Lord, Teach Us to Pray: Regnum Christi Prayer Book

(2:41) - What is a prayerful life?

(5:38) - How is "Lord, Teach Us to Pray" structured?

(6:41) - How can I benefit most from "Lord Teach Us to Pray"?

Today, together with the first disciples, we address this petition to the Master: “Lord, teach us to pray” (Lk 11:1). Jesus answers by teaching us the Lord’s Prayer and tells us the parable of the persistent friend. He shows us what to pray for and invites us to pray insistently, in season and out of season: “Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks the door will be opened” (Lk 11:9-10). He has written in our hearts the desire to pray, to pray better, to make our life a prayer, a liturgy; to pray always (Lk 18:1-8), not in the sense of reciting prayers at every moment, but in the sense of always being attentive to the Holy Spirit, in the presence of God, so that all our activities become a response to his will, an offering to our Lord.

Praying in the school of Jesus, in the Church, is the way to meet the Lord every day, as he constantly walks and rests at our side. Jesus, the fount that quenches our thirst, awaits us by the well at the hottest and driest hour of the day to say, “Give me a drink.” He thirsts for us and we thirst for God, even if we do not know it: “Everyone who drinks of this water will thirst again; but whoever drinks of the water that I give him will never thirst, for the water that I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life” (Jn 4:13-14).

What you have in your hands, Lord, Teach Us to Pray, is a path of initiation. It is an introduction to the life of prayer, so that the lay members of Regnum Christi may learn to pray by praying, as part of the Mystical Body of Christ, the Church,  in the style of Regnum Christi. When we pray, we unite ourselves to the prayer of Christ, to his Person and to his Body – the Church – to address the Father in communion with the Holy Spirit. Common prayers and guidelines help us experience communion with the Church and Regnum Christi even when we pray alone, and facilitate times of community prayer.

(1:08) - The Eucharist

(3:13) - Preparation for the Eucharist

(4:12) - Celebration of the Eucharist

(6:48) - Prayers in the Presence of the Eucharist

Sunday is the center of the Church’s life. It is the first day of the week, the memorial of the first day of creation. It is also the eighth day, when the Sabbath finds its fulfillment and culmination in Christ’s Resurrection. Chronological time, in which death comes for all that are born, intersects with transfigured time, which participates in the eternal. Sunday marks the beginning of a new time and space: life in the Kingdom.

On Sunday, we practice how to live each day of the year in a holy way. It is a day of celebration and rest; a family, cultural, and social day; a liturgical day and a day of prayer par excellence. The Church prescribes the obligatory participation of the faithful in the Sunday Liturgy, although she also strongly encourages participation in the Eucharist more frequently, even daily, as a privileged means for Christ to be all in all.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

“Day unto day pours forth speech; night unto night whispers knowledge” (Ps 19:3). God always speaks to us and invites us to converse with him and offer him everything that we undergo. This makes the day – and the night – a constant prayer.

As we begin our day, we lift our eyes with a watchful heart (cf. Ps 57:9), attentive to the Lord who comes to meet us in daily life, in every circumstance, amid the cares of this life (cf. Mt 6:34). We thank him for the gift of a new day and offer our work to the Lord.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

Offering our works is a sign of offering our life. It is about becoming an offering ourselves. We propose here three vocal prayers to God and one to the Blessed Mother. We begin them with the sign of the cross to place ourselves in the presence of the Lord. You may find it helpful to incorporate a personal prayer. You can substitute the Lauds of the Liturgy of the Hours for the prayers of the morning offering. In any case, we encourage you to keep the Prayer to Jesus Christ, common to all members of Regnum Christi.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

Meditation or “mental prayer” facilitates an intimate and personal dialogue with God. Like Jesus, we need to pray, speaking freely and listening to our Father. We do so as sons and daughters in the Son, with the Holy Spirit who comes to the aid of our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we ought (cf. Rom 8:26).

The Word of God must be present in our prayer, either as subject matter for meditation or as part of our conversations with the Lord. Let us recall how the disciples of Emmaus prayed and how their hearts burned within as they listened to the Lord: for Jesus led them to ponder their troubles and discover in the Scriptures the interpretive key for their life (Lk 24:13-35).

It is not enough to reflect and contemplate. Meditation is an attentive and loving dialogue with God. In order to share this intimacy, we must learn to listen to God in the silence of our soul, and to confide in him in colloquies and conversation full of faith and love. It is during these intimate conversations when, under the light and power of the Holy Spirit, our will conforms to the will of God and the decisions that guide our life emerge.

