Christian Prayer: Listening to the Word of God
Catechism Commentary 64
In 2001 St John Paul II published an apostolic letter entitled At the Beginning of the New Millennium . In par 39 he wrote, “There is no doubt that the primacy of holiness and prayer is inconceivable without a renewed listening to the word of God.” Then he went on to acknowledge that, “Ever since the Second Vatican Council underlined the pre-eminent role of the word of God in the life of the Church, great progress has certainly been made in devout listening to Sacred Scripture and attentive study of it.” Further on in par. 39 he wrote, “It is especially necessary that listening to the word of God should become a life-giving encounter, in the ancient and ever valid tradition of lectio divina." It is a traditional monastic practice of scriptural reading, meditation and prayer intended to promote communion with God. which draws from the biblical text the living word which questions, directs and shapes our lives.” People sometimes say that when they are praying, they talk to God, but God doesn’t seem to say anything to them. I am inclined to respond by asking, “how can you say that? When you listen to the Scriptures in the Church, God is speaking to you. God is present in his word, and it is he who communicates with you in and through the readings.” Of course, this is equally true when you are reading Scripture in private; God is speaking to you in and through his inspired and inspiring word. As par. 25 of the Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation assures us, “Prayer should accompany the reading of Sacred Scripture, so that God and human beings may talk together; for we speak to him when we pray; we hear him when we read the divine sayings.” The events of everyday life also help us to pray. Not only do they give rise to prayers of petition and intercession, but God’s presence and will can be revealed to us, e.g., by means of something that God says to us in and through another person. As Fr Gerald Manley Hopkins wrote, “ for Christ plays in ten thousand places, Lovely in limbs, and lovely in eyes not his, To the Father through the features of men's faces.” The Catechism says in par 2664 that, “There is no other way of Christian prayer than Christ. Whether our prayer is communal or personal, vocal or interior, it has access to the Father only if we pray ‘in the name’ of Jesus.”
That said, the Church also encourages Christians to pray to Mary and the saints. Catholics believe that praying to Mary and the saints is a form of veneration, not worship. It is much like asking a friend to pray on your behalf. This is rooted in the belief in the Communion of Saints—that all members of the Body of Christ, living and dead, are united in Christ and can intercede for one another. Pope Pius VII declared in 1805: "While the prayers of those in heaven have, it is true, some claim on God's watchful eye, Mary's prayers place their assurance in a mother's right. For that reason, when she approaches her divine Son's throne, as Advocate she begs, as Handmaid she prays, but as Mother she commands." I’m sure that all of us know from lived experience that, “never was it known that anyone who fled to your protection, implored your help, or sought your intercession was left unaided.” In 2 Macc 15:12-16 there is an instance of the dead praying for the living. Jesus' parable of the rich man and Lazarus in Lk 16:19–31 indicates that those who have died can pray for the living. In Rev 5:8, John depicted the saints as symbolically offering our prayers to God in the form of: “golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.”
Jesus learned to pray within the holy family. He learned from his parents and relatives how to sing the psalms, in particular the “Hallel.” Two times a day, Jesus also recited the “Shema Israel” and the prayer of “Shemone Esre.” It is a striking fact that shortly before his departure from Ireland in 1979, Pope St John Paul spoke about the importance of family prayer, not only in Ireland, but all over Europe. “Your homes” he said, “should always remain homes of prayer. As I leave today this island….may I express a wish: that every home in Ireland may remain or may begin again to be a home of daily family prayer. That you would promise me to do this would be the greatest gift you could give me as I leave your hospitable shores.” These words are as relevant now as they were when they were first spoken.
