BEGINNERS' PAGE for prayer and approaching God - alone or with others.
Welcome! You see me above on the left as a youth, on the right, a new deacon before Maman, and in the centre, offering Holy Mass via Skype during our Covid-19 lockdown. God is with us in all our circumstances of daily living. Call to mind scenes from your own life journey to let the Holy Spirit help you recall those experiences and discover in them signs of God's presence and care for you.
Script for our Seminar on God - Life - Marriage - Family - Prayer
Indiana Jones' "Last Crusade" 👉 an analogy of the Christian life
INTRO TO THIS "TOOLS PAGE" - People of good will sooner or later look to connect with God / the Creator. These "Pilgrims of the Absolute" discover various practices such as those Jesus demonstrated that help on this journey of faith. The human heart desires to come into "sync" with God. Here then are some elements and disciplines of living that open our spirit within to be drawn into the life, love, and communion of the Most Holy Trinity. To quote Saint Augustine in his "Confessions", his autobiography: "You have made us for yourself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it rests in you.” (Crossroads Initiative Library)
👆 BACK TO THE TOP 👆
👉 RETURN TO WEBSITE 👈
"O Holy Spirit promised by Jesus, inspire us with trust in God; help us be willing to be led. As we scroll through the following Christian practices and disciplines, enlighten us to discern wisely what to do next in accord with our own individual, family, and communal journey. In time, bring us closer to Jesus who wants to bring us to the Father. Holy Spirit, by your grace may we gratefully, generously, and enthusiastically enter into and make good use of these spiritual exercises. Amen."
Jesus offers every human being, each person, to enter into a personal relationship with Him... hard to believe? Check this out....
THE ULTIMATE RELATIONSHIP
1. Here's a good place to start: 👉 ENDING THE DAY WELL & STARTING THE DAY WELL
THE ULTIMATE RELATIONSHIP
1. Here's a good place to start: 👉 ENDING THE DAY WELL & STARTING THE DAY WELL
2. Are you having doubts about whether or not God is real or whether He truly cares about you or your family, or are you troubled by God's apparent "absence" or "silence", or struggling to know or to do God's will? You may identify with some of the questions or find useful and of value some of the clues or suggestions offered here:
👉 GOD DOUBTS TROUBLES, STRUGGLES, PRAYER & FAQ
3. What's all this about silence? - Atheists point to the silence as proof that God doesn't exist. Why is God so silent? Is there something wrong with me that I can't "hear" God? How does one begin to get "in touch" with God? Check this out: PDF FILE:
👉 GOD LIKES TO BE FOUND IN SILENCE Let Fr. Gilles lead you in silent prayer 👉 MP3 file
4. Exploring my "interior landscape" - Not sure how to make room for God in your "interior landscape" during the day? Here are a few simple examples of prayers you can try out for yourself and maybe share with your fiancé or spouse, children, relatives, and friends.... 👉 Catholic Christian Couple & Parent Devotion Ideas for all day long....
5. Seeing your day as providing "spiritual moments" - Not certain about when to approach God in the course of your day's living and activity? Here are some typical moments in our days that are opportunities to "make room for God" in our own "interior landscape".... Have fun with these... and share them with your fiancé or spouse, children, relatives, and friends....
👉 Catholic Christian Couple & Parent Spirituality Moments for Daily Devotions all day long....
6. HOW TO PRAY - 👉 (1) Praying - What is that?
(3) 👉 God's Sacred History with Me - a spiritual exercise
God's Sacred History with Me - with prayer tips
👉 6. (6) Praying with Scripture, the Living Word of God
👉 Good R.C. Bibles - Why R.C. & Protestant Bibles - How to read the Word of God
6. (7) Praying the Liturgy of the Hours with the Church worldwide 24/7... this is amazing.... and even online.... you may have to sign up but it's free... includes hymns, psalms, prayer intentions, Scripture readings... Divine Office is the one I use (Fr. Gilles)
👉 Divine Office dot org Divine Office dot org has an audio version so you
can listen as well as read along. There are also other versions: 👉 iBreviary...
can listen as well as read along. There are also other versions: 👉 iBreviary...
👉 Universalis... 👉 en Français...