This prayer begins with the sign of the cross and an invocation to the Holy Spirit; it continues with preparatory acts to help us enter into communion with God, to share the same feelings as Jesus when he prayed. At the end of the prayer, we thank the Lord for having spent this time with him and for the fruits we have received, which are always greater than what we perceive. Finally, we ask for his grace to bring to others what he has given us.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

(0:52) - Angelus

(3:23) - Regina Caeli

Mary accompanies us all day long with her quiet, motherly presence. We direct our prayer to her at certain times of the day, particularly by praying the Angelus or the Regina Cæliand the Rosary.

The Angelus and Regina Cæliare like a small liturgy of the hours that the Church recommends for those who do not have time to interrupt their activities. For a few minutes, usually at noon, we remember with Mary some mysteries of Christ’s life.

The Angelus is prayed all year round, except during the Easter season.

The Regina Cæli is prayed during the Easter Season (from Easter Sunday until noon on the Saturday following Pentecost).

In Regnum Christi, we traditionally entrust ourselves to our Guardian Angel at the end of the Angelus or Regina Caeli.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

(1:13) - Praying the Rosary in a Group

(2:58) - The Mysteries

(8:18) - Hail Holy Queen and the Litany to the Blessed Virgin Mary

(13:11) - Rosary in Private

Reciting the Rosary is traditionally a meditative prayer. Begun by western Christianity, it corresponds in some way to the prayer of the heart or the Jesus Prayer, typical of eastern Christianity. Regnum Christi invites members to pray at least one mystery of the Rosary every day, either in a group or in private.

The Rosary is a time for Mary to step into our lives, gifting us her consolation, example, and intercession. This prayer brings peace to the soul, instills faith, and renews trust.

Intertwined among the Our Fathers, the Hail Marys and the Glory Bes run the mysteries of Christ’s life, death, passion, and resurrection as seen through the eyes of the Virgin Mary. In this way, we allow the Mother of God to be the one to form within us the very sentiments of the Heart of her Son. If while praying the Rosary we become distracted, simply return to the prayer confidently to recover our place and fervor, remembering the mysteries celebrated and the persons for whom we are praying.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

The Annunciation. The Visitation. The Nativity. The Presentation in the Temple. The Finding in the Temple.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

The Agony in the Garden. The Scourging at the Pillar. The Crowning with Thorns. The Carrying of the Cross. The Crucifixion and Death.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

The Resurrection. The Ascension. The Descent of the Holy Spirit. The Assumption. The Coronation of Mary.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

The Baptism of Christ in the Jordan. The Wedding Feast at Cana. Jesus’ Proclamation of the Coming of the Kingdom of God. The Transfiguration. The Institution of the Eucharist.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

It is good to accompany Christ in the Eucharist and to converse spontaneously with him. In Regnum Christi, we have the tradition of visiting the Eucharist upon arriving at a place where the Blessed Sacrament is present. When it is not possible to visit Jesus Christ present in the Eucharist, a spiritual communion can be made by reciting this or a similar formula:

Spiritual Communion

My Jesus, I believe you are present in the Most Blessed Sacrament. I love you above all things, and I desire to receive you into my soul. Since I cannot at this moment receive you sacramentally, come at least spiritually into my heart. I embrace you as if you were already there and unite myself wholly to you. Never permit me to be separated from you. Amen.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

The evening is reminiscent of the sunset of life and marks the end of the day. It is time to review the day, to give thanks to God and to place in his merciful hands everything that has happened (cf. Ps 32). To this we dedicate our evening prayers.

Sleep and wakefulness, work and leisure, friends and family… everything belongs to God, an occasion to recognize his presence, to proclaim it and to live in the Kingdom.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

The Church suggests a specific practice or devotion for every day of the week to remind us that ordinary time is already filled with the supernatural life. Sunday is the first day of the week, the day dedicated to the Most Holy Trinity. Monday is dedicated to the Holy Spirit, to implore his help as we begin the labors of the week. On Monday we also pray for the holy souls in Purgatory. Tuesday turns our attention to the angels, and especially our Guardian Angel. Wednesday is devoted to St. Joseph, a holy death, and the martyrs. Thursday is traditionally reserved for special devotion to the Eucharist, both in the Body of Christ, exalted sacramentally on the altar, and in the Holy Hour, accompanying the Lord in Gethsemane. On Friday we remember the Passion of our Lord Jesus through penance and abstinence. Finally, on Saturday we turn our gaze and our hearts to our Blessed Mother.

