Advent presents a perfect opportunity to work towards deepening one’s spiritual life and growing closer to the Lord, says Catholic theologian and author Dr. Edward Sri.
“Advent is a time where we are preparing a space in my soul to welcome Jesus. I want to make a manger, a beautiful manger in my heart to welcome Jesus,” Sri shared with Our Sunday Visitor. “I may say no to certain things in this season, like wine or coffee, not just for the sheer fact of self-denial, (but) as a self-gift so that I can create a gift in my heart for Jesus this Christmas.”
Sri, along with his wife, Bethany, and Father Mark-Mary Ames of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, recently wrote “The Pocket Guide to Prayer,” a new book that seeks to help all Catholics take the next step in their journey to God.
“This book is for every Catholic,” Sri said. “For people who already have a daily prayer life, this is a guide that can help them go deeper. For those who know they should pray but haven’t developed a habit, this is a book that really helps them build that consistency in a daily prayer life.”
Published by Ascension Press, “The Pocket Guide to Prayer” features a variety of meditations, reflections and essays to help bolster one’s prayer life and provide the structure to develop a habit of prayer.
“We wanted to put together something that would be a great treasure box of all of the spiritual gems the Church offers us in terms of encountering Jesus in prayer,” Sri said. “It has everything from ways to pray devotions, the history of prayer, the wisdom of the saints, and, most of all, sharing the many struggles that every Christian has in (his or her) prayer life.”
Make time to be with the Lord
The book includes sections on prayer within the Church’s different liturgical seasons, including Advent. Sri says that the weeks before Christmas are an ideal time to add more prayer to one’s routine.
“If somebody is not praying every day, maybe that’s (his) Advent devotion: taking time every day for quiet time and prayer. Maybe I’m already praying every day, but I’m going to add on five minutes of extra time just sitting in silence with the Lord,” Sri said. “Or maybe I will pray the Rosary or pray lectio divina every day. That would be a great gift — to be like Mary, keeping and pondering these things that the Lord shares with us in prayer in our hearts in this season.”
Sri encouraged meditating on the Scriptures during Advent, particularly the infancy narratives. One passage that Sri frequently prays with is Luke 1:39, which states that Mary went in haste to visit her cousin Elizabeth.
“In our day and age, everyone’s running in haste, especially in this Advent season. They’re running in haste to the mall, to the post office, around the house to get things cleaned up and to to cook all these things,” Sri said. “This is all fine, but are we running in haste after the most important things? Mary was running in haste to praise God and to thank him, to spend time in prayer with him. Are we running in haste to God this season?”
Sri suggested that we should ask ourselves whether we are giving God the time that he deserves in the hustle and bustle of the holiday season.
“There is nothing wrong with doing all the Christmas parties, the baking, cooking and cleaning and shopping for gifts,” Sri said. “But the bigger question is, how much is that preoccupying my heart compared to time with prayer and time with the people in my life?”
Advent is a chance to grow deeper in prayer and establish a routine. A daily prayer routine, Sri says, has helped him profusely in his life and his marriage as it provides him time with God to pause and reflect.
“My wife, every day, takes 30 minutes a day for quiet time in prayer — and then I’m also taking time every day in prayer. That deliberate, individual prayer time has been the greatest grace for our marriage. … Marriage and family life are hard enough on a natural level. You need God’s help,” Sri said. “The number one place that he’ll come to you, apart from the sacraments of course, is in your daily prayer.”
