Prayer Meme...

I haven't seen a meme for ages, not counting that one over on Bara Brith, so I decided to start one of my own.

The rules, which need to be posted: Name your three most favourite prayers, and explain why they're your favourites. Then tag five bloggers - give them a link, and then go and tell them they have been tagged. Finally, tell the person who tagged you that you've completed the meme... The Liturgy and the Sacraments are off limits here. I'm more interested in people's favourite devotional prayers.

First prayer choice for me is the Hail Mary - particularly the bit that asks for prayers at the two times we need them most: now and at the hour of our death.

I found myself praying that prayer particularly fervently as I spun round on the motorway after being hit by an articulated lorry... It occurred to me that I wasn't praying to be saved from the accident (which, as it so happens, I was) but rather I wanted Our Lady to be there as I died. After all, one doesn't normally expect to survive turning upside-down on a motorway in the morning rush-hour when one is in a tiny little car. I still don't know which side of the crash barrier I ended up on. I just know that I closed all six lanes of the motorway, both directions... and it took the fire brigade over 45 minutes to cut me out of the wreckage.

Second choice of prayer is the one to St. Michael the archangel. I like the reminder that the angels are fighting to defend us. I also like the reminder that St. Michael triumphs by the power of God - a salutary antidote to the pride of Satan, who would not serve.

My third prayer is the Stations of the Cross - the version by St. Alphonsus, that is. I am not a fan of the modern versions of the Stations which focus on how "some people" are guilty of various sins... usually with a social justice or environmentally friendly slant. "We pray for those who..." is a phrase which annoys me, in what should be a reflection on what I, personally, have done to offend God, and what I, personally, need to address.

Now, limiting myself to five tags will be difficult, but I want to leave plenty of scope for everyone else. I always hate trying to find someone to tag only to discover they've been tagged already... here goes...

First, I shall plump for Leutgeb over at Bara Brith, as she got me thinking about memes in the first place, so it's sort of her fault. Second, I shall pick Dominic Mary from Libera Me, as he's probably at a bit of a loose end now that the elephants have gone. Third is Clare from Battlements of Rubies, for no particular reason other than I'm interested. Fourth blogger is actually a cheat - Joe and Brian from Defend Us In Battle... whichever one of them answers first. Fifth tag goes to Paulinus, In Hoc Signo Vinces, because he used to do lots of memes...

Of course, if you can't wait to see if someone will tag you, you can tag yourself, and mention it in the com-box!