Prayer #1

The first section of this textbook has an interesting concept that I haven't really considered.  The book told the story of Samuel and how he was decentering himself to serve God.  The decentering comes about by seeing there is a higher being that is the divine.  Also the detaching from oneself isn't to contradict earthly things and God but instead allowing God to tell you how to use the earthly things.  It is very interesting because many people pray because of gratitude, help, and many other things but it is usually centered around the person.  Also that confessional prayers aren't just for the salvation of the person but rather for the salvation of others.  Most people in Catholicism go to confession in order to make sure they go to heaven but realizing one's sin can cause them to prevent others from sinning due to making sin a social norm.