A Beacon Of Light… The Tradition Of Prayer
By FR. RICHARD D. BRETON JR.
(Editor’s Note: Fr. Richard D. Breton Jr. is a priest of the Diocese of Norwich, Conn. He received his BA in religious studies and his MA in dogmatic theology from Holy Apostles College and Seminary in Cromwell, Conn.)
- + + Last week I ended our column by saying that we were going to begin to explore the Lord’s Prayer. I need to place that on pause, because I inadvertently overlooked two important sections on prayer that pertain to the Tradition of Prayer and the Life of Prayer. In order to fully understand the importance of the Lord’s Prayer, we must first look at these two sections. After we have completed these sections, then we can return to the Lord’s Prayer.
The last section of the Catechism is dedicated to Christian prayer and is broken down into two sections. Section one is divided into three chapters. The first chapter we already focused on. It dealt with the Revelation of prayer in the Old and New Testaments and in the Age of the Church. Prayer, as revealed in the Old Testament, began in creation, and continued through various biblical figures and prophets. This became the foundation through which prayer would grow. This transformation, or growth, led us to a better understanding of prayer’s role in moments of blessings, adoration, petition, intercession, thanksgiving, and praise.
Chapter two of this section sets the stage for us to be able to understand the Our Father. Here we are presented with an understanding of the Tradition of Prayer. This “Tradition of Prayer” is essential because it is how prayer would have been taught to Jesus. Even though Jesus was Divine, He still participated in our human nature and would have been taught the ancient traditions of prayer. We, in turn, must understand this as well.
Understanding the Tradition of Prayer requires us to recognize a certain movement that exists within. So often we reduce prayer to a “spontaneous outpouring of interior impulses.” Prayer must involve “the will to pray.” This can be likened to a symphony. In a symphony there are many musicians. If each played with a spontaneous outpouring of impulses, it would probably leave a lot to be desired. If each, however, has the “will” to play together listening to all the other parts, what emerges is a masterpiece.
Prayer is the same way. It is not enough to know the Sacred Scriptures and the history of prayer; we need to pray. The Tradition of prayer is “living transmission” in which the Holy Spirit guides the believing and praying Church and teaches God’s children how to pray. The tradition of Christian prayer is one of the ways the faith takes shape and finds its root within the hearts of believers.
Like traditions, prayer must be living, if it is going to be beneficial to our souls. Prayer finds its life within the wellspring of the Holy Spirit who is the “living water that wells within.” The Holy Spirit is the One who leads us on the path of life and assists us in our prayers.
Primarily the Holy Spirit acts as the “first wellspring.” There are, however, other wellsprings to assist us in our prayer. These include: the Word of God, the Liturgy of the Church, and the Theological Virtues.
It is fitting and supremely important that the Word of God has a prominent place in our life of prayer. Prayer cannot be accomplished unless there exists some kind of relationship. For us as Catholic Christians, our relationship exists in Jesus Christ. Like any relationship, there must include a time of getting to know each other. We come to know Christ through the Divine Word. The Word of God is nothing new because it has been used throughout the history of salvation to establish a relationship with humanity.
From the moments of creation, in the darkness of the great abyss, the Word of God was spoken, and God created. The formless void was transformed into living things: land, ocean, plants, animals, and man. Thus, knowing and loving God requires us to study the Sacred Word where we are invited to fall in love with God Himself. God already loves us, we now have to fall in love with the One who speaks.
Recognizing the divine importance of the word of God, and falling in love with Him was paramount in the lives of the saints and spiritual writers. When we think about the spiritual writers, the revelation they received was a confirmation of the importance the word plays in the faith. Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John heard and participated in the word of God. They took the Word, revealed by the Father through the Son united with the Holy Spirit, and wrote it down for us. This is important because it gives us the opportunity to then study and focus on our relationship with Christ. We owe a debt of gratitude to these followers of Christ for enabling us to fall in love by learning and praying with the Word of God.
The Narrow Gate
Another way in which we grow in our ability to pray is through the Liturgy of the Church. The sacramental life of the liturgy of the Church proclaims, makes present, and communicates the mystery of our salvation. This allows the wellspring of faith within us to be more directed in prayer and to strengthen our hearts. The spiritual writers sometimes compare a heart to an Altar. Prayer from the heart involves a sacrifice, in the same way that Christ is offered as a sacrifice on the Altar. Prayer internalizes and assimilates the liturgy, and in doing so we gain a deeper understanding and love for the Heart of Christ.
Entering into prayer during the liturgy involves entering the narrow gate of faith. This narrow gate of faith is opened to us during the Sacrament of Baptism. In Baptism we are blessed to receive the Theological Virtues. These virtues are essential in understanding how to pray.
Faith is the first virtue. Faith allows us to come to know who God is. It can be likened to being asked out on a date. Faith invites us to begin the journey of love with the Lord. As it is revealed to us, little by little, our desire and love grow. Soon we find ourselves entirely focused on God. All we think of is our beloved.
Hope is the second of the theological virtues. Here, hope increases our desire to one day spend our whole lives with the Lord. This is not unlike a couple who falls deeply in love. Soon there evolves a desire to spend every waking minute with the one we have come to love. The virtue of hope is precisely that! But, for us as Catholics, this hope is even more desirous because it leads us to eternity with God forever. Hope doesn’t disappoint but draws us closer to the realm of Heaven.
The third theological virtue is love. Here we experience the culmination of our relationship with the beloved. There is such a desire, such a sense of hope, that our love for each other grows. There develops a “oneness” that cannot be broken. God fills us with “divine love” and calls us to reciprocate this by loving Him in return.
St. John Vianney
One example of this reciprocal love is seen in the life of the Curé of Ars, St. John Vianney. St. John Vianney was a simple priest who endured great struggles. For him, the only way to battle these struggles was through living a life of devout prayer.
There existed a great love between this humble simple priest and the Lord that is evident in a simple prayer he prayed:
“I love you, O my God, and my only desire is to love you until the last breath of my life. I love you, O my infinitely lovable God, and I would rather die loving you, than live without loving you. I love you, Lord, and the only grace I ask is to love you eternally. . . . My God, if my tongue cannot say in every moment that I love you, I want my heart to repeat it to you as often as I draw breath” (Prayer of St. John Vianney).
This must be the kind of love we have each day for the Lord.
Where do we go from here and what does this mean for us? From here we return to the depths of our hearts and examine our relationship with the Lord. We need to look for moments in our relationship where we failed in loving God. Moving forward, we need to increase our lives of prayer and focus more on the divine relationship we have with God. Failure to do so means we have failed the beloved Lord.
Next week we will focus on the way of prayer and guides for praying. Until then, keep praying!