CASTEL GANDOLFO, Italy, AUG. 8, 2012 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI called on the example of St. Dominic to urge the faithful to find a quiet moment for prayer each day.

The Pope today continued his Wednesday audience series on prayer, reflecting this morning on the teachings of the founder of the Dominicans.

He noted that the saint's teaching is a reminder that only prayer can make Christian testimony fruitful.

"St. Dominic reminds us that prayer, that personal contact with God, is at the heart and origin of the witness of faith that every Christian must give within family life, at work, in social commitments, and even in times of relaxation," the Holy Father said. "Only this real relationship with God gives us the strength to live each event intensely, especially the most painful moments."

The Pontiff also noted Dominic's emphasis on using the body for prayer: "This saint also reminds us of the importance of exterior attitudes in our prayer: kneeling, standing before the Lord, fixing one's gaze on the Crucified, pausing to recollect oneself in silence are not secondary; rather, they help us to place ourselves interiorly, with the whole of our person, in relation to God."

As well, Dominic teaches the importance of simply taking time for God, the Pope suggested.

He reiterated an invitation he has made often during his catecheses on prayer, emphasizing "the need in our spiritual lives to find quiet moments for prayer each day, to have a little time to speak with God."

The Pope said that there should especially be time for prayer during the summer holidays. 

This "will also be a way of helping those around us to enter into the luminous rays of the presence of God," he said, "who brings the peace and love that we all need."

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