Every Catholic man who seeks to grow in holiness and receive the happiness Jesus promises, must draw ever nearer to God through a disciplined life of daily prayer. Prayer strengthens a man’s heart at every moment (CCC 2697) and is a vital necessity in the battle against a man’s own inner desires to sin and Satan’s temptations, protecting a Catholic man from falling back into the slavery of sin (CCC 2744); every Catholic man is called to live a “life of prayer” by building a habit of seeking to remain in the presence of the Almighty Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (CCC 2565).
The necessity and challenge of building a prayer life
Every Catholic man must strive and succeed in building a rich prayer life to imitate Jesus Christ so he can grow in holiness and receive the true and lasting happiness Jesus promises. A man can struggle to build and sustain a vibrant prayer life due to a lack of knowledge or will and can become overwhelmed by the vastness of the great treasury of Catholic prayer.
The Church helps men build a daily habit of prayer
The Holy Catholic Church can help every Catholic man learn to pray through the teachings of Jesus Christ, through the rich prayer traditions of the Church, and by helping a man to focus upon prayers which have proven to be powerful. The Church urges men to develop a daily prayer habit which includes praying at specific times during the day, praying using various types of prayer, and praying using specific prayers which are considered powerful.
While every Catholic man is called to continually grow in his life of prayer by drawing on the rich treasury of prayer within the Church, the most important thing is to pray now, today, in whatever way God moves you, throughout the day. If you are not praying regularly, start today by praying basic prayers (the Glory Be, Our Father, Hail Mary, Bless us O Lord, Thanks be to God) and simply speaking to God in your own words; God loves you, God hears you, God will respond to your prayers, and the Heavens rejoice when a man turns back to God (Lk 15:7); Thanks be to God!
Building a prayer routine
To grow deeper in a life of prayer, it can be helpful to develop a prayer routine which includes setting specific times during the day to pray, using a logical approach to having a fruitful conversation with God, praying essential types of prayer, and by including the powerful prayers which the Church grants Indulgences.
The Elements of a Daily Prayer Routine
To help men develop the virtuous habit of prayer and draw closer to God through a variety of powerful prayers which have inspired the hearts and souls of men across the centuries, the Devotional proposes an example approach to prayers which a man can explore and use based on where he is in his personal spiritual life.
A Daily Prayer Routine for Men
Pulling all the elements together, here is a Daily Prayer Routine which includes a variety of prayers for the the 5 major day-parts of a man’s day.
Having a REAL conversation with God
Many men struggle to move beyond memorized vocal prayers and to draw closer to God in deep prayer. Here are a series of questions and answers to help a man have a real conversation with God.
A Treasury of Catholic Prayers
The Church over the centuries has built a great treasury of prayers which have been passed down for generations because of the prayers’ effectiveness at bringing blessings to those who prayer them.