“We’re really good at saying prayers, we’re not so good at praying,” Dominican Father Alex Vickers says. Source: The Catholic Leader.
The parish priest of Carina in Brisbane, who recently celebrated 40 years since his ordination, said people needed to talk to God more.
“We say prayers, the Rosary, the Memorare, the Divine Mercy (Chaplet) – all good things, don’t get me wrong. We’re really good at doing that,” he said.
“But how good are we at being in conversation with God? “Because that’s what prayer is.”
Fr Vickers said it was not about telling God how good He was, He already knew that.
“He wants me, my heart,” he said. “Why don’t we just sit in front of the Lord and just be present to him? That’s when he can speak.”
Fr Vickers said Mass and adoration went hand-in-hand.
“You need to go to Mass, receive the body of Christ and then spend time in adoration before him,” he said.
Forty years ago, the Church used to be full on Saturdays and Sundays. Now at most 200 people attended Mass, in a space that could hold 700, he said.
“I could sit there and cry and wring my hands, but God’s in charge of this, God will bring them,” he said.
Fr Vickers said the Church needed to better facilitate the social connection that people were yearning for. But people also needed to make the effort.
“Where’s your investment, what are you giving to this community? It’s only when you’re doing that, that you can begin to receive,” he said.
Fr Vickers said the best way to reach people was to spend time with them where they were – and he had spent many afternoons in home kitchens.
“I’d stand in the kitchen peeling the potatoes. And that’s where the conversations took place, that’s where the real stories come, where the real pain (and joy) is revealed,” he said.
The idea of blending prayer and community is what drew Fr Vickers to the Dominican Order.
He was inspired by their ability to preach and the idea of community and study.
“We pray in community, we draw on the monastic tradition but we’re not monks, we’re friars,” he said.
FULL STORY
What is prayer? Fr Alex Vickers reflects on 40 years as a Dominican friar (By Kymberlee Gomes, The Catholic Leader)
