CAPG's Blog 

Saint Angela Merici (1474-1540) as a teacher, devotional picture (pastel on paper) by Pietro Calzavacca (1855-1890), Merician Museum, Brescia, Italy.

The Beauty of Catholic Prayer: If we understand well that which is admirable and beautiful in Catholic prayer, we should always pray. This is why I am about to unfold to you, my child, as far as possible to one whose intelligence is yet confined to earth, the magnificence of prayer, I am about to speak to you of its Catholic and Divine character, and of its supernatural principle. Tomorrow I will speak of its infallible efficacy.

The prayer of the children of the Church is a Catholic prayer, that is to say, when you pray it is not only you who pray, but the whole Church with you. The Church is a family, whose members are united by faith, and by the love of our Lord, so that all are but as one. There is amongst them a communion of spiritual things, so that all good works done in the Church, and all the holy dispositions which grace produces, profit each of her children. When, therefore, you pray do not consider yourself isolated on the earth, but say to God, "Lord, I am a child of the Church, I unite myself to it, soliciting your mercy. Each moment of the day she offers the Divine victim, and from her altars the prayers of all her children ascend. I trust then that Thou wilt hear my prayers, since they are supported by all the members of Thy Holy Church."

(Fr. Reilly note: It must not be forgotten that the sun rises each moment on certain quarters of the globe, whilst at the same time he sets in others, thus when he sets here he rises in different regions in America, and there is not one moment of the day or night in which there are not a great many priests, at many altars, offering the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. There are celebrated in the Church nearly two thousand masses in the day, more than four thousand for every half-hour of the day or night")

Catholic prayer is infallibly efficacious: I have shown you, my child, the character of truly Catholic and Christian prayer, so that you will understand our Lord's words: "Ask and you shall receive, whatever you ask the Father in my name He will give it you." These words are words of life, they have proceeded from the lips of truth itself. Every persevering and supernatural prayer then must be heard, persevering, because our Lord had made this condition supernatural, because without this no prayer can be offered in the name of the Lord.

A few explanations will show you why we sometimes complain of not being heard. We ask for instance for temporal advantages, which we value above the will of God. We ask for health, or for riches and we long so for these advantages, that we desire to possess them at any price, and would procure them for ourselves if we could, though even there would be reason to believe they would be injurious to the soul. It is clear that in this case the will of him who prays is bad, consequently the prayer which offends God does not proceed from the Holy Ghost; it is not the work of grace, but the fruit of cupidity, of a disorderly attachment to the goods of earth. It is not made in the name of Our Lord, it is not supernatural, or Catholic. Such a prayer had not for its end to become more holy, and such ought to be the end of every supernatural prayer. Consider that our Lord came upon earth in order to detach mankind from earthly things and raise their hearts towards heaven; if then He had engaged to grant temporal blessings to those who desired them, He would have destroyed His work and would have contradicted Himself.

You have, perhaps, prayed for the health or the preservation of one who is dear to you, with a true submission to the Divine will, nevertheless you say that which you have begged for, that prayer which you made with so many tears has not been heard. You are mistaken, my child for you asked for what was best for you, or for those whom you recommended to God; and you may rest certain that God has granted you what was best in His sight. But you will still say, how shall I be sure of this? Ah, my daughter, rest assured that the boundless goodness of God, your true friend and father, who possesses a heart, as He Himself says, more tender than that of a mother, and who is infinitely holy, will never be faithless to His promises.

Frequently we wish to be heard as soon as our prayer is offered. If we have made a Novena very frequently, as we believe, and at the end of our prayer we do not obtain the favor we have asked, we become discouraged and cease to pray. But depend upon it, my child, that if God makes you wait it is in mercy, and I will illustrate this by an example probably known to you.

Saint Monica prayed for her son, who had strayed far from a virtuous life, but the more she prayed the more distant seemed the conversion of Augustine. The pious mother redoubled her prayers, her tears, and her alms, and it was only after twenty years passed in these pious practices that her prayer was heard. What would have happened had she ceased to pray after a few days? Probably one of two things. She herself would not have been pious, fervent and given up to good works, as she was all her life, in the hope of obtaining the conversion of her son. Once heard, she would perhaps soon have forgotten this benefit, as frequently is the case. Who knows even if she would have worked out her own salvation; at all events, it is probable that she owes her great sanctity to the delay of Divine Providence, in hearing her prayer.

It is not at all unlikely that she owes to this delay the great holiness of Saint Augustine; had her prayer been at once heard her son would probably have become an ordinary christian; but twenty years of prayers, tears, and good works shed a torrent of grace over this long rebellious soul; and Augustine became a holy Bishop and one of the most illustrious doctors of the Church. He did an immense deal of good during his life, and left his example to us to follow, and his writings also which will continue to do good till time shall be no more."