What it takes to pray well - Part 1

It has been a few months since I posted anything on the Rosary Board. During this time I have been reflecting on what it means to pray well. Over the next several installments I will be sharing on this subject and how we as Christians need to conduct ourselves.

Forgiving and Forgiveness

As the Lord’s prayer states, “forgive us our debts as we also have forgiven our debtors . . . For if you forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father also will forgive you; but if you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses (Matt. 6:12, 14-15). “This petition is so important that it is the only one to which the Lord returns and which he develops explicitly in the Sermon on the Mount.” (CCC 2841)

Each section of the Rosary begins with an “Our Father” prayer. In it, “With bold confidence, we began praying to our Father. In begging him that his name be hallowed, we were in fact asking him that we ourselves might be always made more holy.” (CCC 2839) In order for us to become holy we must forgive others as well as ask forgiveness from others. Otherwise our hearts will not be opened to God’s grace. (CCC 2840) The Sermon on the Mount sheds light on this point: “So if you are offering your gift at the alter, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the alter and go: first be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.” (Matt. 5:23-24) Forgiveness and forgiving ultimately affects our worship of God in prayer, and especially our participation in the Mass. How we treat our neighbor reflects our love for God. St. John states, “If any one says, “I love God,” and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, cannot love God whom he has not seen. And this commandment we have from him, that he who loves God should love his brother also.” (1 John 4:20-21)

God forgives us as we forgive our neighbor. In like manner a merciful person will receive God’s mercy (Matt. 5:7). “It is impossible to keep the Lord’s commandment by imitating the divine model from outside; there has to be a vital participation, coming from the depths of the heart, in the holiness and the mercy and the love of God. Only the Spirit by whom we live can make “ours” the same mind that was in Christ Jesus. Then the unity of forgiveness becomes possible and we find ourselves “forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave” us. (CCC 2842)

At this time, I would like to recommend a wonderful book by Fr. Lawrence G. Lovasik entitled, “The Hidden Power of . . . Kindness: A Practical Handbook for Souls who Dare to Transform the World, One Deed at a Time”. Fr. Lawrence knows what he is talking about. I will be sharing some quotes from this book in future posts.

Ave Maria!

Praise be Jesus Christ!

Resources:

Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition, Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1994.

All Bible quotations from the Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition, Oxford University Press, New York, NY, 2006.