Original scientific paper
PRAYER IN THE FAMILY
Natalija Bogović
; Metropolijski pastoralni Institut u Rijeci
Abstract
To pray means to put oneself in God's presence and to remain in His company. A life of prayer is essential to every Christian family. The key word describing the relationship among God, human being, prayer, education and family is love. Love is the first and irreplaceable teacher of peace, being the heart of family life and the life of prayer. Hence without the prayer a person cannot became mature in respect to the true love either towards God or towards another person, and also cannot fulfill spousal or parental vocation. Upbringing cannot be reduced to the parents’ activities relying on their own strength. Words of advice and counsels are always needed and welcome, but they are not sufficient. Without every single parents’ personal encounter with God in prayer, it’s not possible to be a teacher of faith to a child, it’s not possible to nurture a sense of any need for prayer in a child. God created everyone, including their child, as a unique person, so a child should be welcomed as such, with parents always aware of deciding for the child’s best. Parenthood is a vocation: parents are called to form their children by their own example, so that they might grow in responsible human beings in respect to God and to the world. They should live their life in order to fulfill the plan God has with them, which is holiness. Without the prayer of the parents and without children’s personal prayer, this plan cannot be fulfilled.
Keywords
prayer; love; family; religious education; holiness
Hrčak ID:
84124
URI
Publication date:
29.6.2012.
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