Interlude: God & I

As I wrote that title, I was struck by "God & I" versus "God & Me."  For some reason, the "I" strikes me as so much more egotistical than "Me", almost as if the first statement is one of equivalence, but the latter is one of overfamiliarity.  Off the subject...

So I have thus far singularly failed to mention God or faith or prayer or anything really important.  There are two things on my mind today; praying in Latin and my relation to God relative to suffering.

Earlier today (on Facebook) a friend asked me how I wanted him to pray for me.  I jokingly replied "anything is fine, as long as it's in Latin."  The little emoticon wink should have made it clear that this was tongue in cheek.  But a couple of weeks ago, Elizabeth asked me why I pray the rosary in Latin.  Actually, I pray the first, third, and fifth decades in Latin.  The Creed, opening prayers, and closing prayers I pray in English.  My reason for this is that I feel the Latin unites me to the universal church, in a diachronic sense, whereas the English is easier for me to "mean" rather than just recite.  Now, anyone familiar with the Rosary will be familiar with the formulaic nature, which one hopes becomes meditation rather than just repetition.  I'll admit that my mind wanders tremendously during the Rosary (in all the decades and for all the mysteries).  I hope that this is still a means of communicating with God - laying my problems before him, where the actual prayers are those of adoration and supplication.  But as Peter Kreeft notoriously said - pray how you can, not how you can't.  Praying the rosary is one of the ways that I can pray.

Back to Latin.  I noted above that Latin unites me with the Church diachronically - or across time.  Pope Benedict XVI wrote beautifully on the two modes of unity with the Church - both synchronic - or united with the Church in this time, and diachronic.  We should remember that the communion of the Church is not just the faithful now, but all the faithful, past and present (and future?  I suppose so).  I like to imagine the vast crowd of saints who are present at the Eucharist, and when I am really humming along in my spiritual life, I feel their presence along with the Real Presence of Christ.

But I recognize that Latin is not my language, and that there's nothing "magic" about Latin.  Prayers are not more efficacious in Latin than in English.  And in fact Latin can be an obstacle.  I know the words to Salve Regina.  But I know what Hail, Holy Queen means.  But when I pray the two, I feel the sacredness of Salve Regina.  But I intend Hail, Holy Queen.  So for me, there is a place for both Latin and English.

Well, I'm tired of typing, so I'll leave the issue of God, prayer, and suffering for another interlude.