6. (8) Praying the Rosary - 👉 Brief Instructions -
👉 Detailed Family Guide -
👉 The Most Holy Rosary Mysteries - pondering the Mysteries in the life and ministry, passion, death, & Resurrection of Jesus by adding phrases to each Hail Mary as suggested by Saint Pope John Paul II in 2002
👉 Mystères du Très Saint Rosaire - contemplant les Mystères dans la vie et le ministère, la passion, la mort, & la Résurrection de Jésus en ajoutant des phrases au "Je vous salue Marie" tel que suggéré par le Pape Saint Jean-Paul II en 2002
👉 New Holy Rosary Mysteries - A grace in August 2018 while on vacation at MHA - "filling in" the complete panorama of the Word of God throughout Salvation History
👉 Nouveaux Mystères du Très Saint Rosaire - Une grâce en août 2018 en vacances à MHA - "pour compléter" le panorama entier du Verbe de Dieu dans l'Histoire du Salut
6. (9) Praying with 👉 Icons and Statues
Do Catholics Worship Statues? - Clarifications - Guiding Us Home - Jesus Is the Reason - Adoration Is As Adoration Does - Conclusion
Do Catholics Worship Statues? - Clarifications - Guiding Us Home - Jesus Is the Reason - Adoration Is As Adoration Does - Conclusion
(There's a big difference between praying "to God" and "with the saints".)
Praying with 👉 Statues and Images
Do Catholics Worship Statues? - God Said To Make Them - The Religious Uses of Images - What About Bowing? - Hiding the Second Commandment? The Form of God? - The Answer Is No - Idolatry Condemned by the Church 
6. (10) Developing a Personal Relationship with God - yes, believe it or not.... Here are 👉 3 Ways to develop a personal relationship with the Holy Spirit
In greater detail, here is 👉 How to live in communion with God the Father in the Holy Spirit through Jesus Christ the Lord
👆 BACK TO THE TOP 👆 👉 RETURN TO WEBSITE 👈
(1) 👉 When Sunday is just another
day - "time-out" from
"shopping till you drop"!
(2) 👉 Lord's Day -
"Rest" versus "Work"?
"Rest" versus "Work"?
I don't know about you but....
(3) 👉 Is Sunday just another day...?? 👉 just another day of the week???
(4) 👉 Keep Holy the Sabbath - from our brothers in the Knights of Columbus....
(5) 👉 The Lord's Day of Rest in a R.C. Family - Preparing the Lord's Day Together - one young family's experience in Montreal then Guelph...
(6) 👉 Keeping Holy the Lord's Day by Catholic Answers
(7) 👉 Confessions of a Former Sabbath Breaker... It's good to get "busted"
8. Meeting Jesus through the priest - 👉 Preparing for Confession - the Sacrament of Reconciliation - believe it or not, when you meet a priest for Confession, it is actually Jesus who is there receiving you, listening to you, caring for you, guiding you, forgiving all your sins, and then sending you out to be "good news" for your family, your neighbor, and even your enemies!
(1) 👉 St. Augustine's Letter to Proba... watch for what he says about exercising "desire" - this is crucial to understanding the "ways of the Lord", that is, the way in which the Lord our God goes about governing the universe in general and us and our lives in particular...
(2) 👉 On the Lord's Prayer by St. Cyprian... you won't believe all that's in the "Our Father" - Jesus foresaw all that we would ever need in this life....
(3) 👉 Prayer - Going from Absence to Living Presence... a beautiful, inspiring reflection...
(4) 👉 Emotions Connect Us... we are incredibly
complex and beautifully made... awesome....
10. Here's an "overview" of 👉 Christian Disciplines for Roman Catholics... this is not exhaustive but it is a useful overview of the human and Christian activity in our "interior landscape".
Looking for perspective in your life? Check out this Google Talk by Stephanie Gray - 👉 "Love Unleashes Life"
👉 What is the Family Life Chaplaincy Service?
In fact, Jesus offers everyone a 👉 "Family Life Chaplain", that is, a R.C. priest to offer to those who wish some "life coaching" for their faith journey in their "search for God" or "quest for this new abundant life".
12. Jesus is the best Teacher, Mentor, & Friend - the Good Shepherd, our Saviour
(1) Jesus helps us with anger... and other "deadly sins" and 👉 their remedies
👉 HEALTH & SEXUAL RECOVERY TO CHASTITY - For a full and unfettered outlook on human life, sexuality, & happiness, for the sake of meaning, purpose, and direction freely given to one's life
👆 BACK TO THE TOP 👆 👉 RETURN TO WEBSITE 👈
Having trouble with anything on these web pages? Do you have any questions? doubts? worries? Would you like a little coaching to help you get going? Perhaps you have experience but feel a little stuck? Please feel free to contact me. THANK YOU for you support, assistance, and prayers. I pray for you - please pray for me. God bless you and your family.
© 2004-2023 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC
© 2004-2023 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC
© 2004-2023 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate Priest of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC
© 2004-2023 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC
© 2004-2023 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC
No comments:
Post a Comment