We have now reached the fourth installment dedicated to prayer; on this journey, we are guided by Father Patrizio Sciadini, who invites us today to reflect on the “recipients” of our prayer. We will therefore ask ourselves what and for whom it is good to pray.
We pray for everyone
First of all, we should remember the absolutely inclusive nature of prayer: «We pray for everyone: those who pray discriminate against no one and exclude no one, but include everyone. It is beautiful to be silent within ourselves and present, like an ever-open litany, all the people for whom we wish to pray».
Prayer is a thread of love that keeps us united with our deceased loved ones
Prayer for the deceased is particularly dear to the Catholic Church: our faith makes us feel united with the souls of those we have loved; we know that we can pray for them and that they can intercede for us, in a gentle dialogue that transcends every distance.
Moreover, as Father Patrizio reminds us, «devotion to the souls in Purgatory is deeply felt in the Church»: our prayer can help them on their journey of purification, just as their intercession is powerful for us.
How to pray for the sick?
Faced with the suffering caused by an illness for which there is no hope, we are sometimes humanly tempted to think that death might be a relief from so much suffering. Then the question naturally arises: can we pray while wishing for the death of someone who is suffering? Father Patrizio also offers realistic and concrete guidance on this: «The first thing we should ask for the sick is healing, so that they may return to their activities and continue doing good. However, when doctors tell us that there is no longer any hope of recovery, we can ask the Lord, always according to his will, that in his love he may put an end to the person's suffering through death. After all, death, for those of us who believe, is not the end of everything, but the beginning of a new life in the fullness of eternal joy».
A challenge: praying for our enemies
Christians are also called to a challenge that reveals the full, astonishing novelty of the Gospel: praying for our enemies, that is, responding with good to those who harm us.
Our hearts and minds resist on a human level, so to have the strength to do this, we must rely solely on faith: “We cannot pray for our enemies with feeling, nor with emotional empathy. We can do so only thanks to faith, which pushes us beyond what our intelligence does not understand or even rejects. The first thing to ask is that we, as Christians, do not consider anyone our enemy and that our enemies may be converted and have life in its fullness.”
“No one is saved alone” - Pope Francis insists on this, and prayer is a good way to understand it: prayer is a bridge that keeps us united with our loved ones, but also with those we feel distant from or whom our hearts are tempted to reject; prayer is an invitation to respond with love, always and in every circumstance.
Let us try to live it this way, and we will rediscover all the strength that prayer carries within itself.
If you wish, continue sharing your experience of prayer with us! In the next article, we will address this question: Can there be people who do not pray?