In Regnum Christi, we have the following traditions: coming together as a team once a week for the Encounter with Christ; praying a Holy Hour or adoration before the Blessed Sacrament on Thursday evening; practicing penance every Friday, except on feast days (the Episcopal Conference of each country will give specific guidelines); and dedicating a special moment to the Blessed Virgin on the first Saturday of each month.

These liturgical and prayerful rhythms of each day of the week allow us to transfigure our weekly activities as we look forward in hope to the Kingdom. Ordinary joys become the joys of the Kingdom; ordinary life, life in the Kingdom.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

“For where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them” (Mt 18:20). In Regnum Christi, the Encounter with Christ is an activity where teams or communities prayerfully read the Word of God and discern the reality around them in order to pray together, obtain lights from the Holy Spirit, see life from the eyes of God, and respond to his call to love in a specific apostolic commitment. In this way, the team, gathered by the Lord, lives a life of communal prayer where Christ forms them and sends them out to the mission that they embrace together with God to make his Kingdom present in the hearts of all people and of society.

“The Encounter with Christ is the center of team life. In it, the lay members, as a community of faith, by the light of God’s Word, examine their Christian life, discern what the Lord expects of them in evangelizing the reality of the world they live in, encourage each other in their following of Christ, and enkindle their apostolic zeal” (RL 15).

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

It is the tradition of the Church to dedicate at least one hour a week, on Thursday evenings, to a personal or communal encounter before Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament. Sometimes the context of this Holy Hour is the request of Jesus in Gethsemane: “My soul is sorrowful to the point of death; remain here and watch with me” (Mt 26:38). At other times, Eucharistic adoration celebrates the incarnation of the Word and his living presence among us today in the Eucharist.

Regnum Christi members seek to share weekly a face-to-face encounter with Jesus in the Eucharist in a Holy Hour. The priest exposes the Blessed Sacrament in order to dedicate at least an hour of adoration to him and thus grow closer to him in silence and listening, in an intimate and prolonged dialogue, without haste and without an agenda. It is a singular occasion to know Jesus better and to love him more deeply, to atone for our sins, to thank him for his witness, to offer him our life for the sake of his Kingdom and to ask him for the needs of the Church, of our family and for our own.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

(1:43) - Advent and Christmas

(3:47) - Lent, Holy Week, and Easter

The rhythms of the day and week gradually forge a prayerful life. The year repeats this cycle, with greater breadth and depth. Every year nature is reborn in the spring and reaches maturity in summer, but, like fallen nature, declines in autumn and dies in the winter. These are also the stages of human life on earth: birth and youth, maturity, old age, and death.

Every liturgical cycle contains these same steps. The birth to new life is announced by Advent and Christmas; the weight of sin and death by Lent. The liturgical cycle breaks the chains of evil in the Paschal Triduum, which celebrates the Passion, Death, and Resurrection of Jesus, who breaks the chains of sin and death and introduces us to a new life. Between these two intense periods of celebration are the two moments of Ordinary Time. The liturgical year concludes with the Solemnity of Christ the King, which announces the definitive coming of Christ and his final victory over evil, sin, and death. When he comes, God will be all in all (cf. 1 Cor 15:25-28).

The living of the liturgical year allows us to mature in our encounter with the living Christ who walked among us. With him, year after year, we rediscover and relive Salvation history once again, step by step.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

The Stations of the Cross, or Via Crucis, mark 14 moments of Jesus’ road to Calvary. It is usually walked in groups, especially on Good Friday and on the other Fridays of Lent, although it can be done throughout the year. Meditating on it allows us to recreate in space and time, in our minds and hearts, the supreme moments of Christ’s self-giving for our redemption, fostering intimate and cordial attitudes of heartfelt compunction, trust, gratitude, generosity and identification with Christ.

There are different prayers that can help us meditate on each one of these moments. Here we offer a biblical Stations of the Cross, proposed by John Paul II on Good Friday, 1991, but you can look for other popular ones by different saints and popes.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

Regnum Christi celebrates with special devotion the Sacred Heart of Jesus and the Solemnity of Christ the King. Jesus is both “Friend and Lord,” “Our King,” and close and affectionate companion, with whom we are united by a “personal, real, passionate and faithful love” (cf. SRCF 12, 14, 58). Jesus is “a man of interior life, a lover of prayer,” and at the same time, he is dedicated to the task of “proclaiming the Kingdom and bringing the light of the Gospel to the whole world,” “going out to meet the material and spiritual needs” of each person. Christ “takes up the spiritual combat, the persevering and trusting struggle (in his Father) in the face of the reality of evil and sin,” “undertakes his mission with a magnanimous heart, enthusiasm, and creativity,” is interested in “the most pressing needs of the world”, “faces with strength and courage the challenges” and difficulties, “boldly seizes every opportunity to proclaim love” and always “gives the best of himself” (cf. SRCF 10, 13, 17, 20).

