Biblical Way of Praying the Mass Archives

BWPM 3 – A Heart Filled with Praise – A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass w/ Fr. Timothy Gallagher, O.M.V. Podcast

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Episode 3 – A Heart Filled with Praise- A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass with Fr. Timothy Gallagher O.M.V.

We continue our conversation with Fr. Gallagher discussing the encouragements given by Venerable Bruno Lanteri in regards to a biblical way of praying the Mass. In this episode, Fr. Gallagher reflects on the Gloria

Glory to God in the highest (raise your heart on high; let it express joyful praise of God),

and on earth peace to people of good will (ask for God’s peace on this troubled earth).

We praise you (pause simply to recognize God’s love and goodness),

we bless you (pronounce his name with love and reverence; bless him for his works of love),

we adore you (lift your heart in reverent and joyful adoration of his love, his goodness),

we glorify you (express your love for God, glorify him with your heart, your words, your life),

we give you thanks for your great glory (thank him for his saving work in the world and in your life),

Lord God, heavenly King (welcome him with love as Lord, as King in your life),

O God, almighty Father (open your heart to the love and power of our heavenly Father),

Lord Jesus Christ, Only Begotten Son (turn now to Jesus, our Lord, the beloved Son in whom the Father takes delight),

Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father (“Behold, the Lamb of God” [John 1:36]: see the divine Lamb; behold him; draw near to him with confidence),

you take away the sins of the world, have mercy on us (ask with confidence for the mercy that takes away sin);

you take away the sins of the world, receive our prayer (“Everyone who asks, receives” [Matt. 7:8]; present your prayer with trust in his promise);

you are seated at the right hand of the Father, have mercy on us (“Therefore he is always able to save those who approach God through him, since he lives forever to make intercession for them” [Heb. 7:25]; ponder these words).

For you alone are the Holy one (acknowledge the unique holiness, goodness, and love of Jesus),

you alone are the Lord (“At the name of Jesus every knee should bend . . . and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord” [Phil. 2:10–11]: profess him as the Lord of your life.),

you alone are the Most High (“you alone”: give him this special, unequalled place in your life, in your heart.),

Jesus Christ (the Son, our Savior), with the Holy Spirit (the Paraclete, the Advocate, the Consoler), in the glory of God the Father (our loving Father in heaven). Amen.

Gallagher, Fr. Timothy; Gallagher, Fr Timothy . A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass: The Eucharistic Wisdom of Venerable Bruno Lanteri (pp. 39-40). EWTN Publishing Inc.. Kindle Edition.

For more episodes in the A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass with Fr. Timothy Gallagher podcast series, visit here

You can find A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass here

Father Timothy M. Gallagher, O.M.V., was ordained in 1979 as a member of the Oblates of the Virgin Mary, a religious community dedicated to retreats and spiritual formation according to the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius. Fr. Gallagher is featured on the EWTN series “Living the Discerning Life: The Spiritual Teachings of St. Ignatius of Loyola.” For more information on how to obtain copies of Fr. Gallaghers’s various books and audio, which are available for purchase, please visit his website: frtimothygallagher.org

For other Discerning Hearts Fr. Timothy Gallagher Podcasts visit here

BWPM 2 – O God, Be Merciful – A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass w/ Fr. Timothy Gallagher, O.M.V. Podcast

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Episode 2 – O God, Be Merciful – A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass with Fr. Timothy Gallagher O.M.V.

Take a moment now to ponder the tax collector’s prayer (Luke 18:9–14). Consider his heart: his sincerity, his openness, his contrition, his desire to change, and his trust in God’s mercy. Pray for a heart like his. Then, with his same sentiments, slowly pray these words:

I confess to almighty God (the God whose infinite love and mercy we know)
and to you, my brothers and sisters (before whom also we accept our responsibility),
that I have greatly sinned (humble recognition, like the tax collector),
in my thoughts and in my words (how I have thought of others and how I have spoken),
in what I have done and in what I have failed to do (my actions and my omissions),
through my fault, through my fault (I accept my responsibility), through my most grievous fault (and accept it again with a humble heart);
therefore I ask blessed Mary ever-Virgin (my heart lifts as I ponder her tender love),
all the Angels and Saints (my heart lifts further as I contemplate the multitude of angels and saints who love me),
and you, my brothers and sisters (I ask this, too, of those present here with me),
to pray for me to the Lord our God (with confidence, I ask for the prayers of all these). * * *

Now, with a heart like the tax collector’s, pray the following words. Pause briefly at each invocation. The biblical verse cited may assist this meditation. As you pray, feel the healing grace of the God who is “nothing but mercy and love” (Saint Thérèse): Lord, have mercy.

