Prayer
by Rev. Albert Rung
E-3 VOCAL PRAYER
The more common kind of prayer is vocal prayer. This manner of prayer is within the reach of all. It consists in repeating certain formulas of praise, adoration, petition, or contrition, composed by God the saints, or the Church; or in addressing God in words of our own. The saying of the words alone is not yet prayer, our minds must be on what we are saying. Occupying our minds thus with God is what is meant by saying that prayer is the raising of our hearts and minds to God. It is best done by the use of prayers which are most familiar to us. Hence the vocal prayers most dear and most times used by the great majority of Catholics are the Lord's Prayer, and the Hail Mary. Because these prayers compose the rosary, the popularity of the rosary is easily understood. Litanies, the prayers in the prayer books, if said with the lips, the public recital of the Way of the Cross, are all vocal prayers in common use among Catholics.