534. What is prayer? (part 3 continuation)
(Comp 534 repetition) Prayer is the raising of one’s mind and heart to God, or the petition of
good things from him in accord with his will. It is always the gift of God who
comes to encounter man. Christian prayer is the personal and living
relationship of the children of God with their Father who is infinitely good,
with his Son Jesus Christ, and with the Holy Spirit who dwells in their hearts.
“In brief”
(CCC 2590) "Prayer is
the raising of one's mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things
from God" (St. John Damascene, De
fide orth. 3, 24: PG 94, 1089C).
To deepen and
explain
(CCC 2562) Where does
prayer come from? Whether prayer is expressed in words or gestures, it is the
whole man who prays. But in naming the source of prayer, Scripture speaks sometimes
of the soul or the spirit, but most often of the heart (more than a thousand
times). According to Scripture, it is the heart
that prays. If our heart is far from God, the words of prayer are in vain. (CCC 2563) The heart is the dwelling-place where I
am, where I live; according to the Semitic or Biblical expression, the heart is
the place "to which I withdraw." The heart is our hidden center,
beyond the grasp of our reason and of others; only the Spirit of God can fathom
the human heart and know it fully. The heart is the place of decision, deeper
than our psychic drives. It is the place of truth, where we choose life or
death. It is the place of encounter, because as image of God we live in
relation: it is the place of covenant.
Reflection
(CCC 2565) In the New
Covenant, prayer is the living relationship of the children of God with their
Father who is good beyond measure, with his Son Jesus Christ and with the Holy
Spirit. The grace of the Kingdom is "the union of the entire holy and
royal Trinity … with the whole human spirit" (St. Gregory of Nazianzus, Oratio, 16, 9: PG 35, 945). Thus, the
life of prayer is the habit of being in the presence of the thrice-holy God and
in communion with him. This communion of life is always possible because, through
Baptism, we have already been united with Christ (Cf. Rom 6:5). Prayer is Christian insofar as it is communion
with Christ and extends throughout the Church, which is his Body. Its
dimensions are those of Christ's love (Cf. Eph 3:18-21). [END]
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