Praying before meals, in a restaurant, when nobody else is?

[CruciFixed]

How do you feel about praying before a meal in a restaurant? I was intimidated by the fact that nobody else at the table wanted to pray before their meal a few days ago so I said a little prayer in my head.

Would you rather just pray to yourself before a meal if you are in the company of others? I didn't close my eyes, bow my head or cross myself like normal. I just thanked God in my head because I was afraid of seeming fake....or self righteous.

However, I normally like to get my husband involved in the blessing before the meal but I didn't tell him I was praying so I guess I can just assume my husband did it in his head as well. I can't know that but I can guess.

Anyway if someone was treating you to dinner would it be just "best" to pray in your head or heart instead of embarrassing people around you or causing a scene?

We're going out again tomorrow and I didn't know what proper prayer etiquette is.

 

[JourneyToPeace]

Usually if I'm being taken out to dinner, I just bow my head and say a quick, silent prayer. I don't feel the need to say it out loud, since God knows what I am thinking anyways. That being said, if anyone I am dining with also wants to pray, I am happy to pray with them and thank God for the time I am spending with friends, as well as for the food.

Eh, I'm probably a "bad Catholic" in that I honestly don't make a strong attempt to *look* (or sound) religious. On the other hand... it doesn't make me, or anyone, any less thankful. It's just how loudly we decide to express our thanks that is in question.

 

[Virgil the Roman]

Pray before every meal; even in public. I do. And don't worry: it can be daunting at first. Or perhaps you think everyone will look or glare at you cockeyed; it doesn't matter: pay them no mind! God bless ya!

 

[G-Com]

I do it. Sign of the cross, too.

A lady at the local Subway even gave me a compliment on it last fall.

 

[Memento Mori]

I don't really say traditional grace, so I haven't run into that problem. I make the sign of the cross on my lips and pause briefly to reflect.

 

[Antigone]

Say a quick, quiet prayer to yourself. They'll hardly notice.

 

[GrowingSmaller]

The philosopher Kierkegaard said something like this: that it was more difficult to be a Christian when surrounded by "like minded" believers than it is when not.

 

[WarriorAngel]

I decided the last year or so to cross myself and my kids follow suit ... i am not ashamed of our Lord. Its is thru His strength that i have overcome the fear of being noticed,

 

[Vendetta]

Sign of cross + silent prayer + sign of cross. I do it most of the time, even when I'm alone. The only time I say it out loud is if I'm with my family or, like last night, when Fr. and the Catholic Crew went out after mass. It's funny because if I'm with people to eat, we're talking and there's no good opening for prayer. Usually I'll just wait for a time in between sentences and either say "hold on" and start, or I just bow my head and start. I used to forget all the time. Now I rarely do. It's nice, and nobody really says anything about it. If they do, that's their problem.

 

[Michie]

How do you feel about praying before a meal in a restaurant? I was intimidated by the fact that nobody else at the table wanted to pray before their meal a few days ago so I said a little prayer in my head.

Would you rather just pray to yourself before a meal if you are in the company of others? I didn't close my eyes, bow my head or cross myself like normal. I just thanked God in my head because I was afraid of seeming fake....or self righteous.

However, I normally like to get my husband involved in the blessing before the meal but I didn't tell him I was praying so I guess I can just assume my husband did it in his head as well. I can't know that but I can guess.

Anyway if someone was treating you to dinner would it be just "best" to pray in your head or heart instead of embarrassing people around you or causing a scene?

We're going out again tomorrow and I didn't know what proper prayer etiquette is.

We always do.

Regardless. You can do it silently & end with the sign of the cross or not.

Totally up to you. But you can silently give thanks.

 

[Rhamiel]

when i am with my parents we say grace before meals, even in public
by myself i normally just say a little silent prayer with the sign of the cross
if i remember... i kinda suck

 

[AMDG]

Husband and I pray the before meals blessing at home or when eating at restaurants. To only pray at home, and not all the time sounds hypocritical. (You know that it's between you and God, you don't have to tap the glass for attention, stand on your chair, and then lead everyone....)

 

[CruciFixed]

Usually if I'm being taken out to dinner, I just bow my head and say a quick, silent prayer. I don't feel the need to say it out loud, since God knows what I am thinking anyways. That being said, if anyone I am dining with also wants to pray, I am happy to pray with them and thank God for the time I am spending with friends, as well as for the food.

