VII — PRAYER

Presence of God. — O Lord, I draw near to you to ask for the true spirit of prayer.

Meditation

1 — Prayer consists essentially in an intimate converse with God, in which the soul seeks his presence in order to converse with Him in friendship and affection. It is the child who wants to converse with his Father; it is the friend who wants to converse with the Friend. In itself, then, prayer is something wholly intimate, wholly interior: “For me” - said St. Therese of the Child Jesus - “prayer is nothing but an impulse of the heart, a simple glance toward heaven, a cry of gratitude and of love both in the midst of sorrow and in the midst of joy” (St. 10, 401). In this sense must be understood the traditional definition of prayer as “elevatio mentis ad Deum,” elevation of the mind to God, and not only of the mind, but also and especially of the heart; an elevation that can consist in a silent movement of the spirit, or can express itself in a cry, in a petition, in a colloquy, and then the other aspects of prayer occur: “pia locutio ad Deum,” “petitio decentium a Deo,” that is, pious conversation with God and trustful request for his graces.

Whatever form it takes, true prayer has nothing complicated, nothing forced: it is the breath of the soul that loves its God; it is the habitual attitude of the heart that tends toward God, seeks Him, wants to live with Him, knows that every good and every help come from Him. Therefore, spontaneously, without even reflecting on it, the soul passes from simple elevation to God to prayer of petition or to intimate colloquy, then returns again to the impulse of the heart, to the glance toward heaven. Understood in this way, prayer is always possible in any circumstance and amid any occupation; not only this, but for a soul that truly loves the Lord, it would be impossible to interrupt it, as it would be impossible to interrupt breathing. And so one understands how all, even those who live amid the business of the world, can fulfill the word of the Gospel: “We must always pray” (Lk. 18, 1). The only necessary condition is a heart that loves, and the stronger and more vigorous this love is, the deeper and more continuous prayer will be.

2 — Although prayer is something so simple, it is not always easy to pray and pray well. This too is an art learned by studying the various forms and various methods of prayer, but still more by applying oneself diligently to prayer itself. While the essence of prayer is always the interior movement, the ascent of heart and mind toward God, the forms, however, are different: there is vocal prayer and mental prayer, discursive prayer and affective prayer, private prayer and liturgical prayer. We shall use one or another first of all according to what our duties require - all Christians, for example, are bound to certain vocal and liturgical prayers such as the recitation of morning and evening prayers, attendance at Holy Mass on Sundays, etc. - and then we shall be free to choose according to the particular attraction of the moment, the particular circumstances, or the needs in which we may find ourselves. All forms are good and can serve to nourish our love for God, provided they truly put us in contact with Him. This is the point we must always watch over, because here is the substance of prayer, and if this substance were to be lacking, the form would serve no purpose and the Lord could say of us: “This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me” (Mt. 15, 8).

Nevertheless, a soul that aspires to divine intimacy will spontaneously orient itself toward a wholly interior form of prayer that facilitates intimate contact with God, silent and deep union. Indeed, all its forms of prayer will take on this particular characteristic of interiority. And thus, through vocal and liturgical prayer as through mental prayer, the soul sets out and disposes itself for an ever more intimate converse with God, until God himself, by loving experience and contemplative light, introduces it into a deeper prayer capable of immersing it in Him.

Colloquy

“Grant, O good Jesus, that in every hour my soul may spread its wings toward you, that my whole life may be nothing but one continuous act of love. Make me understand that the work which does not honor you is dead work. Grant that my piety be not a habit, but a continual impulse of the heart.

“Supreme Goodness, O my Jesus, I ask you for a heart so in love with you that no spectacle may distract it. Grant that, indifferent to all that happens in the world, and desiring only you, I may love what concerns you, but above all may love you, O my God. And my spirit, Lord - oh, my spirit! Grant that, ardent in seeking you, it may find you, Supreme Wisdom!” (St. Thomas).

O Lord, give me a heart that loves you, give me a heart that seeks you without ceasing, a heart that always longs for you and desires nothing but intimate union with you.

“O Lord, may my soul long and yearn for you; for you, living God, may my heart and my senses cry out with desire. As the little bird finds a house and the swallow her nest, so I wish to dwell beside your altars, O Lord of hosts, my King and my God. Blessed are those who in your house can always sing your praises” (cf. Ps. 83, 1-5). I too, from morning until evening, wish to raise in the temple of my heart hymns of praise and love to you, Most High God, who deign to dwell in me. If the tongue is silent, or engaged in other speech, if body and mind are occupied in work, the heart is still free to love you and to tend toward you at every moment, in every action. To you therefore, Lord, I ask this great grace: that in the depths of my spirit I may always be seeking you and uniting to you the affection of my heart.