Level of Practice of Prayer in Church

c. Form and level of performing the act of prayer

Sometimes Quite often

through

Frequent

Very often

Chart 4.5 : Level of prayer practice at church

For Catholics, prayer is a fundamental act expressing their faith and supplication to God. Believers pray everywhere, of which the church is the most solemn place; it is the place where large-scale prayer meetings are held and also the place where believers participate in many religious activities throughout their lives.

The results of the study on the form and level of prayer at church show that 100% of believers pray at church. The rate of prayer is so high because: according to the regulations and commandments of God, there are 3 things that believers must do for God, in which keeping the Sabbath is the third commandment. Believers are required to attend Sunday mass unless there are special reasons such as: illness, weather or really necessary things... If believers do not do it, they commit a sin, violating God's commandments. In Sunday mass, believers pray together with the celebrant (priest).

The research results also show that the rate of performing regular and very regular prayer is very high (94.4%), of which the very regular rate is 54.5%. Thus, it can be said that believers carry out God's commandments very seriously. In addition to attending Mass, in Catholic parishes, even when there is no priest to celebrate Mass, believers still gather to pray. Practicing common prayer is a community activity of believers. At prayer meetings, they can pray for themselves, pray for their families, pray for their own community or pray according to the wishes of the person who wants to pray.

Sometimes

Quite often

Regularly Very frequently

Chart 4.6: Level of practice of prayer at home

Along with praying at church, praying at home is also practiced very often by Catholics. The results of the study on praying at home show that 99% of the believers surveyed said they prayed at home, only 1% of believers said they did not pray at home. In Catholic families, praying at home is practiced regularly. Catholics can pray anywhere, anytime , in everything they do. Praying has gradually become a habit for each family and each individual. Believers with deep faith also always carry with them a "rosary" to pray, in Catholicism it is often called the Rosary (or the Rosary). When praying, believers often hold this rosary in their hands so that when they finish reading a prayer, they move to a bead in that string to mark it, completing a circle of 10 beads means they have read a decade of prayers, usually believers read 5 decades of prayers like that each session. In the Catholic families we visited, in the morning when waking up or in the evening when the work is finished, the members gather together to pray for 30 minutes. Praying depends on the awareness and belief of the family. However, everyone in the Catholic family praying together is also a factor that helps the members connect more closely with each other. At the same time, praying is a way to express the wishes of the individual and the family towards God or pray for ancestors. Thus, praying in the family is a habitual act and a need and duty of each believer. That is why they do it very often and the rate of believers performing the act of praying is almost absolute, which is understandable.

d. The content of the act of prayer in believers

The act of praying expresses a person's desire for the object of prayer, expressing the petitioner's gratitude. Catholics use many ways to express the content of prayer.

Table 4.31: Contents of believers' prayer actions

Prayer content	Implementation level (%)					Average	DLC	Rank
Prayer content	Incorrect	Partly true	Correct normal	Correct for many	Very true	Average	DLC	Rank
1	Pray for salvation God, of the Virgin Mary	0	0	2.0	6.6	91.3	4.89	0.37	1
2	Communicating with God	0	0	2.0	21.9	76.0	4.74	0.48	4
3	Relieve heavy state own foundation	0	0	2.6	17.6	79.8	4.77	0.47	3
4	Expressing wishes, hopes my wish with God	0	0	3.1	15.1	81.9	4.79	0.47	2
	Shared	0	0	2.4	15.3	82.2	4.79	0.43

Maybe you are interested!

* Note : 1.0 < GPA < 5.0.

Catholics often use printed prayers to read in community, or they can read them individually. Prayers often contain content praising God or expressing requests. In addition to the prayers, external actions are also expressed such as: bowing, praying or meditating on things in the Bible. In addition, believers often sing hymns to praise God instead of reading prayers. In prayer sessions, the forms of prayer and content are intertwined such as: reading prayers, reading the Bible, singing hymns... That is why in the sermons of priests, the saying of St. Augustine is often mentioned: "Bis orat qui bene cantat" (meaning: whoever sings well, prays twice as much). Singing well: one is singing the right song, two is singing in the right place, three is singing in the right way, four is singing in the right tone, five is singing in a group and six is singing with love.

The research results show that the content of prayer is to ask for salvation from God and the Virgin Mary. For Catholics, the Virgin Mary is also the object of prayer, so when they pray, they often ask the Virgin Mary. In the beliefs of believers, the Virgin Mary is the Mother of God (Mother of Jesus), their protector, so when they ask the Virgin Mary, they are also asking God. The level of prayer of believers to God and the Virgin Mary accounts for a very high percentage (98%), the average score of this prayer content is 4.89; DLC = 0.37, ranking first among the prayer contents.

