"I would like to speak to you about the call to prayer.
We have meditated on these words of Jesus: “Pray that you may have strength... to stand before the Son of man.” And we welcome again today the call to prayer that comes from Christ himself to each of us and to the whole Church. The call to prayer places the Church’s full commitment in the proper perspective. In 1976, Paul VI. speaking of the “call to commitment,” declared that “In the tradition of the Church every call to action is first of all a call to prayer.” These words have great significance today, too. They are a stimulus for the Church everywhere in the world.
The universal Church of Christ, and hence every particular church, exists for prayer. In prayer the individual expresses his nature; the community expresses its vocation; the Church approaches God. In prayer the Church enters into communion with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ. In prayer the Church expresses her Trinitarian Life, because it is directed to the Father, is subjected to the action of the Holy Spirit, and lives fully the relationship with Christ. Indeed, it is experienced as the Body of Christ, as mystical Christ." John Paul II The Church Exists for Prayer
Prayer, then, is the true stimulus package, the source of our hope, the engine of our faith. Prayer is not an accessory to the Christian walk, but the essence of the walk itself. We can not be men for Christ if we are not first men of prayer. How then do we pray?
Prayer at it's core should be intuitive. Prayer is a "built-in" feature, a capacity created into us. Unfortunately, most of us have not exercised this natural ability to anywhere near it potential. Fortunately for us, our God is tenacious in his will to relate with us. Our first prayer can be "Lord, teach me to pray."
Types of prayer - The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines prayer as "a surge of the heart . . . a simple look turned toward heaven, . . . a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy." When our heart "surges" and looks "toward heaven" the occasion of the prayer defines it's type. The Catechism lists five types of prayer: blessing & adoration, petition, intercession, thanksgiving, & praise. For a compact consideration of these types of prayer, check out the article on prayer at Cyberfaith.
CatholicMenToday.org has a podcast by Fr. Benedict J. Groeschel, CFR Ed.D. titled The Art of Prayer. Click Here for the link.
To read Why Men Don't Pray by Fr. Thomas D. Williams, LC, Click Here.
Just Do It. Pray now. Pray alone and pray in community. The following links provide opportunites online to submit your own prayer intentions or to join your prayers to the intentions of others:
National Fellowship of Catholic Men
Our Lady of Refuge parish holds a weekly prayer meeting. Find information on time and location Here.
Our Lady of Refuge Catholic Men's Fellowship also has a prayer outreach. For information, or to request prayer support from our ministry, email olrcmenf@ourladyofrefuge.org.
No comments:
Post a Comment