In
my last post, I briefly touched on the actual practice of “praying without ceasing”
that St. Paul wrote specifically in 1 Thessalonians 5:17 and in his epistle to
the Ephesians. I want to continue the discussion on that concept, so as to
elaborate and meditate on the “how” of constant prayer. Does prayer mean to
kneel down in front of a crucifix with hands folded at all times? Does it mean
to never to go bed, but pray all night long? Does it mean to never eat or work
or play? No, it does not mean any of these things strictly. And, yet, the
Church still tells us it is possible to pray without ceasing.
In
Part I, I wrote about how Christian prayer is ultimately an act of humility and
of poverty in spirit. We, who are children of God, come before the Father and
give our hearts to him, through Christ. Our poverty, our need for God, goes
even to the very ability of prayer itself: “We do not know how to pray as we
ought,” Romans 8:26 reads. It is the Spirit who prays for us, from within, and
with us. He is the one who teaches us how to pray. For prayer, the Church tells us, is a gift freely received,
and its foundation is humility. (CCC, 2559)
Humility?
Well, that’s not natural to most of us, is it! And, yet, the Lord asks us to
come before him as children constantly. So, then, the Church knowing that
humility is lacking in most humans, along with patient endurance among other
virtues, recognizes that prayer is a battle. It’s a battle against our
weaknesses, a battle against our selfish desires, a battle against our
spiritual enemies, a battle against our use of our time. What it is not,
though, is a battle against our duties and our life calling.
There are several elements of the
Christian prayer life that are in motion within Catholic theology and
spirituality to help win the battle of prayer. The first is that all things
(that are not sin) can become an act of prayer. The second is the rhythm of
prayer in Catholic life.
The
source of prayer is Christ himself. He is the one who causes all rightful
prayer to be possible, and to put us in right relationship with God. All prayer
is “through him, in him, and with him,” as the priest sings every Mass; it is possible
through Christ’s sacrifice and his cross. In my post “On the Holy Eucharist and Schism,” I wrote that our Christian life has its source and summit in the
Eucharist itself, as we read in the Catechism. The Eucharist is the true
presence of Christ and his once for all sacrifice on Calvary. So, when the
Church says that our prayer life should be an extension of the Liturgy of the
Mass, what she is really saying is that prayer should be an outflow of our
Christian community, which is the Body of Christ, and in union with Christ’s
sacrifice.
Christ
redeemed more than just our souls; he redeemed our lives. He came to bring us
life to the full. St. Paul wrote, “I appeal to you, therefore, brothers and
sisters, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice,
holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. (Rom. 12:1
NRSVCE)” And now we understand that we can offer all our works to the Lord; we
can offer ourselves and our lives up to the Lord in prayer. “This is your
spiritual worship.” This is not a sadistic mentality. This is about giving ourselves
completely to God in every moment.
All
of our works, our joys, even our sufferings can become a part of our prayer,
lifted up to God as an offering. It is all made possible through Christ’s
sacrifice. By being drawn up into his sacrifice, as members of his Body, we can
offer up our entire day. We can offer up each time we go to work. We can offer
up the sweeping of the kitchen floor. We can offer up the bathing and cleaning
up of our children. We can offer up our rejoicings in our relationships. We can
offer up the pain that we suffer in our ailments. We can offer our mourning and
our losses in death. We can offer up the persecution and ridicule that others
throw on us. Every small thing can be lifted up to the Lord, as well as all
great things. St. Therese, the Little Flower, taught us this perfectly.
In
the first Part, I quoted St. Peter, writing that it is a credit to us if,
“while being mindful of God,” we endure suffering. Mindfulness of God is prayer
enough, and to do it while patiently enduring suffering, we can offer it to God
for our own good. First, our mindfulness of God while suffering brings us
closer to Christ in his Passion. Second, it causes us to know him and his love.
Finally, it causes us to love him more and more each time, because we know that
he, too, suffered for us.