With DLC = 0.37, it shows that this is the content that believers pray in a very focused way. Next, prayer is: "Expressing one's wishes and desires to God". For Catholics, when praying, desires are expressed very clearly, they wish for something, they ask for it, this is the second most important content in the content of prayer. Believers pray for themselves, their families, their communities... and for important events in their lives (DTB = 4.79; DLC = 0.47). In addition, the content of prayer also helps believers relieve stress and is a way for believers to communicate with God - the object of prayer, which is highly appreciated by believers ( DTB = 4.74). The average score of all prayer contents shows that these contents are consistent with the thoughts of believers, prayer is the connection between people and God, thereby expressing the desires of believers themselves.

Let's look at some of the believers' opinions:

“ I pray that You will bestow all the necessary graces, end the war, and bring people a prosperous and happy life ” (female, 26 years old, high school education, average living standard, Trung Van, Nam Tu Liem, Hanoi) .

“ I pray to God to give me faith in God, to give my family peace, good health, good luck in business, and to keep my faith for the rest of my life ” (male, 37 years old, secondary education, good living standard, Ha Dong, Hanoi) .

The results of the study on the content of prayer actions according to gender criteria show that female believers praying for salvation from God and the Virgin Mary have a higher average score than male believers (the average score of the female believers is 4.91, higher than that of the male believers is 4.88); the average score of the female believers is 0.32 compared to that of the male believers is 0.41, which shows that this is the content that the female group is more interested in and focuses on when praying. With other contents of prayer, the average score of the female believers and the group

male believers are equal.

Table 4.32: Content of believers' prayer actions (comparison by gender)

Prayer content	Sex	Quantity	Average	DLC
1	Pray for the salvation of God and of the Virgin Mary	Male	198	4.88	0.41
1	Pray for the salvation of God and of the Virgin Mary	Female	194	4.91	0.32
2	Communicating with God	Male	198	4.74	0.50
2	Communicating with God	Female	194	4.74	0.46
3	Relieve your heaviness	Male	198	4.77	0.53
3	Relieve your heaviness	Female	194	4.78	0.41
4	Express your wishes and desires to God	Male	198	4.80	0.51
4	Express your wishes and desires to God	Female	194	4.78	0.44

* Note : 1.0 < GPA < 5.0.

Here is a prayer from a believer: “ I am Teresa: I ask you to bless my family with peace, my parents with health, my children with good health, and with good education. I ask you to bless my daughter with a pregnancy and children soon, to bless me with a safe journey, and to abstain from sin .” (prayer from a believer at the Shrine of Our Lady, Thach Bich Parish, 2014).

Photo 4.4 : The prayers of believers in the book at the shrine of Our Lady of Thach Bich parish

“ O Mother of Perpetual Help, please help me, I am Teresa, please have mercy on me. Holy Father, by your power and mercy, I beg you to gather your flock, forgive them and bring them back to your beloved home, look upon them as your children and extend your hand to bless them. Amen ” (the prayer of a female believer, whose saintly name is Teresa, in the prayer book at the Shrine of Our Lady, Thach Bich Parish, 2015).

Through the prayers recorded in the book, we see that the prayers have very diverse content, praying for family, for community, for difficulties in life, for religious beliefs. The wishes and prayers of believers are all directed to the Virgin Mary and God.

Table 4.33: Content of believers' prayer actions (comparison by living standards)

Prayer content	Standard of living	Quantity	Average	DLC
1	Pray for the salvation of God and of the Virgin Mary	Rather	94	4.85	0.46
		Enough to eat	240	4.93	0.25
		hunger	58	4.79	0.55
		Total	392	4.89	0.37
2	Communicating with God	Rather	94	4.81	0.49
		Enough to eat	240	4.76	0.42
		hunger	58	4.55	0.62
		Total	392	4.74	0.48
3	Relieve your heaviness	Rather	94	4.70	0.54
		Enough to eat	240	4.82	0.38
		hunger	58	4.69	0.65
		Total	392	4.77	0.47
4	Express your wishes and desires to God	Rather	94	4.72	0.53
		Enough to eat	240	4.86	0.34
		hunger	58	4.59	0.72
		Total	392	4.79	0.47

*Note : 1.0 < GPA < 5.0.

