Catholic devotions are particular customs, rituals, and practices of worship of God or honour of the saints which are in addition to the liturgy of the Catholic Church. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops describes devotions as "expressions of love and fidelity that arise from the intersection of one's own faith, culture and the Gospel of Jesus Christ".[1] Devotions are not considered part of liturgical worship, even if they are performed in a church or led by a priest,[2] but rather they are paraliturgical. The Congregation for Divine Worship at the Vatican publishes a Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy.[3]
Catholic devotions have various forms, ranging from formalized, multi-day prayers such as novenas to activities, such as processions or the Eucharistic adoration,[4] the wearing of scapulars,[5] the veneration of the saints, the Canonical coronations of sacred Marian or Christological images and even horticultural practices such as maintaining a Mary garden.[6]
Common examples of Catholic devotions are the Way of the Cross, the Rosary, the Angelus and various litanies, devotions to the Blessed Sacrament, the Sacred Heart, the Immaculate Heart of Mary and the Holy Face of Jesus, pilgrimages, observing the month of the Rosary in October and the month of Mary in May.
- ^ "Prayers and Devotions". www.usccb.org. Retrieved 2019-04-02.
- ^ "Liturgical Chant". www.newadvent.org. Catholic Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2019-04-02.
- ^ "Directory on Popular Piety and the Liturgy". Vatican City: Congregation for Divine Worship. December 2001. Archived from the original on June 23, 2012.
- ^ Ball 2003, p. 11.
- ^ Thurston, Herbert. "Popular Devotions." The Catholic Encyclopedia Vol. 12. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1911. 26 May 2021
This article incorporates text from this source, which is in the public domain.
- ^ Ball 2003, p. 341.
