Just as physical exercise strengthens our bodies, spiritual exercise strengthens our faith. Personal prayer ideally flows from Sunday Mass and back toward it in a weekly cycle of prayer. Also, we can greatly enhance our experience of Mass if we are spiritually prepared each week. This comes when we read Sunday’s readings ahead of time, and make this part of our personal prayer. On the internet, there is a very useful website that can help you and your family or friends prepare each week for Sunday Mass: liturgy.slu.edu. On this site, you will find links to Sunday’s readings, prayers, spiritual reflections, and interesting explanations all based on those readings. There is also a section that helps you pray with the music of the Mass. The material is designed for ordinary Catholics of all levels of understanding – the people in the pews. Please consider spending a few minutes each week with this website as part of your personal prayer. The site is completely free of charge, sponsored by the Center for Liturgy at Saint Louis University.
