YaelAldrich Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 Orthodox Jews. We tailor our blessing to the type(s) of food we are eating. For example, meat, dairy, drinks (excepting grape products), get a general blessing for all G-d's creations. Things made from flour get another one. Veggies and fruits get one thanking G-d for creating food from the earth or tree and bread gets a special blessing all its own. There are after-meal blessings, also tailored to the food that was eaten. See http://www.aish.com/48952001.html for more information. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ripley Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 I love "rote" prayers! I realize they're not something everyone enjoys, but I pray so much more now that I have ancient prayers to pray (it's not like they're any less real or sincere just because someone else prayed them first). I used to get stuck in looking for the "right" words and emotions from which to create prayers, and I'd often end up not praying because I didn't think my prayers came out right or because I didn't pray as good as him/her or whatever. Now I don't worry about any of that at all and just pray. This is the case with prayers before meals, with daily prayers, with praying at church. It's been wonderfully freeing. Me, also! I don't see God as my friend. We're friendly, but ... not friends. Like my human parents, too. :D I know this differs between Christians, even amongst my fellow Catholic Christians, and it's just how I am. Even my personal prayers are more formal, with respect to how I view our relationship. LOL I love the tradition of a rote prayer, especially before meals - it feels unitive. I love that my kids are praying the same prayers that generations of our family have prayed, and I'm hopeful that their children will also one day pray. I love that when we gather as a family to eat, we share not only the bounty in front of us but the prayer before it - collective, united, and meaningful as a tradition within our family and our faith. This Saturday we had a family gathering to celebrate my great-uncle's 95th birthday. The sound of over 100 people saying grace together before the meal was hauntingly beautiful. We also have personal prayers of thanksgiving, but we save those for times of day not tied to meals - usually before bed or at Adoration. As a family we do our rote prayers aloud together ;) followed by any free-flowing prayers we feel compelled to make (aloud or privately). I'm glad to read I'm not the only one! I find such peace and unity in the established prayer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mom2bee Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 I really like this thread. It is so neat to get a glimpse into other peoples dining lives and its something I never really thought of before. Thanks to the OP for starting it and a big thanks to all the WTMers for sharing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MomOfOneFunOne Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 I love "rote" prayers! I realize they're not something everyone enjoys, but I pray so much more now that I have ancient prayers to pray (it's not like they're any less real or sincere just because someone else prayed them first). I used to get stuck in looking for the "right" words and emotions from which to create prayers, and I'd often end up not praying because I didn't think my prayers came out right or because I didn't pray as good as him/her or whatever. Now I don't worry about any of that at all and just pray. This is the case with prayers before meals, with daily prayers, with praying at church. It's been wonderfully freeing. Me, also! I don't see God as my friend. We're friendly, but ... not friends. Like my human parents, too. :D I know this differs between Christians, even amongst my fellow Catholic Christians, and it's just how I am. Even my personal prayers are more formal, with respect to how I view our relationship. LOL I love the tradition of a rote prayer, especially before meals - it feels unitive. I love that my kids are praying the same prayers that generations of our family have prayed, and I'm hopeful that their children will also one day pray. I love that when we gather as a family to eat, we share not only the bounty in front of us but the prayer before it - collective, united, and meaningful as a tradition within our family and our faith. This Saturday we had a family gathering to celebrate my great-uncle's 95th birthday. The sound of over 100 people saying grace together before the meal was hauntingly beautiful. We also have personal prayers of thanksgiving, but we save those for times of day not tied to meals - usually before bed or at Adoration. As a family we do our rote prayers aloud together ;) followed by any free-flowing prayers we feel compelled to make (aloud or privately). I'm glad to read I'm not the only one! I find such peace and unity in the established prayer. AMDG ME, TOO!!! In fact, as I suspect is the same with Milovany b/c of the quotations, I don't even think of them as rote at all. It's not as if I'm just tossing out information that has to be memorized. There is something in me and in those prayers that make the entire experience anything but rote! If a prayers does become rote, it isn't the prayer but myself that has become stilted and perhaps dry. I do have periods of spiritual dryness and I bless God for those b/c I feel that that particular cross is reserved for . . . a particular person/lesson . . . and I try really hard to rise to the challenge . . . mostly. I am, after all, human! The really old one, the ancients, are the ones so close to my heart. And you know what? I love Thee, Thou, Thy, art, -st, et c. Somehow they lend joy to my tongue and give me a certain . . . je ne sais quoi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
