In Romano Guardini’s The Art of Praying, we truly discover prayer as a skill, a practice to be taken up to better “pray the Trinity”; as it centers our whole friendship with Christ, who unveils the life of the Father in and through the work of the Holy Spirit.
In Guardini’s compelling read, we quickly discover that what lies underneath the art of “conversation with God”, is an attitude of heart, which is the necessary disposition for prayer to be effective. As Guardini reminds us, we were created in His image and likeness with dignity and honor, and our attitude should reciprocate this honor with a heart of gratitude.
What’s more, The Art of Praying offers up some practical advice on how to determine the right prayer schedule for you; the importance of our posture in prayer; how to pray even when we do not “feel anything”, or we are “empty”; and how to enrich our family prayer and make it more sustainable.
Other very important subject matter includes how to pray the Liturgy more fervently, why the saints love for God should encourage us to pray to them and with them, and why praying to Jesus through Mary with the rosary is a timeless prayer that can help us draw deeper into the mystery of God.
In every one of its chapters, this read is concise and to the point. Every topic, and subtopic, is presented in a bite-size manner that allows the reader to chew on the simple, but insightful points that come from the pen of Guardini.
Most importantly, as he explores the many principles and methods that encircle a life of prayer, Guardini never loses sight to that quintessential truth regarding prayer: with Christ as the center, God is gradually transforming us in and through the Holy Spirit.
No matter where you are at in your journey of faith, The Art of Praying will have something for you. I have used this book as a resource for both classroom instruction and spiritual direction, and have found that Guardini’s words have been helpful for all walks of life at every stage of life. If you are serious about going deeper in your faith, you will want to learn “the art of praying.”
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