Catholic books to read to help you grow in faith through prayer.
Good Catholic Prayer Books to Read to Help you Deepen Your Prayer Life
When you want to learn more about your Catholic faith, where do you look? Do you turn to God in prayer and ask Him to help you? Do you ask friends for recommendations of good Catholic books or look online for ideas? It can be challenging to seek out the right resources to help you.
This is the first article in a series focused on good Catholic books. This post will focus on books to help you deepen your prayer life. If you have a favorite book you do not see on this list, please add it in the comments at the end of the post. Your fellow readers will be glad you did!
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Catholic books to help you to grow in your prayer life.
The Prayer Companion: Grow in prayer one day at a time from Blessed Catholic Mom is a guide to meet you where you are in your prayer life and help you to grow in faith one day at a time. This pdf document provides multiple resources and ideas for you to use: strategies to help you make time to pray, resources to help you to know how to pray, and prayers for when you do not know what prayer to pray.
Nunc Coepi: A Year of Prayer from Blessed is She is a book to lead you daily through a year of prayer. It contains Scripture selections, weekly reflections, and writings from Jean Pierre de Cassaude, Brother Lawrence of the Resurrection, Gabrielle Bossis, Saint Philip Neri, the Desert Fathers and Mothers, and Saint Francis de Sales. This book will help you to develop a habit of prayer and deepen your prayer life.
The Devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus: How to Practice the Sacred Heart Devotion by Fr. John Croiset , SJ. is about the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus as Jesus told St. Mary Margret herself. Fr. Croiset was St. Mary Margaret’s spiritual director, so he knows very well about Jesus’ teachings to her about His Sacred Heart.
Prayer: Our Deepest Longing by Ronald Rolheis leads the reader through six chapters designed to help you understand what prayer is and practice prayer in a more fruitful way. The chapters cover struggling in prayer, hearing God’s voice in prayer, understanding priestly prayer and our role in priestly prayer, practicing affective prayer, growing in maturity in prayer, and listening to God’s heartbeat.
Fr. Lawrence G. Lovasik wrote The Basic Book of Catholic Prayer: How to Pray and Why. Fr. Lovasik covers understanding prayer: what it is and why it is important, practicing different forms of prayer, how to make your prayer more effective, how to make your prayer life even better, and how to allow prayer to be a great part of your life.
Catholic books about the Rosary.
The Secret Of The Rosary by St. Louis de Montfort is an excellent book on the Rosary. Not only does he cover how to pray the Rosary well, but he also talks about miracles surrounding the Rosary. It is an excellent book to help you grow in your faith and in your understanding of the power of Rosary and Mary’s desire to help us.
In Praying the Rosary Like Never Before, Edward Sri covers why the Rosary is an important prayer, its origins, how to pray it better, and Biblical reflections on the different mysteries. It is a good book to help you deepen your understanding of and appreciation for the Rosary.
Are you looking for a way to make praying the Rosary more personal and meaningful?
If you would like some ideas on how to focus better while you pray the Rosary instead of thinking about the laundry you forgot to put in the dryer that was washed four hours ago, trying to remember that one elusive thing you forgot to add to your grocery list, or doing your best to wrack your brain for the name of the person you saw at Mass that you promised to pray for, check out Rosary Reflections on the Joyful Mysteries. It is available as an e-book and paperback from Amazon.
It contains an outline guide with many different ideas you can use to focus on as you pray the Rosary as well as personal reflections and thoughts by the author from her experience praying the Rosary.
For further reading about the Rosary: Benefits of Praying the Rosary
Catholic prayer books about the Liturgy of the Hours (also called the Divine Office)
If you have ever been curious about the Liturgy of the Hours, also known as the Divine Office, this book explains what it is about. The Everyday Catholic’s Guide to the Liturgy of the Hours by Daria Sockey covers the history of this prayer practice, what the different sections of prayer are about in each day, and how to fit it into your day.
In A Layman’s Guide to the Liturgy of the Hours: How the Prayers of the Church Can Change Your Life, Fr. Timothy Gallagher shows how this practice of prayer can enhance your prayer life. He covers the origin and history of the prayers, the different sections of prayers throughout the day, and how to begin praying the Divine Office.
The Liturgy of the Hours: Douay-Rheims Version is the Kindle Edition of the Liturgy of the Hours for the year 2020. Christian Prayer: The Liturgy of the Hours includes the complete prayers for the Divine Office for morning and evening only.
Catholic prayer books containing traditional Catholic prayers
A Beginner's Book of Prayer, complied by William G. Storey, contains almost 200 prayers. They are grouped by category (such as Basic Christian Prayers and Devotions to Christ Crucified, and Prayers of Praise and Thanksgiving).
Catholic Prayers for all Occasions includes daily prayers, prayers for Mass, Eucharistic Adoration, litanies, novenas, prayers for different times of the year, prayers for the Church, and a section about praying with Sacred Scripture.
Catholic Household Blessings and Prayers: A Companion to The Catechism of the Catholic Church was put together by U.S. Catholic Bishops. It is over 500 pages long. The prayers are grouped by categories, including Basic Prayers, Daily Prayers, Days and Seasons of the Church, Family Prayers form Birth to Death, Prayers for the Church and the World, Litanies, and Stations of the Cross. There are also sections covering God's Word in time of need, a calendar of saints, and a scriptural reference section.
The Mass and Adoration Companion, compiled by Vinny Flynn and his daughter Erin, is designed to help you draw closer to Our Lord at Mass and in Eucharistic Adoration. It includes prayers to say before and during Mass, Spiritual Communion Prayers, Prayers for Eucharistic Adoration, and contains a section for prayers for various occasions.
Catholic prayer books for Moms
While the dimensions of this book are not very big (it will fit easily into your purse or bag) the prayers in the Mother's Manual by A. Francis Coomes, S.J. are powerful. They include prayers for mothers in different stages of their vocation, prayers for children, and prayers for a good marital relationship. It is a true treasure.
Authors Lisa M. Hendey and Sarah A. Reinhard of CatholicMom.com complied a group of authors to contribute to The Catholic Mom’s Prayer Companion. Over 500 pages long, this companion has daily reflections that contain a theme for the day, a quote, a written reflection, and a thought to ponder. It is appropriately named as a companion; it will be a companion to you as you learn more about God and grow in your prayer life each day.
Grow in faith through prayer
Here are some more prayer resources for you:
Learning How to Pray: Lectio Divina
Benefits of Praying the Rosary
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