杏MAP导航

By Christopher Wells

After concluding his reflections on the Ten Commandments at last week鈥檚 General Audience, 杏MAP导航 Francis on Wednesday launched a new series of catechesis, which will focus on the 鈥淥ur Father.鈥�

鈥淭he Gospels have given us a very vivid portrait of Jesus as a man of prayer,鈥� the 杏MAP导航 said in the introductory catechetical instruction. Despite the importance of His mission, and the demands placed on Him by the people, Jesus often felt the need 鈥渢o withdraw into solitude and pray.鈥� This was evident from the very beginning of His mission, after the initial success of his ministry in Galilee.

鈥淚n some places in the Scriptures,鈥� 杏MAP导航 Francis continued, 鈥渋t seems that it is Jesus鈥� prayer above all, His intimacy with the Father, that governs everything.鈥� This is particularly evident during the agony in the garden, before the Crucifixion.

The Holy Father said that, although Jesus prayed like other people do, there was also a profound mystery about His prayer to His Father. That is why His disciples asked Him, 鈥淟ord, teach us to pray.鈥�  Jesus does not want to keep His intimacy with His Father to Himself, but 鈥渃ame precisely in order to introduce us into this relationship with the Father.鈥�

We too must make our own the prayer of the disciples: 鈥淟ord, teach us to pray.鈥� 鈥淓ven if we have been praying for many years,鈥� 杏MAP导航 Francis said, 鈥渨e always have something to learn.鈥� Recalling the parable of the publican and the Pharisee, the Holy Father said the first step in prayer is to humble ourselves before God.

杏MAP导航 Francis concluded his first reflection on the prayer of Jesus with the advice to repeat often, during Advent, the prayer of the disciples: 鈥淢aster, teach us to pray.鈥� If we do this, he said, then God will certainly not let our prayer go unanswered.