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Religion

 

Religion is a virtue aligned with the cardinal virtue of Justice, and growing in the virtue of religion is about doing one's duty to God. Here are some examples of better habits you can exercise every day to grow in the virtue of religion:

 

Pray

• Pray the basic Catholic prayers: Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be, & Apostles' Creed.

• Pray the Morning Offering to start the day.

• Pray the Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love as an act of cooperation with God's grace through His gift of these virtues.

• Pray the Prayer to Acquire the Virtues, which was composed and recited by St. Thomas Aquinas.

• Pray the Liturgy of the Hours, which sanctifies each day with continuous prayer.

• Pray the Angelus to reflect on the Incarnation of Christ at the Annunciation.

• Pray the Rosary, which facilitates meditation on events in the life of Jesus and which St. Padre Pio called “the weapon against the evils of the world today.”

• Pray in silent contemplation with your internal gaze (if possible also your external gaze in Eucharistic Adoration) fixed on Jesus.

• Pray the Examen at the end of the day to review your efforts to grow in virtue that day.

• Pray anything on the Prayers page or any other prayer that draws you closer to God.

 

Read

• Read the Bible. The Daily Bible Readings and the Bible in a Year podcast are great ways to do this.

• Read the Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC), which summarizes the teachings of the Catholic faith.

• Read about the three major expressions of the life of prayer: vocal prayer, meditation, and contemplative prayer.

• ​Read about Indulgences, which enable Christians to obtain "a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins." (CCC 1471)

• Read papal encyclicals and other documents of the Catholic Church.

• Read the Summa Theologiae, which St. Thomas Aquinas wrote to summarize theology.

 

Worship

While worship isn't a habit that everyone can exercise daily, going to Confession monthly and Mass & Adoration weekly are critical to growing in the virtue of religion. Visit MassTimes.org to see times and locations near you.