Jesus’ longing for the Kingdom and his love for mankind are two sides of the same coin, for Christ is the Kingdom in person. He, who desires to reign in our hearts and in society, invites us to a continuous and progressive transformation in him. Feeling his love for us and loving as he loves us, “to the end,” transfigures our attitude and impels us toward “universal and thoughtful self-giving to our neighbor, creative and selfless service, treating people with kindness and simplicity, being merciful with people’s weaknesses; speaking well of others; forgiveness and reconciliation” (cf. SRCF 13, 14, 17, 20, 23).

The Mass of Christ the King is an occasion for all the vocations of a locality or territory to gather. It is usually preceded or followed by the rite of association of the lay faithful and is an opportunity for members of all vocations to renew their commitment to Regnum Christi. Ideally, the whole day is a time of community celebration to give thanks to God and respond to his call.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

(0:40) - Rite of Renewal

(2:37) - Spiritual Exercises

Lay members of Regnum Christi ordinarily renew our association once a year, at the conclusion of the Eucharistic celebration of the Solemnity of Christ the King, accompanied by members of all vocations. However, the Rite of Renewal can be used frequently, individually or in teams, to ask God for the grace to identify ourselves more with the way of holiness that he proposes to us in Regnum Christi. Here we follow the instructions in the Devotional Renewal of the Commitments of Association to the Regnum Christi Federation.

The spiritual exercises are an annual opportunity Regnum Christi offers us to leave the world for three or eight days and give ourselves fully to the company of the Lord. They represent a stop on the journey to attend to the One Who walks with us, to listen to him, to discern his will, to be reconciled in his sight and to revive the fire of his love that impels us to give ourselves to others.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

(1:30) - Conscience Examen

(2:22) - Rite of Penance

“For even if we sin, we are yours, and know your might” (Wis 15:2). Recognizing our own sin or guilt is to trust in the merciful love of God, to open ourselves to receive his forgiveness, to be free to the end. Frequent confession increases our self-knowledge, fosters humility, helps to uproot bad habits, increases delicacy of conscience, combats tepidity and laziness, strengthens the will, renews the grace of baptism, and leads us to a more intimate identification with Jesus Christ. The sacrament of Reconciliation is a vital and renewing encounter with Christ and the Church.

Approach the sacrament and activate your faith in the sanctifying presence and action of Jesus Christ. Try to present your faults with order, brevity, propriety, clarity, and integrity. Accept the guidance of the confessor with a supernatural spirit, and try to complete the penance with a true spirit of reparation as soon as possible. Offer your daily work and jobs as satisfaction for your sins. Thank God for the gift of his forgiveness and his friendship with a life of greater fidelity to the mission entrusted to you.

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

Prayer to the Holy Spirit 

(0:34) - Prayer Before Travelling 

(1:03) - Prayer for the Deceased 

(1:34) - Before Meals 

(1:51) - After Meals 

(2:03) - Prayers of Thanksgiving

(2:50) - Prayer for the Grace of a Happy Death

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

Prayer for the Renewal of Regnum Christi 

(1:09) - Prayer for the Communion of Regnum Christi 

(2:15) - Apostle’s Prayer 

(2:59) - Lay Person’s Prayer

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

An Engaged Couple’s Prayer 

(1:12) - Spouses’ Prayer 

(2:02) - Wedding Anniversary Prayer 

(2:27) - Prayer for the Vocations of Children 

(3:18) - Prayer While Waiting for a Child 

(3:51) - Prayer for our Children 

(4:27) - Children’s Prayer

Prayer for the Sick 

(0:38) - Prayer for Those Who Suffer 

(1:39) - Prayer During the Difficulties of Life

Prayer to St. Michael the Archangel 

(0:29) - Prayer to Jesus Crucified 

(1:07) - Soul of Christ 

(1:50) - Prayer of Pope Clement XI 

(4:47) - Self-Dedication (Suscipe Prayer of St. Ignatius of Loyola) 

(5:21) - Prayer to Christ the King 

(6:04) - Prayers for the Pope 

(7:10) - Prayer for Vocations

Sign of the Cross

Our Father

Hail Mary

Hail Holy Queen

Glory Be

Thanksgiving

Conclusion of Prayers

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"

Sign of the Cross

Our Father

Hail Mary

Hail Holy Queen

Glory Be

Thanksgiving

Conclusion of Prayers

"Lord, Teach Us to Pray"