saraha Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 We rotate through the family as to who's turn it is to pray at each meal. Some of my kids say a quick thank you for this food, thank you for this day, amen. However, the problem I have been having lately is that 2 of my kids must be having some competition as to who can pray the longest or mention the most things etc. I can't really get on them for the length of their prayer, but sometimes it is so long, and they are not blessing God, it is more like "please help all the people who are sick, hungry, homeless, need a new car blah, blah blah" and then on to "thank you for the trees, birds, potatoes, blah blah blah". Today, I mentioned before we prayed for lunch that Grace is for thanking God for our food. If we have other prayer requests, they are for another, private prayer time. So what I got today was "Thank you for our cow that gave us beef. Thank you for the bread on my sandwich. Thank you for the cucumbers that mom made into pickles. Thank you for the carrots and the people who made the dip. Thank you for the ingredients in the dip. Thank you for the people who invented Koolaid". and on and on. The three year old has been in trouble the last two meals because he decided he couldn't wait any longer and took a bite. I know that is a separate issue that I need to deal with, but how do I stop these really long prayers and encourage them to pray more on their own instead of saving it all up for their turn at Grace? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 Before meals with folded hands: Come, Lord Jesus, Be our guest, And let these gifts to us Be Blessed. Amen Then we hold hands and say something that I don't know how to spell, roughly it is Gesechnitte Maltzeit, which means Blessed Mealtime in German (a custom from my great-grandparents--I don't think they do it in Germany anymore) When I was a kid we also had a closing prayer, but we don't have this habit in our family: Oh give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good, for His mercy endureth forever. Amen Over lunch I used to say with DD before meals sometimes: "The eyes of all wait upon Thee, O Lord, and Thou givest them their meat in due season. Thou openest Thine hand and satisfiest the desires of all living things." right before the "Come, Lord Jesus" prayer above. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brehon Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 The Table Blessing and a Hail Mary. Sometimes in English; sometimes in Latin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maela Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 We are not Christian, but we like to remind the kids that it is good to remember to be thankful for all we have. We hold hands before dinner and say this: We are thankful for this food, For the rest, our home, and all things good, For the wind, the rain, and sun above, But most of all for those we love. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alisoncooks Posted January 21, 2014 Share Posted January 21, 2014 What an interesting thread. We have no set pattern... sometimes we hold hands (especially if my parents are visiting) but sometimes we just fold our hands together and bow our heads. Generally, we free-form pray. We encourage our kids to come up with their own prayers... but my youngest has gotten into the habit of saying: Thanks for my family, my friends, and my little dog (dog's name). Amen. My oldest has started to say this: ​Thanks for this lovely food we're about to eat. Amen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amber in SJ Posted January 23, 2014 Share Posted January 23, 2014 We are LDS also so we fold our arms, close our eyes and bow our heads and then one of the kids prays. We start with Dear Heavenly Father...give thanks for the food and the opportunity to gather as a family & friends...ask for a blessing on the food and the hands that prepared it (Me!)..... then close in the name of Christ. It is very free form. We do use the more formal "Thee" and "Thou" in our prayers. Sometimes my kids get silly and say "Please bless this food, again" if it is leftovers. My in-laws are not LDS and when we are there we hold hands around the table and my FIL says; Lord, we thank you for this food. Please watch over us and guide us and direct us In all that we do and say. In Jesus name we ask it, Amen. When Dh & I were first married no one said grace at his house. He said they just never did when they were growing up, but when they want to Grandpa's house (FIL's dad) the same grace that my FIL says now was said over the food. I think it is sweet. Amber in SJ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mathmarm Posted January 23, 2014 Author Share Posted January 23, 2014 Wow, thank you all so much for your replies. I love reading all the replies and the feedback is very helpful to me--thanks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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