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World at Prayer blog
Reflections of Family and Faith
"The family that prays together stays together." - Venerable Patrick Peyton
Holy lives of inspiration | Why pray?
After receiving my First Holy Communion, I was absolutely certain about one thing: I wanted to be an altar server. Not just any altar server, this was the Syro-Malabar rite, where serving at the altar isn’t just about lighting candles, ringing bells and wearing a cassock. No. It’s a full-on liturgical performance. We chant responses, recite prayers loudly, and lead the congregation through a liturgy that’s as beautiful as it is long. The altar server is also a lector, a cantor, a leader of the people in prayer. They lead chants, offer liturgical exhortations, lead penitential rites and sometimes feel like junior deacons-in-training!
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Holy lives of inspiration | Why pray?
Today, we celebrate the memorial of St. Christopher Magallanes and his fellow martyr companions. St. Christopher was born in Mexico, and after ordination to the priesthood worked with the poor and indigenous people, most notably founding schools and forming agrarian cooperatives. He lived in a time when the Mexican government was strongly anti-Catholic and closed all seminaries. He repeatedly sought to have them reopened. For his good works, he was falsely charged with promoting armed rebellion and was arrested on his way to celebrate Mass on this date in 1927. Four days later, he was executed along with 21 other diocesan priests and three laymen. St. Christopher is a patron saint of Mexico and a symbol of resistance against religious oppression. He is an example of being willing to give courageous witness to Christ despite worldly challenges.
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Brief and contemporary inspiration focused on hope and family prayer will be delivered to your inbox! Articles include live video, written word, and links to resources that will lead you and your family deeper into faith.
Holy lives of inspiration | Why pray?
At the Last Supper, Jesus says something astonishing: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give it to you.” In the face of betrayal and death, Jesus offers peace—not as a farewell, but as a gift. This peace isn’t emotional calm or worldly comfort. It is, as the Navarre Commentary says, a divine assurance rooted in reconciliation with God and with one another—a fruit of the Holy Spirit. It is serenity of mind, simplicity of heart, and union in charity.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Why pray?
My cousin and I went searching for a waterfall during a hike. We heard it was a few miles inside the forest, and we nearly got lost looking for it. Our cell phones had no signal, the trail marks vanished, and panic set in until we spotted a weathered wooden signpost half-buried in leaves. Its arrow pointed decisively toward a river, and scribbled on it were the words, “Keep going. The view is worth it.” That signpost didn’t care if we thanked it, admired its craftsmanship, or took a selfie with it. It existed for one purpose: to point beyond itself to something greater. This mirrors the story of Paul and Barnabas in Lystra. After healing a paralyzed man, the crowd erupted, convinced the Greek gods Zeus and Hermes had descended. But the apostles didn’t bask in the adoration. They tore their clothes in distress, crying, “Why are you doing this? We’re just signposts, ordinary humans pointing you to the living God!” (Acts 14:15). The people there weren’t evil; they were spiritually disoriented. Their myths told of gods visiting in disguise, so they defaulted to familiar explanations. Yet Paul and Barnabas knew accepting worship wouldn’t just be arrogant, it would obscure their path to God. Instead, they used their moment of fame to redirect glory: “Turn from these empty things to the living God!”
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Growing up, I had a neighbor who was a carpenter. Nothing fancy—small town jobs: fixing sagging doors, building dining tables, mending leaking roofs patched more times than you could count. His hands were rough like tree bark, his knees creaked like old floorboards. No one gave him awards. No crowds gathered to watch him work. But there was a quiet pride about him—the kind that comes not from money, the kind that comes not from fame, but from knowing you built something that mattered, something that would last. When I think of Saint Joseph, I think of that neighbor. And I realize something: holiness often wears work boots, not halos.
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Holy lives of inspiration | Learn more about our faith
Imagine walking into your kitchen early in the morning. You're still sleepy. The coffee hasn’t kicked in yet. And then, out of nowhere, your five-year-old grandson asks, “Grandma where do people go when they die?” You are taken aback, what to answer. That jolt — that shift from the ordinary to the eternal — is what this Gospel feels like Doing What is Rite In Jewish tradition, funeral rites were sacred and precise. The body of the deceased was wrapped in cloth, anointed with spices and quickly buried- usually before sunset. But the mourning for the dead person was not rushed. For three days, it was believed that the soul would travel close to the body. During this period when the tranquility of the earth allowed space for mourning and prayer, it was customary for family and close friends to visit the tomb, especially early in the morning.
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