Pray as You Can: A Short Primer

A brief primer on prayer written by our Foundress, Mother Mary Clare Vincent, OSB. Read more about her life here.

 

Based on conferences given to the community and other groups by the foundress and former prioress of St. Scholastica Priory, Petersham, MA. Writing with warmth and clarity, M. Mary Clare draws on sources from the Bible through the Church Fathers, to Basil Hume. She starts at the beginning with why one should pray and ends with the contemplative prayer (Centering Prayer) tradition. And she offers concise answers to the most frequently asked questions: when should I pray? How can I pray better? How do I know I am advancing in prayer? What do I do about distractions?

Father Basil Pennington, OCSO, states in the Foreword:

"Mother Mary Clare writes with the sure hand of a well-experienced spiritual mother. Simple, straight clear teaching on prayer is what is sought today as it was in the early days of the Church. And it is found here... There is a simplicity and sharpness in Mother's teaching. There is also depth and beauty; an insight that will resonate with what is deepest in us as human beings and Christians."

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