“Hearts,” because the mere lifting up of the mind would not be prayer.  One who blasphemes Him might also lift up his mind.  We lift up the mind to know God and the heart to love Him, and in so doing we serve Him—­the three things for which we were created.  If we do not think of God we do not pray.  A parrot might be taught to say the “Our Father,” but it could never pray, because it has no mind to lift up.  A phonograph can be made to say the prayers, but not to pray, for it has neither mind nor heart.  So praying does not depend upon the words we say, but upon the way in which we say them.  Indeed the best prayer, called meditation, is made when we do not speak at all, but simply think of God; of His goodness to us; of our sins against Him; of Hell, Purgatory, Heaven, death, judgment, of the end for which we were created, etc.  This is the kind of prayer that priests and religious use most frequently.  As you might like to meditate—­for all who know how may meditate—­let me explain to you the method.  First you try to remember that you are in the presence of God.  Then you take some subject, say the Crucifixion, to think about.  You try to make a picture of the scene in your own mind.  You see Our Lord on the Cross; two thieves, one on each side of Him, the one praying to Our Lord and the other cursing Him.  You see the multitude of His enemies mocking Him.  Over at some distance you behold our Blessed Mother standing sorrowful with St. John and Mary Magdalen.  Then you ask yourself—­for you must imagine yourself there—­to which side would you go.  Over to our Blessed Mother to try and console her, or over to the enemies to help them to mock?  Then you think how sin was the cause of all this suffering, and how often you yourself have sinned; how you have many a time gone over to the crowd and left the Blessed Mother.  These thoughts will make you sorry for your sins, and you will form the good resolution never to sin again.  You will thank God for these good thoughts and this resolution, and your meditation is ended.  You can spend fifteen minutes, or longer if you wish, in such a meditation.  The Crucifixion is only one of the many subjects you may select for meditation.  You could take any part of the “Our Father,” “Hail Mary,” or “Creed,” and even the questions in your Catechism.  Mental prayer, therefore, is the best, because in it we must think; we must pay attention to what we are doing, and lift up our minds and hearts to God; while in vocal prayer—­that is, the prayer we say aloud—­we may repeat the words from pure habit, without any attention or lifting up of the mind or heart.

305 Q. Is prayer necessary to salvation?  A. Prayer is necessary to salvation, and without it no one having the use of reason can be saved.

We mean here those who never pray during their whole lives, and not those who sometimes neglect their prayers through a kind of forgetfulness.

306 Q. At what particular times should we pray?  A. We should pray particularly on Sundays and holy days, every morning and night, in all dangers, temptations, and afflictions.