Praying the Wisdom

When we praise God, we proclaim His majesty to the world. But when we pray to God in private, we speak directly to His heart -- and that changes us! In Praying the Wisdom, Dr. James Papandrea invites you to discover an intimate form of prayer using words from Scripture and other holy writings that have been prayed by believers across the centuries of salvation history. This book -- a follow up to Dr. Papandrea's Praying the Psalms -- is, like Praying the Psalms, a companion volume to his popular work Praying Like the Early Church. It contains virtually all the prayers in the Bible other than the Psalms. Here he presents remarkable prayers from the Psalms of Solomon, the Odes of Solomon, and the Book of Jubilees -- important sacred and historical writings treasured in ancient Jewish and early Christian communities. He also offers powerful texts used by Jesus and the apostles, along with carefully selected prayers from early extrabiblical sources. All the prayers are freshly translated by Dr. Papandrea with deep attention to the original Hebrew, Greek (Septuagint), and Latin to help you pray in a way that brings you into closer communion with God by praying to Him instead of about Him. Along the way, you will learn: How to use "breathing prayer" to move from reading to contemplationHow to apply the Word of God to your own joys, sorrows, and needsHow to pray with Lectio Divina, using its four simple steps To help you pray with clarity of intention, the book includes a mood index for finding prayers that match your spiritual state, as well as thematic guides for preparing for the sacraments, entering Eucharistic Adoration, and interceding for others. This enhanced treasury of ancient texts is a practical guide for anyone longing for deeper, richer, more personal prayer. Dr. Papandrea's new translation of these profound prayers, coupled with the breathing prayer method, will help you enter fully into the passages so that your conversation with God truly becomes adoration.