Praying from the Depths of the Psalms

"The Psalms speak with us and for us-they express to God the joys, sufferings, anxieties, and exaltations of the human heart. They thereby teach us how to pray."

Dr. Aaron Kheriaty

The elemental human experience of the search for God's presence amidst the hills and valleys of life is revealed within the Psalms. Turning each experience into a poetic, beautiful prayer is their genius. They are a gift to each heart desiring for a deep intimacy with God.

In his book, Fr. John Henry describes the Psalter as "the soul's hymnal," a place we can all go to as a source of commiseration, consolation, reflection, and shared joys. Fr. John Henry shows us that, within the Psalms and with the company of the saints, we are in good fellowship in life's journey. Showing us how to pray them, and not just read them, he reveals an invaluable path of simplicity towards an unbroken unity with God-finding grace in all-amidst joys and sorrows, tediums and varieties life has to offer.

Fr. John Henry Hanson, O. Praem., is a Norbertine priest of St. Michael's Abbey in Silverado, CA. He entered the community in 1995, earned his STB and master's in theology at the Pontifical University of St. Thomas (Angelicum) in Rome, and was ordained to the priesthood in 2006. Currently, he is a formator in his community's seminary, in addition to teaching at St. Michael's Preparatory School, the boarding school operated by the Norbertine Fathers. He also preaches retreats, is chaplain to several communities of women religious, and serves Armenian rite Catholics at the Cathedral of St. Gregory the Illuminator in Glendale, CA.