Lesson #3
Prayer & the Spiritual Life
Adult Confirmation:
Immediate Preparation
(Spring 2014)
Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston
Opening Prayer
(1 Samuel 3:1-10)
Engage/Abordar
In your journal, quickly answer these
questions:
 When do you pray?
 Where do you pray?
 How do you pray?
 Why do you pray?
Explore/Investigar:
 What is prayer?
 What is spirituality?
Essential Question(s)
…for this lesson and for lifelong faith formation:
• How does prayer deepen our love for and
relationship with Jesus?
• What is the relationship between prayer and
the Holy Spirit?
Explain/Explicar
Five Basic Ways of Praying
1. Adoration
2. Petition
3. Intercession
4. Thanksgiving
5. Praise
Explain/Explicar
Explain/Explicar
Activity #2:
“Prayer in Communion with Mary”
(USCCA, pp470-472)
Connect/Conectar…
…to the Eucharistic liturgy/the Mass:
How is Sunday Mass not only the
sacrament of sacraments, but also the ultimate
prayer experience for Catholics…the rationale
for our obligation to attend Mass on Sundays?
…to the Rite of Confirmation: Select a saint’s
name and ask that saint to intercede for you.
Extend & Enrich/
Extension y Enriquecimiento
Expressions of Prayer
(USCCA, pp. 473-473)
1. Vocal Prayer
2. Meditative Prayer
3. Contemplative Prayer
Evaluate/Evaluar
Exit Slip:
Select ONE of the following quotes and
explain what it means to you personally; be
sure to reference, in some way, the Holy
Spirit:
“Pray in order to believe; believe in order to
pray.”
“Pray without ceasing.” [1 Thessalonians 5:17]
Self-Reflect/
Autorreflexion
• What new ah-ha do you now have about the
Holy Spirit? About prayer?
• In what way could your participation in the
Sunday Eucharist strengthen your commitment
to daily prayer?
• What do prayer and spirituality say about our
parish and our universal Church?
• What new insights about Jesus and the Paschal
Mystery (Suffering, Death, Resurrection & Ascension)
do you now have?
Personal Commitment
to Action/ Compromiso
Personal a la Acción
After today’s lesson, how can you
renew a spirit of prayer in your
home, with your family members
and children? How will you better
prepare yourself for celebrating the
Sacrament of Confirmation?
Further Reading/Lecturas
Adicionales
• United States Catholic Catechism for Adults,
Chapter 35, pp. 461-480.
• Compendium: Catechism of the Catholic
Church, #535 - #577.
• Catechism of the Catholic Church, Part IV,
“Christian Prayer,” #2558 - #2758.
For our next lesson [#4],
“Moral Life & the Sacrament of
Reconciliation/Penance,”…
Read USCCA:
 “Life in Christ,” Chapters 23-24, pp.
307-338;
“Sacrament of Penance &
Reconciliation: God is Rich in
Mercy,” Chapter 18, pp. 233-247.
Closing Prayer
http://divineoffice.org