preghiere

Preghiere, the Italian word for prayers, are acts of communication with the divine or sacred, performed individually or in community to express adoration, confession, petition, intercession, or thanksgiving. They are a central element of religious life in many traditions and may take the form of fixed liturgical texts, spontaneous utterances, or contemplative silence. In Italian, the noun is the plural of preghiera.

The term derives from Latin precari, precatio, meaning to beg or supplicate; the modern sense emphasizes speaking to the sacred rather than merely thinking or wishing.

Forms and practice: In Christian contexts, preghiere include liturgical prayers used in worship services, as well as private prayers. Typical categories are praise, confession, intercession for others, and petitions for personal needs. Prayers can be vocal or silent, with or without symbolic actions such as kneeling or crossing, and may be aided by objects like rosaries or prayer books. In Catholic practice, well-known invocations include the Our Father and the Hail Mary; in Orthodox and some Protestant traditions, canonical prayers and psalms also play a central role. In other religious traditions, prayers serve similar purposes with distinct forms and languages, such as Jewish tefillot or Islamic supplications, though the Italian term preghiere is often used in general language to refer to prayers of various traditions.

See also: Liturgy, Prayer, Rosary, Intercession.