Some views say that when people are in difficulty, struggling, lacking material things, they pray to God, God or Buddha to give them wealth, prosperity, luck... Reality shows that, for Catholics, they pray to ask for, to thank for the things that they think God has given them. That is why, in happy events, sad events or in daily meals, Catholics pray. Not only believers in the food-poor group, but also believers with good economic conditions, enough to eat, even at a fairly good standard of living, their level of prayer is still high. For example, when praying for God's salvation, the group of believers with enough to eat and a fairly good standard of living has a higher average score than the group of believers with a food-poor standard of living. Or the content of the prayer is: "Expressing your wishes and desires to God", the group of believers with a good standard of living and enough food has a higher average score than the group of believers with a lack of food (the average score of the group of believers with a good standard of living is 4.72, the group with enough food is 4.86, higher than the average score of the group of believers with a low standard of living is 4.52). This shows that the standard of living is not a factor that affects the level of prayer practice of believers.

e. The mood of the believer at the end of the prayer

Understanding the mood of believers after prayer helps us better understand the role of prayer for believers.

Table 4.34: The mood of believers at the end of prayer

Mood	Expression level (%)					Average	DLC	Rank
Mood	Incorrect	Partly true	Correct normal	Relatively correct much	Very true	Average	DLC	Rank
1	Feeling very happy	0	0	3.6	12.5	83.9	4.80	0.47	1
2	Feel at peace, relieved	0	0	4.1	29.1	66.8	4.63	0.56	3
3	Feel the presence of God	0	0	3.1	29.3	67.6	4.65	0.53	2
4	Feel connected between God and self	0	0	4.6	33.4	62.0	4.57	0.58	4
5	Have more faith and strength strong in life	0	1.5	2.0	47.4	49.0	4.44	0.61	5
6	Find ways to solve problems of life	0	0.5	6.9	52.3	40.3	4.32	0.62	6
7	Feel attached to more community	0	1.0	10.5	48.0	40.6	4.28	0.68	7
8	Normal, no feeling notice what	68.6	31.4	0	0	0	1.31	0.46	8
9	Difficult to answer	90.8	9.2	0	0	0	1.09	0.92	9
	Shared	17.7	4.8	3.8	28.0	45.5	3.78	0.60

* Note : 1.0 < GPA < 5.0.

The research results show that after praying, believers feel really happy, accounting for a very high percentage (83.9%) and feeling relatively happy, accounting for 12.5%. Only 3.6% of believers feel normal happiness. The average score of happiness of believers after praying is 4.80 (SD = 0.47), ranking first in the expressions of believers' mood. The second mood that believers said they had when performing the act of praying is Feeling the presence of God. Catholic believers have a deep faith in God, that faith helps people overcome difficulties, hardships... In all activities, when they pray, they believe that God helps them, accompanies them. The Bible also mentions the prayers of believers: " Where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them " (Matthew 18:20). This is like a message about God's presence every time believers pray. With a normal mood, no feeling after praying, the research results show that 68.6% of believers think it is not true and ranked last.

Thus, the research results on the emotions of believers at the end of prayer show that, for believers, prayer brings them different moods,

usually positive emotions such as: feeling happy, relieved, feeling the presence of God (shown by the high average score of these emotions).

This result is also similar to the results of some research works by author Vu Dung (2013) which showed that, before praying or performing other religious acts, believers often have negative emotions (such as: anxiety, fear, ...) but after praying, believers have positive emotions (peace of mind, comfort, serenity, joy and hope). There are times when, after performing the act of praying, believers' emotions have reached their peak, at which time many believers cried with joy. Thus, believers' emotions after performing the act of praying are positive emotions [27].

Here are some believers' opinions: " After praying, we feel that God loves us very much and is close to us " (male, 81 years old, average living standard, secondary education, suburban Hanoi ).

“After praying, we feel light-hearted, all worries in life are removed. All believers love and are close to each other ” (male, 27 years old, university education, average living standard, suburban Hanoi).

The survey results on the prayer behavior of believers show that: Believers have very serious preparations for prayer behavior. Believers perform this behavior very often and voluntarily. Believers' prayer behavior is not only performed at church but also seriously performed at home.

Prayer is an important form for believers to communicate with God, ask for God's help, relieve their heavy states, and express their wishes and desires to God.

4.2. Current status of factors affecting the prayer behavior of Catholics

4.2.1. Influence of objective factors

We divide objective factors affecting the prayer behavior of Catholics into 2 groups: Group of family factors; Group of factors from Catholicism itself.

4.2.1.1. Family factors

The research results show that, among the influencing factors in the family factor group, the factor "family religious tradition" has the greatest influence, expressed in this factor having the highest mean (mean = 4.61; DLC = 0.70), ranked at number 1.

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