Carthusian monks are known for their desire to remain anonymous, "Notes on Prayer" for the Holy Year maintains and respects that anonymity simply stating the authors as "Carthusian Monks." Their topic is the Church in Prayer.

In some sense, the title makes an obvious statement as the Church's primary mission is prayer. The Church is always in prayer. Even when preaching and teaching; even when exercising her mission of charity or social service or other aspects of her community service.

The monks tell us that prayer is a gift. Perhaps we might overlook this truth. Prayer is God's gift to us. He reveals this to us in both the Old and New Testaments; above all in the life of His Son, Jesus Christ. That prayer of Christ continues in the Church until the Lord's return in glory.

The prophet Isaiah reminds us that the Lord's House is a House of Prayer. Jesus himself echoes that phrase speaking about the Temple in Jerusalem. He then says that the true worship of God would not be in a place created by human hands but in and through his body.

Pope St. John Paul II wanted parishes to be schools of prayer. Prayer, the monks remind us, is something learned. This implies being a student or disciple -- a learner. We also must have teachers. Beginning with the great teacher of prayer, Jesus himself, the Church has many disciples who became teachers for us.

Prayer starts not in the head but in the heart. The head can add to prayer and even expand prayer, but it is fundamentally an act of the heart.

As many teachers of prayer remind us, and so do the monks, prayer is often best offered "in the desert." The Carthusians actually live a desert existence in a very sparse monastery, with great silence and very few comforts that we might consider "necessary."

Previous columns have mentioned the need to step aside in some way to make space for better conversation -- prayer -- with God.

The very common prayer life of these monks stands in the Church as the important truth that Christian prayer is fundamentally common and public.

When we come together in the Church for prayer, especially the Mass, the prayers inevitably use the first-person plural -- we, our, ours; save for a few places, the Act of Penitence and the Creed -- the first-person singular -- I, me, my, are sparse at best.

This, of course, applies not only to the words but to how we celebrate all the sacraments. Bishops, priests, deacons or any of us celebrating any of the sacraments ought to consider very carefully doing anything to insert himself or herself into our prayer. This does not mean someone could not pray alone or with others using their own words. All prayers start off being played by someone. Sometimes, they are so good that they may even get used by all of us.

In these " Notes, " the monks also remind us that our prayer is "paschal."

The phrase "paschal mystery," which appears so often during the Easter season, is a shorthand description of the whole life of Christ, from the annunciation of his conception (which connects us to Israel) through his life and public ministry to his passion, death, resurrection, ascension, and sending of the Holy Spirit and his real presence in his body, the Church.

All Catholic Christians' prayer is "paschal." Simply, it is rooted in the person of Jesus Christ.

If you have a missalette in your parish church or you use one of the many prayer aids as a subscriber to "Magnificat" or "Give us this Day," you have many of the texts or prayers we use in Mass right at your fingertips.

Listen to those prayers as they are prayed at Mass. Join those prayers of the priest and make them yours. If you have the time, especially before Mass, take a few minutes to read the prayers, you will be praying with the priest during the Mass. Remember you are celebrating that Mass with the priest.

At every Mass, the principal celebrant prays these words: "Pray, my brothers and sisters that my sacrifice and yours may be acceptable to God our almighty Father."

A brief and powerful statement or confession about the Church in prayer.