Liturgical Prayer is the respiration of the Church. As the good Jew prayed “seven times a day” so the Church gets her life-breath from the praises of God. She joins in all creation which glorifies its maker through the rhythms of morning, noon, and night. She also follows the seasons of Jesus’ life; his path to the cross through suffering, death, and into the resurrection. We want to be faithful to this heritage by following her horarium (prayer schedule); so we pray the Psalms, following the newest compilation of the Liturgy of the Hours.
Mass is the Great Banquet of the Christian Life. Our life flows from and proceeds into the sacrifice of the altar. Therefore we participate daily in this Pascal Feast. What is religious life but a witness to this reality? Our Lord, sacrificed now and forever, brings us salvation by adopting our lowly state.
After Mass we make Adoration a regular part of our spiritual life. Here we can say, “We have tasted, we have seen.” The Eucharist remains the nuclear center of all spirituality and the ultimate sign of God’s love for us. We must contemplate Christ in the His Sacrament, before we can serve Him in His people.
“The Church draws her life from the Eucharist. This truth does not simply express a daily experience of faith, but recapitulates the heart of the mystery of the Church. In a variety of ways she joyfully experiences the constant fulfillment of the promise: “Lo, I am with you always, to the close of the age” JPII, Ecclesia de Eucharistia
