only for men, while nun is used for female monastics.

Although the term monachos (“monk”) is of Christian origin, in the English language it tends to be used analogously or loosely also for both male and female ascetics from other religious or philosophical backgrounds.

The term monk is generic and in some religious or philosophical traditions it therefore may be considered interchangeable with other terms such as ascetic. However, being generic, it is not interchangeable with terms that denote particular kinds of monk, such as cenobite, hermit, anchorite, hesychast, solitary.

The first famous Christian known to adopt the life in a desert was St. Anthony the Great (251-356).

Anthony lived alone as an anchorite in the Egyptian desert until he attracted a circle of followers, after which he retired further into the desert to escape the adulation of men.

He is said to have been the first to go out into the desert for the sole purpose of pursuing God in solitude.

As the idea of devoting one's entire life to God grew, more and more monks joined him, even in the far desert.

Under St. Anthony's system, they each lived in isolation. Later, loose-knit communities began to be formed, coming together only on Sundays and major feast days for Holy Communion.

The concept of monks all living together under one roof and under the rule of a single person — that is, monasticism as such — is attributed to St Pachomius (c. 292-348).

At this same time, St. Pachomius' sister became the first woman to lead a monastery of women, or convent. Christian monasticism spread throughout the Eastern Roman Empire. At its height it was not uncommon for monasteries to house upwards of 30,000 monks.

As Christianity grew and diversified, so did the style of monasticism. In the East, monastic norms came to be regular.

Monasticism came to be accepted in the West as well.

In the beginning, Western monasticism followed much the same pattern as its Eastern forebears, but over time the traditions diversified.

sacred space

The cross is one of the most ancient human symbols, and is used by many religions, such as Christianity.

It is frequently a representation of the division of the world into four elements (Chevalier, 1997) (or cardinal points), or alternately as the union of the concepts of divinity, the vertical line, and the world, the horizontal line (Koch, 1955).

A cross is a geometrical figure consisting of two lines or bars perpendicular to each other, dividing one or two of the lines in half.

The lines usually run vertically and horizontally; if they run diagonally, the design is technically termed a saltire.

cARRY the Cross of Christ

Christians in the Philippines practice flagellation as a form of devout worship, sometimes in addition to self-crucifixion (during the end of Lent season).

It has been reported in a book that former Pope John Paul II beat himself with a whip and slept naked on the floor to bring him closer to Christ.

incense and candles...

Incense is composed of aromatic plant materials, often combined with essential oils. The forms taken by incense have changed with advances in technology, differences in the underlying culture, and diversity in the reasons for burning it.

The two main types can generally be separated into "indirect burning" and "direct burning". Indirect burning incense, also called "non-combustible incense", requires a separate heat source since it is not capable of burning itself.

Direct burning incense, also called "combustible incense", is lit directly by a flame and then fanned out, the glowing ember on the incense will smoulder and release fragrance.

Examples of direct burning incense are incense sticks (joss sticks) and cones or pyramids.

A candle is a solid block of fuel (commonly wax) and an embedded wick, which is lit to provide light, and sometimes heat.

Today, most candles are made from paraffin. Candles can also be made from beeswax, soy and other plant waxes, and tallow (a by-product of beef-fat rendering). Gel candles are made from a mixture of paraffin and plastic.[citation needed]

A candle manufacturer is traditionally known as a chandler. Various devices have been invented to hold candles, from simple tabletop candle holders, to elaborate chandeliers.

The heat of the match used to light the candle melts and vaporizes a small amount of fuel. Once vaporized, the fuel combines with oxygen in the atmosphere to form a flame.

This flame provides sufficient heat to keep the candle burning via a self-sustaining chain of events: the heat of the flame melts the top of the mass of solid fuel, the liquefied fuel then moves upward through the wick via capillary action, and the liquefied fuel is then vaporized to burn within the candle's flame.

The burning of the fuel takes place in several distinct regions (as evidenced by the various colors that can be seen within the candle's flame).

Within the bluer regions, hydrogen is being separated from the fuel and burned to form water vapor.

The brighter, yellower part of the flame is the remaining carbon being oxidized to form carbon dioxide.

As the mass of solid fuel is melted and consumed, the candle grows shorter. Portions of the wick that are not emitting vaporized fuel are consumed in the flame.

Blessed SACRAMENT

The Blessed Sacrament, or the Body and Blood of Christ, is a devotional name used in the Roman Catholic Church, Old Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran Churches, to refer to the Host and wine after they have been consecrated in the sacrament of the Eucharist.

Christians in these traditions believe in the Real Presence of Jesus Christ in the Eucharistic elements of the bread and wine and hence practice Eucharistic reservation and Eucharistic adoration.

This belief is based on interpretations of biblical scripture and tradition. In the Roman Catholic tradition, Christ's presence is believed to be corporeal, while in the Old Catholic and Anglican traditions, his presence is more usually seen as spiritual.

The Roman Catholic understanding is defined by numerous church councils including the Fourth Lateran Council and the Council of Trent and is quoted in paragraph 1376 of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (which explains the meaning of Transubstantiation).

worship...

Worship is an act of religious devotion usually directed to one or more deities. The word is derived from the Old English worthscipe, meaning worthiness or worth-ship — to give, at its simplest, worth to something.

