Praise is a natural response to God's perfect goodness, truth, and beauty.  When one is baptized in the Holy Spirit and lives in union with God, even ordinary things can become occasions of joy and well up into thankfulnes to God our Creator.  Charismatics emphasize the prayer of praise, and it is common in charismatic gatherings to spend time in praise and worship.  St. John of the Cross explains that when living in close union with God, which is a result of Baptism in the Holy Spirit, "a soul always walks in festivity, inwardly and outwardly, and it frequently bears on its spiritual tongue a new song of great jubilation in God, a song always new, enfolded in a gladness and love arising from the knowledge that the soul has of its happy state."  He also teaches that a life of abiding joy and constant praise is normative for souls in close union with God, saying, "there is no need to be amazed that the soul so frequently walks amid this joy, jubilance, fruition, and praise of God." (St. John of the Cross, The Living Flame of Love, stanza 2, paragraph 36).

Teaching of the Church about Praise from the Bible and Catechism

Psalm 9:2-3 - I will praise you, LORD, with all my heart; I will declare all your wondrous deeds. I will delight and rejoice in you; I will sing hymns to your name, Most High.

Catechism Paragragh 2097 - To adore God is to acknowledge, in respect and absolute submission, the "nothingness of the creature" who would not exist but for God. To adore God is to praise and exalt him and to humble oneself, as Mary did in the Magnificat, confessing with gratitude that he has done great things and holy is his name. The worship of the one God sets man free from turning in on himself, from the slavery of sin and the idolatry of the world.

Catechism Paragragh 333 - From the Incarnation to the Ascension, the life of the Word incarnate is surrounded by the adoration and service of angels. When God "brings the firstborn into the world, he says: 'Let all God's angels worship him.'" Their song of praise at the birth of Christ has not ceased resounding in the Church's praise: "Glory to God in the highest!"

Catechism Paragragh 2639 - Praise is the form of prayer which recognizes most immediately that God is God. It lauds God for his own sake and gives him glory, quite beyond what he does, but simply because HE IS. It shares in the blessed happiness of the pure of heart who love God in faith before seeing him in glory. By praise, the Spirit is joined to our spirits to bear witness that we are children of God, testifying to the only Son in whom we are adopted and by whom we glorify the Father. Praise embraces the other forms of prayer and carries them toward him who is its source and goal: the "one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist."

Catechism Paragragh 2649 - Prayer of praise is entirely disinterested and rises to God, lauds him, and gives him glory for his own sake, quite beyond what he has done, but simply because HE IS.

Psalm 134:2 - Lift up your hands toward the sanctuary, and bless the LORD.

Psalm 149
Hallelujah! Sing to the LORD a new song, a hymn in the assembly of the faithful.
Let Israel be glad in their maker, the people of Zion rejoice in their king.
Let them praise his name in festive dance, make music with tambourine and lyre.
For the LORD takes delight in his people, honors the poor with victory.
Let the faithful rejoice in their glory, cry out for joy at their banquet,
With the praise of God in their mouths, and a two-edged sword in their hands,
To bring retribution on the nations, punishment on the peoples,
To bind their kings with chains, shackle their nobles with irons,
To execute the judgments decreed for them-- such is the glory of all God's faithful. Hallelujah!

Psalm 150
Hallelujah! Praise God in his holy sanctuary; give praise in the mighty dome of heaven.
Give praise for his mighty deeds, praise him for his great majesty.
Give praise with blasts upon the horn, praise him with harp and lyre.
Give praise with tambourines and dance, praise him with flutes and strings.
Give praise with crashing cymbals, praise him with sounding cymbals.
Let everything that has breath give praise to the LORD! Hallelujah!

1 Timothy 2:1, 8 - I ask that supplications, prayers, petitions, and thanksgivings be offered for everyone ... It is my wish, then, that in every place the men should pray, lifting up holy hands, without anger or argument.


Praying with Uplifted Hands
Praying with uplifted hands is called the orans posture. Like kneeling and praying with hands folded, this posture of prayer goes back to ancient times. It was used by the ancient Jews and the early Church. These images come from the catacombs in Rome where the early Church celebrated Mass during the first centuries of Christianity in order to hide from the persecutions of the Roman Empire.  The orans posture is also found in the tradition of icons in the eastern Church.

Though having fallen out of common use by the laity over the centuries, priests always have and still do use the orans posture during the Sacred Liturgy. Among the laity, especially in private and non-liturgical prayer, over the last hundred years since Pope Leo XIII prayed for a new outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the move of God which has become known as the charismatic renewal in the Catholic Church and among other Christian communities has revived this ancient posture.  

Lifting our hands is one of the many forms of prayer Christians have used from the beginning. The witness of the tradition of Christian art encourages us to continue to use the orans as a way to imitate Mary, whom the Church teaches is, "the perfect Orans (pray-er), a figure of the Church ... The prayer of the Church is sustained by the prayer of Mary and united with it in hope." - Catechism paragraph 2679.