Distractions in Prayer: And How to Deal With them

By Mr Methadius Iweanya Ofili

In a world filled with commotion, electronic/technological distractions, and worsened by riotous/noisy irreverent prayers, this book traces how the diabolical montanist sprirituality of the second century re-emerged between the 1800s and the early 1900s as a modern day new age 'Christianity', explaining how St Teresa of Avila's Interior Castle delt with it in her days. Our Lord admonished us in these words: 'love prayers now that there is enough grace, ' 'He called you to teach the world how to pray" and 'who will teach them the best way to pray?' According to the Angelic Doctor, St Thomas Aquinas, in addition to causing spiritual consolation at the time of praying, prayer has a twofold efficacy in respect of a future effect. First, it has efficacy in meriting and secondly, efficacy in impetrating. Like any virtuous act, prayer is efficacious in meriting, because it proceeds from charity as its root, the proper object of which is the eternal good that we merit to enjoy. Faith is necessary in reference to God to Whom we pray; that is, we need to believe that we can obtain from Him what we seek. Humility is necessary on the part of the person praying, because he recognizes his neediness and lowliness. Devotion too is necessary: but this belongs to religion, for it is its first act and a necessary condition of all its secondary acts. With regard to its impetrating efficacy, prayer derives this from the grace of God to Whom we pray, and Who inspires us to pray. One of the greatest challenges of prayer is distraction - willful and unwillful distractions. While willful distraction during prayer is sinful, unwillful distraction is not, yet, it can rob of some graces including refreshment of the mind or consolations. Its causes are several, but the doctors of the Church like St Teresa of Avila, St Augustine and St Thomas Aquinas provides some solutions including solitude, silence, recollection, mortification, concentration in prayer, meditation and contemplation, while learning to listen to the Lord, and striving to achieve union with Him in direct relationship. Both the ancient and neo-montanism alerts us to the distractions they cause, and the dangers of straying from the right path mapped out by the Lord and threaded by the Saints; the consequence of missing the true way, while sources of distractions and solutions are provided from the teachings of the doctors of the Church, Our Lord and Our Lady. It is particularly worrisome when these distractions are brought into the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, along with innumerable loss of graces, they cause. Chapters (1-5) include: The Importance & Fruits of Prayer; The Nature of Prayer; Mental Prayer & The Voices in Man; Merit, Impetration, Silence & Solitude and Dealing With Distractions & Avoiding Neo-Montanism.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: B0DW3S399X
• ISBN13: 9798309430932
• Release Date: February 2025
• Publisher: Independently Published
• Length: 186 Pages
• Weight: 0.56 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 6.0" x 9.0"