Prayer: What It Is
A couple weeks ago we looked at what prayer is not, the misconceptions and myths we have about prayer. This week, we’ll examine prayer more directly through a few definitions that the Catechism of the Catholic Church gives us (paragraphs 2558-2565). The compilers of the Catechism had 2,000 years worth of material to pull from, so what they choose tells us a lot about what the Church thinks about prayer.
St. John of Damascus, an 8th century monk from Syria, gives us a first definition: “Prayer is the raising of one’s mind and heart to God or the requesting of good things from God.” John gives us a simple and practical definition that focuses on our work of turning our attention toward God above in conversation. For however long or short, when we turn toward God with the thoughts of our mind or the emotions of our heart, we are praying. This also means that prayer is not a strictly intellectual activity that requires a lot of brainpower. The turning of one’s heart toward God is equally beloved by our Creator. The mention of requesting good things from God (petition) is key to our relationship with God as good Father, upon whom we as children depend. Though the goal of prayer is to move beyond childish attitudes toward God, we should never try to escape from our need for God.
St. Thérèse of Lisieux, a 19th century Carmelite nun from France, gives us a second definition: “For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned toward heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy.” Thérèse brings this childlikeness to the front in a definition that sounds a lot like the emotion a child has for a traveling parent who enters the front door. It’s not a studied or Stoic response, “Greetings Mother, I hope you had a nice trip. Let me tell you some of the things I’ve been up to.” It’s running into their arms with a surge of the heart and a simple look, a cry of recognition and of love. Importantly, prayer embraces both trial and joy as a constant flow of communication between us and God. Just as we wouldn’t hold back good news or bad news from a close friend or beloved parent, so our prayer must be consistent whether we are happy or sad, elated or downcast, excited or anxious on any given day. Thérèse encourages us not to be scared or intimidated by prayer; just look toward God!
One thing often not mentioned about prayer is how God precedes and accompanies our prayer with his grace. We may feel that our turn toward God is spontaneous and free-spirited, but the Holy Spirit often inspires us to gaze upward toward God with our heart and mind and recognize him in our daily lives. He’s been there the whole time, but sometimes he chooses to poke us so we pay attention. Thank God that he does that, or we might never look up!