Continuing his catechesis on Christian prayer, Pope Francis reflects on why and how we should pray in all the events of daily life.
By Robin Gomes
At last week’s General Audience, Pope Francis spoke about how Christian prayer is “anchored” in the liturgy. In this week’s audience, broadcast live from the Apostolic Palace Library, he explains how prayer returns from the liturgy to everyday life situations, such as on the streets, in offices, and on public transportation.
“In essence, everything becomes a part of this dialogue with God,” which is prayer. “Every joy becomes a cause for praise, every attempt is an opportunity to ask for help,” he says. “Prayer,” according to the Pope, “is always alive in life, like a blaze of fire … Even when the mouth does not speak, the heart speaks.”
Any thought, even the seemingly “profane”, can be penetrated by prayer, “which illuminates the few steps before us and then opens to the whole reality that precedes and surpasses it.”
“Christian prayer instills an invincible hope in the heart of man,” the pope said, adding that “whatever experience we have in our journey, the love of God can turn it into good.”
Praying to us today, today
In this regard, Pope Francis quotes the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which says: “We learn to pray at certain times by listening to the Word of the Lord and sharing his Paschal Mystery, but His Spirit is offered to us at all times, in everyday events, to that prayer may come out of us. ” “Time is in the hands of the Father,” says the Catechism, emphasizing, “In the present we meet Him, not yesterday or tomorrow, but today.”
The Pope notes that there are people who look to the future without taking it as it comes today. They live in a world of fantasy and do not know how to live the concrete reality of today.
Prayer transforms us
The Pope says that prayer transforms the day we live in today into grace – or rather, it transforms us.
Prayer “calms anger, sustains love, multiplies joy, and instills the power to forgive.” Grace lives and works in us; the problems we face no longer seem to be obstacles to our happiness, but they turn to God for opportunities to meet Him.
“When you have an angry or unhappy thought that brings bitterness,” the Pope urges, “you should stop and turn to God. The Lord, who is there, will give you the right word and advice to move forward without this negative bitterness. When someone is accompanied by the Lord, he or she feels braver, freer, and also happier. “
For whom to pray?
The Holy Father invites Christians to always pray, not only for their loved ones, but for all, even for those we do not know. “Let us pray even for our enemies, as the Scriptures often invite us to do,” he says, adding, “Prayer inclines us to excessive love.”
He invites us to pray for those who are sad and for those who weep in loneliness and despair, wondering if there is anyone else who loves them. The prayer of a Christian, Pope Francis emphasizes, works miracles by making present the compassion of Christ for the poor.
In fact, Jesus looked tenderly at the weary and lost crowd that was like sheep without a shepherd. Compassion, closeness and tenderness, he emphasizes, are the “style” of the Lord.
We are all sinners loved by God
Pope Francis further explains that prayer helps us to love others, despite their mistakes and sins, emphasizing that the person is always more important than his actions. And Jesus did just that. He did not judge the world, but saved it.
The Holy Father wonders how bad and unhappy life must be for those who always judge and condemn others. Instead, open your hearts, forgive, justify others, be close to others, have compassion and tenderness like Jesus, he urges.
“We must love every person,” the Pope continues, and remember that we are all sinners and “loved by God at the same time.” In this way, “we will discover that every day and everything carries within it a fragment of the mystery of God.”
God’s kingdom of righteousness and peace
The catechism further emphasizes that “it is right and proper to pray that the coming of the kingdom of justice and peace will influence the march of history.” But for this to happen, “it is important to bring the help of prayer in humble, everyday situations; all forms of prayer can be the dough with which the Lord compares the kingdom ”.
In conclusion, Pope Francis notes that we are fragile beings, but we know how to pray, which is the greatest dignity, as well as our power. “Pray every moment and in every situation because the Lord is near,” he urges.
“And when a prayer is made after the heart of Jesus, that prayer works wonders.”