Eh, I'm probably a "bad Catholic" in that I honestly don't make a strong attempt to *look* (or sound) religious. On the other hand... it doesn't make me, or anyone, any less thankful. It's just how loudly we decide to express our thanks that is in question.

Yeah I didnt wanna make a scene or look like I am faking something. Its just me and my husband and our kids pray together before meals lately and then when we went to the restaurant with his family that are in town and treating us I said it in my head before the meal but did not do it in front of people.

Say a quick, quiet prayer to yourself. They'll hardly notice.

Yeah.

Sign of cross + silent prayer + sign of cross. I do it most of the time, even when I'm alone. The only time I say it out loud is if I'm with my family or, like last night, when Fr. and the Catholic Crew went out after mass. It's funny because if I'm with people to eat, we're talking and there's no good opening for prayer. Usually I'll just wait for a time in between sentences and either say "hold on" and start, or I just bow my head and start. I used to forget all the time. Now I rarely do. It's nice, and nobody really says anything about it. If they do, that's their problem.

At the dinner we're supposed to attend tonight there's at minimum going to be 13 people so there's plenty of pause time because not everyone is always talking to me. Its just that my husband and I say it out loud before meals at home...and we didn't do it at the restaurant a few days ago and we're going back out with our family tonight and I don't wanna come off as a faker.

Husband and I pray the before meals blessing at home or when eating at restaurants. To only pray at home, and not all the time sounds hypocritical. (You know that it's between you and God, you don't have to tap the glass for attention, stand on your chair, and then lead everyone....)

I did pray at the restaurant just without hubby and in my head. i didnt even bow my head like i normally do.

Thanks for the tips all.

 

[eastcoast_bsc]

I always pray silently before a meal, just a quick thanks for my meal. The rest is for show. I never in my life saw anyone pray before a meal in public until I traveled down South. I don't think it needs to be demonstrative.

 

[CruciFixed]

Well we didn't get to go eat with my husband's family. We were at the E.R. My 3 y.o was running through the house after being warned about it. I was carrying on a conversation with my husband and his brother. We were about to leave for the restaurant and he came diving into the area we were standing. He tripped right over my foot slid across the carpet and smashed his face into a metal leg on a chair. When he first got up crying we thought he was okay just probably a busted lip.

Well he was okay. He has a big ol' bruise on the bridge of his nose and it was making his eyes black and blue and my husband thought it was a broken nose. I told my husband I didn't think it was broken but he wanted us to go to the E.R.

So....we went and missed out on dinner. The 3 y.o is fine...but better safe than sorry.

 

[eastcoast_bsc]

Well we didn't get to go eat with my husband's family. We were at the E.R. My 3 y.o was running through the house after being warned about it. I was carrying on a conversation with my husband and his brother. We were about to leave for the restaurant and he came diving into the area we were standing. He tripped right over my foot slid across the carpet and smashed his face into a metal leg on a chair. When he first got up crying we thought he was okay just probably a busted lip.

Well he was okay. He has a big ol' bruise on the bridge of his nose and it was making his eyes black and blue and my husband thought it was a broken nose. I told my husband I didn't think it was broken but he wanted us to go to the E.R.

So....we went and missed out on dinner. The 3 y.o is fine...but better safe than sorry.

Did they interrogate you on how he received the bruises ? Here in Mass they do. Hope the wee one is OK.

 

[CruciFixed]

They didn't really. I am always paranoid of what they think. Tonight they asked us and my husband and I started to talk at the same time with the exact same words and I swear that made me feel like we had rehearsed our words!!

But they didn't question us. They questioned us when he needed stitches this time last year....

I guess he doesn't go enough for us to look like abusive parents. Last year he needed stitches and they kept asking us the same stuff over and over and over and over. They inspected his whole body and all. This year we got the minimum questioning I suppose.

It is a huge swollen bump in the middle of his nose and its all bruised and just awful looking. He can breathe and stuff out of it. They did an xray and he was well behaved. They said they've never done xrays on a 3 year old that was so easy. They normally cant even do the traditional way of xrays on other little kids so they have to try new techniques. They were so surprised. But last year when he needed stitches he sat so still during the stitching and he didnt cry they were surprised a 2 y.o. was just letting them do their job rofl. He had an MRI when he was just over 1...same situation, well behaved and cooperative and not screaming in the MRI machine.