Last night while stuck working an overnight shift at my part-time job, I was discussing with a fellow Catholic, the difficulty approaching in the morning with making it through Mass without passing out from sheer exhaustion. Another co-worker suggested that we go home and lie in bed with the gospel channel on the television. When I told her that, that isn't the same as attending Mass, she looked at me and said, "You don't have to be in a church to pray!"
I couldn't help but feel sorry for this person as she doesn't seem to understand that there is a difference between Mass and prayer. "I may attend Mass daily," I told her, "but that is only a fraction of my prayer." It saddens me to realize that people of that mentality believe that those who attend a church regularly only pray while they are there.
As it turned out, not only did I remain awake during Mass, but Father asked me to serve as usual, and I managed to focus better this morning than many others. I thank God for helping me through this weekend and believe that my prayers were answered.
Truly, there is a wealth of prayers for Catholics, but Mass being the highest form. We have a spectrum prayers that can be used for different occasions, needs, and with different styles. Unfortunately, too many people don't realize this or are even familiar with many of them.
ReplyDeleteWell said. Prayer takes many forms, and that is no reason to neglect the most sacred form.
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