杏MAP导航

By Devin Watkins

鈥淐hristian prayer does not close its eyes on life,鈥� said 杏MAP导航 Francis. 鈥淚t is a filial prayer, not an infantile one.鈥�

The Holy Father made those remarks in the catechesis portion of his weekly General Audience.

Reflecting on the final petition of the Lord鈥檚 prayer, he said Jesus invites us to ask God to 鈥渄eliver us from evil鈥� because 鈥渓ife is fraught with difficulty.鈥�

鈥淚f these last lines of the Our Father were excluded, how could sinners, the persecuted, and desperate and dying souls pray?鈥� he asked.

Ever-present evil

杏MAP导航 Francis then reflected at length on the presence of evil in the world.

He said the word used in the original Greek (蟺慰谓畏蟻蠈蟼) evokes 鈥渢he presence of evil that seeks to grab hold and bite at us, and from which we ask God for delivery.鈥�

鈥淗istory books are a bleak catalogue of how our existence in this world has often been a failed adventure.鈥�

There is a mysterious evil, he said, 鈥渨hich is surely not the work of God, but which silently penetrates the folds of history.鈥�

Prayer exposes wickedness

But, the 杏MAP导航 noted, the person who prays is not blind and sees clearly that evil is in contradiction with the mystery of God.

鈥淭he last cry of the Our Father is hurled against this evil,鈥� he said, 鈥渨hich encompasses the most diverse experiences, including mourning, the suffering of innocents, slavery, the exploitation of others, and the cries of innocent children.鈥�

Covering the full range of evil, the Lord鈥檚 prayer is like 鈥渁 symphony that seeks to be fulfilled in each of us.鈥�

Peace flows from Jesus鈥� prayer

杏MAP导航 Francis said Jesus鈥� experience of death on the cross fulfilled the prayer he taught his disciples: 鈥淔ather forgive them for they know not what they do.鈥� No matter how much we are subjected to wickedness, Jesus will be at our side to save us.

鈥淛esus鈥� prayer leaves us the most precious inheritance: the presence of the Son of God who delivers us from evil,鈥� he said.

鈥淔rom Jesus鈥� forgiveness on the cross flows peace. True peace comes from the cross; it is the gift of the Risen One.鈥