Suddenly, all of our tears, our
pains and our sufferings become valuable. He can even use them as instruments
of merit, to bring grace. We must remember, though, that “without love, I am
nothing. (1 Cor. 13)” So, too, if all of our sacrifices or offerings are made
without love, they are nothing. On the other hand, “love covers a multitude of
sins. (1 Pet. 4:8)” Then we see that Christian love, charity, is the greatest
act of self sacrifice. It is the new commandment: “Love one another as I have
loved you.”
Here we come back to the point that
all prayer should be in union with the community of Christ, his Body, the
Church. This is why we pray “Our Father … forgive us our sins, as we forgive
those who sin against us.” Notice the plural – we. Love is always in communion,
never alone or separated from others. Impossible. Our prayer life, then, needs
to be an outflow of love for others and for God, if it will be of any use.
Otherwise, we sound like the prideful Pharisee Jesus spoke of:
“Two men went up to the temple to
pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee,
standing by himself, was praying thus, ‘God, I thank you that I am not like
other people: thieves, rogues, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I
fast twice a week; I give a tenth of all my income.’ But the tax
collector, standing far off, would not even look up to heaven, but was beating
his breast and saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’ I tell
you, this man went down to his home justified rather than the other; for all
who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be
exalted.” (Luke 18:10-14 NRSVCE)
Finally, the rhythm of prayer is the
other element of Catholic spirituality that helps us in our battle to pray
without ceasing. The Church picked up its habits of worship from the Jewish
people. So, as we read in Acts, the early Christians continued some of the same
that they were already doing as Jews previously. They prayed in the Temple
three or more times a day. They would pray the Our Father three times a day, at
least. They would gather on the same day of the week – Sunday – to break bread
and pray together. They prayed and sung the Psalms together, and read the
Scriptures. They did this at prescribed times of the day (first hour, third,
sixth, ninth).
The Liturgy of the Hours is an
extension of the Liturgy of the Mass in its closest form, and consists mostly
of the readings of the Psalms, some other prayers and hymns, said or sung two or more times daily. The
Liturgy of the Hours really became the heart of the Church’s prayer life. It is
mandatory for priests, deacons, and many religious brothers and sisters. For
the laity, it is highly recommended. However, throughout the history of the
Church the laity have more commonly used minor version of the hours, or only
prayed at the certain times of day. For example, the Angelus was prayed three
times daily beginning early in the second millennium. Most lay Catholics that
do attempt to pray the Liturgy of the Hours only pray the major hours -- Morning and Evening.
Add to this daily, monthly and
yearly rhythm of the Psalms a yearly cycle of memorials, feasts and
solemnities, we have a very forceful prayer of the community. Together, we
celebrate major beliefs and events of our faith, like Easter, Christmas, or
those of the Virgin Mary, along with many other celebrated Saints we venerate. Every year we celebrate Lent as a
fasting period. And, finally, there is Ordinary time, as a kind of relaxed preparation period of prayer for the Church.
Through this rhythm, we are helped
along our day and our year to stay in constant prayer. In between the vocal
prayer, we may have mental and contemplative. Perhaps there are times we are
just mindful of God. But overall, the rhythm of the prayer life based on the
Liturgy creates a flow and a guide, a reminder and an encouragement to pray
continually. It is a very, very wonderful help. And it is a bond of our
fellowship in worship.
Catholic spirituality, then, affords
a great many helps to keep us close to God and his family. Through the
Eucharist, our whole lives get drawn up mystically into Christ, and we are able
to offer every moment of our day to God for any praise, thanksgiving,
supplication or intercession. We are given great graces through the rhythmic prayer
of the Church, which draws us up into meditation on the life of Christ and his
Church. And in the midst of it all, if we cooperate with the Spirit, we can be carried into a very deep
relationship with Love itself, who wills us to share in his life, the fullness
of life. Joy upon joy, grace upon grace.
Jesus Christ, Son of God, have
mercy on us sinners.
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