Prayer

by John O'Connell

Prayer, according to the classic catechism definition is "the raising of the heart and mind to God." To pray is to communicate with the Triune God. Our Lord Jesus Christ gave us numerous examples of praying and how to pray in the Gospels: liturgical prayer, vocal prayer, mental prayer, or simply reminding oneself of being in the presence of God.

We need to pray. We pray in order to glorify God; to love Him; to express contrition for our sins and to beseech His forgiveness; to give gratitude for His blessings; and to request of Him spiritual and temporal favors for ourselves and others.

Christianity is a humanly impossible religion. Only with God's grace can we serve Him as He wills for us to do. And we obtain grace principally through prayer and the sacraments. We need grace to know God's will. We need grace to fullfill the mission that God has entrusted to each one of us. We need grace to convert and sanctify ourselves (and others) so that the life of God in our souls will grow.

Especially in matters of the interior life, we would be wise to follow the counsel of the saints: Go to Mary. The Blessed Virgin Mary will assist us in praying as we ought - more frequently and more fervantly. ©

© 1996 Inter Mirifica