(“Lord, you are good and forgiving, most loving to all who call on you” [Ps. 86:5].)
Lord, have mercy. (“With the Lord is mercy, with him is plenteous redemption” [Ps 130:7].)
Christ, have mercy. (A prayer to Jesus from the heart: “Lord, if you wish, you can make me clean” [Matt. 8:2].)

Christ, have mercy. (Again, from the heart: “Jesus, Son of David, have pity on me” [Mark 10:47].)
Lord, have mercy. (“God, who is rich in mercy . . . brought us to life with Christ” [Eph. 2:4–5].
Our God is rich in mercy.) Lord, have mercy. (“Let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy” [Heb. 4:16].)

Pray these invocations in this way, with these sentiments, when you are at Mass.

Gallagher, Fr. Timothy; Gallagher, Fr Timothy . A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass: The Eucharistic Wisdom of Venerable Bruno Lanteri (pp. 34-35). EWTN Publishing Inc.. Kindle Edition.

For more episodes in the A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass with Fr. Timothy Gallagher podcast series, visit here

You can find A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass here

For other Discerning Hearts Fr. Timothy Gallagher Podcasts visit here

BWPM 1 – Preparing Our Hearts for Mass – A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass w/ Fr. Timothy Gallagher, O.M.V. Podcast

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Episode 1 – Preparing Our Hearts for Mass – A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass with Fr. Timothy Gallagher O.M.V.

We begin our conversation with Fr. Gallagher discussing the encouragements given by Venerable Bruno Lanteri to enter into a prayerful experience of participating at the mass by meditating on passages from Sacred Scripture and allowing them to dwell in our hearts.

When we pray in words or gestures, the Catechism of the Catholic Church affirms, it is the whole person who prays (CCC 2562). Yet, the Catechism continues, “in naming the source of prayer, Scripture sometimes speaks of the soul or the spirit, but most often of the heart (more than a thousand times). According to Scripture, it is the heart that prays” (2562). The emphasis is in the original.

A rich description of the heart follows:
“The heart is the dwelling-place where I am and where I live.”
“According to the Semitic or Biblical expression, the heart is the place ‘to which I withdraw.’ ”
“The heart is our hidden center, beyond the grasp of our reason and of others.”
“Only the Spirit of God can fathom the human heart and know it fully.”
“The heart is the place of decision, deeper than our psychic drives.”
“It is the place of truth, where we choose life or death.”
“It is the place of encounter, because as image of God we live in relation.”
“It is the place of covenant.” (CCC 2563)

How, then, can we pray the supreme prayer, the Mass, from the heart, from, with, and in this interior place to which we withdraw and in which we dwell, this hidden center of our being, this place of decision, of truth, of encounter, and of covenant?

Gallagher, Fr. Timothy; Gallagher, Fr Timothy. A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass: The Eucharistic Wisdom of Venerable Bruno Lanteri (pp. 24-25). EWTN Publishing Inc.. Kindle Edition.

We then explore how we prepare ourselves concretely before entering the church.

Venerable Bruno proposes an exercise of prayer. Could you pause for a moment to do this now as you read? Choose a saint whom you love and with whose life you are familiar. See this saint begin his or her day. Watch him or her arrange matters to make time for Mass. Leave home with this saint, accompany him or her to church, enter, and prepare for Mass with this saint. Ask him or her: What made you so desire Mass? What brought you to church? What did you seek? What did you find? Why did you go so often?

Ask for the same dispositions as you prepare for Mass.

O God, you are my God — it is you I seek!
For you my body yearns; for you my soul thirsts,
In a land parched, lifeless, and without water.
I look to you in the sanctuary to see your power and glory. (Ps 63:1–2)

A Mass prepared with this desire will be prayed with faith, love, and spiritual fruit.

Gallagher, Fr. Timothy; A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass: The Eucharistic Wisdom of Venerable Bruno Lanteri (pp. 30-31). EWTN Publishing Inc.. Kindle Edition.

For more episodes in the A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass with Fr. Timothy Gallagher podcast series, visit here

You can find A Biblical Way of Praying the Mass here