from Peru InFAM 

At some point, it will seem as though it is no longer we who live, but grace that lives and works in us, through prayer."

From Pope Francis’s message, we can see how much we need this transformation in ourselves in order to transform our families: to live in love and, above all, to learn to forgive.

As the Institute of Pastoral of the Family (INFAM), we share some activities to encourage prayer in families. Cards have been prepared with prayers for adults and children, taking into account the different moments of each day: when getting up, during the day, when eating, and before going to bed. This material is used in social services during home visits, where the cards are distributed to families. Along with the cards, an image of the Virgin Mary and a Rosary are given to the families to teach them how to pray the Holy Rosary.

In schools where work is done with children, prayer initiatives began last year with the creation of prayer beads, followed by the teaching of prayer. For the elderly, they continue to pray the Holy Rosary in their chapels before starting their workshops.

The challenge is to continue promoting prayer among children and to start engaging adolescents so that they can become motivating agents of prayer within their families.

As a suggestion, we could organize contests for children and adolescents to compose prayers and set them to music, since singing is also a form of prayer. The result could be a prayer book for children and adolescents, as well as a songbook. For the recitation of the Holy Rosary with adolescents, a biblical passage could be presented for each mystery, along with a small representation of current life enacted by the adolescents. This could be done in schools.

Finally, the Year of Prayer is an opportunity for us to allow ourselves to be transformed by the Lord. To do this, it is necessary to enter into dialogue with Him, so that we may be sustained by His merciful love.