"The adoring acknowledgment of all that lies beyond us—the glory that fills heaven and earth. It is the response that conscious beings make to their Creator, to the Eternal Reality from which they came forth; to God, however they may think of Him or recognize Him, and whether He be realized through religion, through nature, through history, through science, art, or human life and character."

An act of worship may be performed individually, in an informal or formal group, or by a designated leader. In a broader social sense, worship may on occasion refer to an attitude towards someone of greatly elevated social status, such as a lord or monarch, or, more colloquially, towards a hero or lover.

Religious worship happens in a wide variety of locations: in purpose-built places of worship, at home or in the open. Many religious traditions place an emphasis upon regular worship at frequent intervals, often daily or weekly. Expressions of worship vary but typically include one or more of the following:

Prayer, meditation, ritual, scripture, sacraments, sacrifice, sermons, chanting, music or devotional song, dance, religious holidays, festivals, pilgrimage, dining, fasting, temples or shrines, idols, or simply private individual acts of devotion.

sleeping Christ

Jesus of Nazareth (c. 5 BC/BCE – c. 30 AD/CE), also known as Jesus Christ or simply Jesus, is the central figure of Christianity, which views him as the Messiah foretold in the Old Testament, with most Christian denominations believing him to be the Son of God and God incarnate who was raised from the dead.

Islam and the Baha'i Faith consider Jesus a prophet and also the Messiah. Several other religions revere him in some way. He is God the son.

The principal sources of information regarding Jesus' life and teachings are the four canonical gospels, especially the Synoptic Gospels,though some scholars argue such texts as the Gospel of Thomas and the Gospel of the Hebrews are also relevant.

Most critical scholars in biblical studies believe that some parts of the New Testament are useful for reconstructing Jesus' life, agreeing that Jesus was a Jew who was regarded as a teacher and healer, that he was baptized by John the Baptist, and was crucified in Jerusalem on the orders of the Roman Prefect of Judaea, Pontius Pilate, on the charge of sedition against the Roman Empire.

Aside from these few conclusions, academic debate continues regarding the chronology, the central message of Jesus' preaching, his social class, cultural environment, and religious orientation.

Critical scholars have offered competing descriptions of Jesus as a self-described Messiah, as the leader of an apocalyptic movement, as an itinerant sage, as a charismatic healer, and as the founder of an independent religious movement.

Most contemporary scholars of the historical Jesus consider him to have been an independent, charismatic founder of a Jewish restoration movement, anticipating an imminent apocalypse.

Other prominent scholars, however, contend that Jesus' "Kingdom of God" meant radical personal and social transformation instead of a future apocalypse.

Christians predominantly believe that Jesus is the "Son of God" (generally meaning that he is God the Son, the second person in the Trinity) who came to provide salvation and reconciliation with God by his death for their sins.

Christians traditionally believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, performed miracles, founded the Church, rose from the dead, and ascended into Heaven, from which he will return.

While the doctrine of the Trinity is accepted by most Christians, a few groups reject the doctrine of the Trinity, wholly or partly, as non-scriptural.

Most Christian scholars today present Jesus as the awaited Messiah and as God.

monks...deacons...priests- for God.

In the Christian tradition, those pursuing a monastic life are usually called monks or brethren (brothers) if male, and nuns or sisters if female. Both monks and nuns may also be called monastics.

Some other religions also include what could be described as "monastic" elements, most notably Buddhism, but also Hinduism, and Jainism, though the expressions differ considerably.

Monasticism (from Greek μοναχός, monachos, derived from Greek monos, alone) is a religious way of life characterized by the practice of renouncing worldly pursuits to fully devote one's self to spiritual work.

The origin of the word is from Ancient Greek, and the idea originally related to Christian monks.

saints and followers...

Saints are individuals of exceptional holiness who are important in many religions, particularly Christianity.

In some usages, the word "saint" is used more generally to refer to anyone who is a Christian.

A saint is always someone through whom we catch a glimpse of what God is like -- and of what we are called to be. Only God 'makes' saints, of course.

The church merely identifies from time to time a few of these for emulation.

The church then tells the story. But the author is the Source of the grace by which saints live.

And there we have it: A saint is someone whose story God tells.

monk's contemplation...

Contemplation comes from the Latin root templum (from Greek temnein: to cut or divide).

It means separating something from its environment and enclosing it in a sector. Contemplation is the Latin translation of Greek 'theory' (theoria).

In a religious sense it is usually a type of prayer or meditation.
In Christianity, contemplation refers to a content-free mind directed towards the awareness of God as a living reality.

This corresponds to what in Eastern religion is called meditation. In Christianity, however, meditation refers to a specific, directed mental exercise, such as visualization of a religious scene or consideration of a scriptural passage.

Contemplation as a practice is finding greater resonance in the West both in business - for example in Peter Senge's book The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization - and in universities in fields as diverse as architecture, physics, and the liberal arts.

In Catholic Christianity, contemplation is given importance. The Catholic Church's "model theologian," St. Thomas Aquinas wrote: "It is requisite for the good of the human community that there should be persons who devote themselves to the life of contemplation."

One of his disciples, Josef Pieper commented: "For it is contemplation which preserves in the midst of human society the truth which is at one and the same time useless and the yardstick of every possible use; so it is also contemplation which keeps the true end in sight, gives meaning to every practical act of life."

foster siblings

Foster siblings are children who are raised in the same foster home, or are also foster children of the person's parents, or foster parents' biological children...

the sleeping Christ