Five Catholic Devotions Meme

Laura at Day By Day in Our World tagged me in this "five favorite Catholic devotions" meme. This is the first time I have been tagged for a meme (yes, I actually had to look up the definition to see what that means :)). It sounds like fun and I am happy to share!

Our favorite family devotion has become the scriptural rosary. It is a perfect fit our family. I loved praying the rosary with my now grown girls, and it never seemed like we had any trouble all participating and enjoying that time. Now that I have boys (my 3 youngest), I find the rosary seemed a bit long and tedious to them. For a while, we would pray one decade at a time- also a nice option, but now that my boys are older, I felt they needed something more. This little scriptural rosary book is the perfect fit- it adds just a little meat to our one decade, yet it is not too long. The introduction of a short scripture on the mystery before each Hail Mary also keeps my boys focused. I really love this devotion. I did a post at the beginning of the year explaining the book's format a bit more.

For myself, one of my favorite devotions is the novena to Our Lady of Good Remedy. This novena is a mom's friend- it is meaningful, yet short enough that a mom can easily find time to pray it no matter how crazy things are around the house. When I commit to praying this novena, I know I can do it- and, it is my favorite novena to pray for those I know who are in need of prayer.

I love this little book, The Wonders of the Holy Name by Fr. Paul O'Sullivan, O.P. From page 8 of the book- "The Name of Jesus is the shortest, the easiest and the most powerful of prayers. Everyone can say it, even in the midst of his daily work. God cannot refuse to hear it."

Going to mass during the week (not a devotion by definition, but most important to our faith)- this is by far the best thing I can do for myself and my family (and I don't do it nearly often enough). A great little book to inspire anyone in that goal is The Wonders of the Mass also by Fr. Paul O'Sullivan. This tiny little book is packed with inspiration, and if I wane on my motivation to get up in the morning for mass, reading this is all I need to do.

Finally, one more novena- "Joy in Suffering According to St. Therese of the Child Jesus". This novena is a bit more rigorous to me in its content and its length. From the back cover of the booklet- "Joy in Suffering shows how the Catholic Faith possesses the key to solid peace and joy even in the most painful situations of life".

It's hard to stop at 5, but I am sure others will have more than adequately covered many of the wonderful devotions I love. Thanks for letting me participate.

I am suppose to tag 5 other bloggers to keep this meme going. I don't know 5 Catholic bloggers (I guess I should work on that!) I am listing Jen from Forever, For Always, No Matter What..., but she is one busy lady and may not have time to participate. :)

Forever, For Always, No Matter What...


Definition of Catholic devotion from the web:
•Catholic devotions are prayer forms which are not part of the official public liturgy of the Church but are part of the popular spiritual practices of Catholics. Many are officially sanctioned by the Church as profitable for spiritual growth but not necessary for salvation. ...