FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS ABOUT WEEK OF GUIDED PRAYER

 

Is this a bible study? 

No. This is not a Bible study programme but you will learn to pray with Scriptures. Your prayer guide will suggest Scripture verses for you to pray with daily. 

​

Is this a stay-in retreat? 

No. This is a retreat in daily life - you go about your life as normal except that you set aside and agree on a specific time during the day to pray and to meet with your personal prayer guide throughout this Week of Guided Prayer. You do not need to take leave from work. 

​

Is this retreat conducted in a group? 

No. Each person meets personally with his/her prayer guide for the duration of the Week of Guided Prayer. What you share with your prayer guide is personal and confidential, and you may share as much or as little as you wish. 

​

What will be my commitment? 

Each day you are expected to pray for half an hour with the Scripture passage that you have been given before journaling your prayer experience. Then you meet with your personal prayer guide at an agreed specific time daily to share your prayer experiences. The duration of this meeting is approximately half an hour.

​

Do I have to pay a fee to participate?

This will depend on the Parish hosting the Week of Guided Prayer. We would normally just seek voluntary love offerings from participants (or ‘pilgrims’ as we call our participants). 

​

What is Ignatian Contemplation?

The Ignatian Contemplation prayer form was initiated by St Ignatius of Loyola in the sixteenth century. His retreatants, or pilgrims, used to meet with him each day to share their prayer experience and he would then give them another Scripture passage to pray for the following day.

 

What is Lectio Divina?

Lectio Divina (or Divine Reading) is an ancient form of prayer practised by early Christians who had gathered to hear the Word of God and then meditated on these Scripture passages to listen to God with their hearts. It was formalised by St. Benedict in the 6th century and Guigo II in the 12th century into a four-step process of reading, meditating, praying and resting.

 

Do I need to change the way I pray? 

No. However, during this Week of Guided Prayer, another way of praying – one that is rooted in Scripture is introduced to you.

 

What benefits have other pilgrims received from these forms of prayer? 

The most common feedback after a Week of Guided Prayer is how God speaks to them through the Scripture passages. Others have said that they have come closer to God and Scripture becomes relevant in their daily lives. Yet others have learned how to listen to God. Some others say that they have become more disciplined in prayer. Pilgrims have also found the support of their prayer guides very helpful.