Our prayers are so dear to God that He has appointed the Angels to present them to Him as soon as they are made by us.
The Angels, says St. Hilary, praesunt Fidelium Orationibus, et eas quotidie Deo offerunt (preside over the prayers of the faithful, and offer them daily to God). This is precisely that sacred smoke of incense — that is, the prayers of the Saints — which St. John saw ascend to the Lord, offered to Him by the hands of the Angels (Rev. 8). And elsewhere (Rev. 5) the same holy Apostle writes that the prayers of the Saints are like so many golden vials, full of sweet odors and most pleasing to God. But to better understand how much prayers avail with God, it suffices to read in the Divine Scriptures the innumerable promises that God makes to those who pray, both in the Old and in the New Testament: Clama ad me, et exaudiam te (Cry to Me, and I will hear you) (Jer. 33:3). Invoca me, et eruam te (Call upon Me, and I will deliver you) (Ps. 49:15). Petite, et dabitur vobis; quaerite, et invenietis; pulsate, et aperietur vobis (Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you) (Matt. 7:7). Dabit bona petentibus se (He will give good things to those who ask Him) (Matt. 7:11). Omnis enim qui petit accipit, et qui quaerit invenit (For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds) (Luke 11:10). De omni re, quamcumque petierint, fiet illis a Patre meo (Concerning anything whatsoever they shall ask, it shall be done for them by My Father) (Matt. 18:19). Omnia quaecumque orantes petitis, credite, quia accipietis, et evenient vobis (All things whatsoever you ask in prayer, believe that you shall receive, and they shall come to you) (Mark 11:24). Si quid petieritis me in nomine meo hoc faciam (If you ask Me anything in My name, this I will do) (John 14:14). Quodcumque volueritis, petetis, et fiet vobis (Whatever you will, you shall ask, and it shall be done for you) (John 15:7). Amen, amen dico vobis: si quid petieritis Patrem in nomine meo dabit vobis (Amen, amen, I say to you: if you ask the Father anything in My name, He will give it to you) (John 16:23). And there are a thousand other similar texts, which are omitted for brevity.
God wills that we be saved, but for our greater good He wills that we be saved as conquerors. Since, then, we are in this life, we must live in a continual warfare, and to be saved we must fight and conquer. Nullus sine victoria poterit coronari (No one can be crowned without victory), says St. John Chrysostom. We are very weak, and the enemies are many and most powerful: how shall we be able to withstand them and overcome them? Let us take courage, and let each one say with the Apostle: Omnia possum in eo qui me confortat (I can do all things in Him who strengthens me) (Phil. 4:13). We shall be able to do all things by prayer, by means of which the Lord will give us that strength which we do not have. Theodoret wrote that prayer is omnipotent; it is but one, yet it can obtain all things: Oratio, cum sit una, omnia potest (Prayer, though it is one, can do all things). And St. Bonaventure asserted that by prayer is obtained the acquisition of every good and escape from every evil: Per ipsam impetratur obtentio omnis boni, et liberatio ab omni malo (By it is obtained the possession of every good, and deliverance from every evil). St. Lawrence Justinian used to say that by means of prayer we build for ourselves a most strong tower, where we shall be defended and secure from all the snares and violence of the enemies: Per Orationis exercitium secum arcem erigere valet homo (By the exercise of prayer man can raise up a fortress for himself). The powers of hell are strong, but prayer is stronger (says St. Bernard) than all the demons: Oratio Daemonibus omnibus praevalet (Prayer prevails over all the demons). Yes, because by prayer the soul obtains the divine aid, which surpasses every created power. Thus did David encourage himself in his fears: I (he said) will call upon my Lord for aid, and I shall be delivered from all my enemies: Laudans invocabo Dominum, et ab inimicis meis salvus ero (Praising, I will call upon the Lord, and I shall be saved from my enemies) (Ps. 17:4). In short, says St. John Chrysostom: Magna armatura precatio, tutela, portus, et thesaurus (Prayer is a great armor, a protection, a harbor, and a treasure). Prayer is a weapon able to overcome every assault of the demons; it is a defense that preserves us in every danger; it is a harbor that saves us from every storm; and it is at the same time a treasure that provides us with every good.
God, knowing the great good that the necessity of praying brings us, for this end (as was said in Chapter I) permits us to be assailed by the enemies, so that we may ask Him for the help that He offers us and promises us. But as much as He is pleased when we have recourse to Him in dangers, so much does it displease Him to see us neglectful in praying. Just as the king, says St. Bonaventure, would esteem unfaithful that captain who, finding himself besieged in the citadel, did not seek help from him: Reputaretur infidelis, nisi expectaret a Rege auxilium (He would be reckoned unfaithful if he did not look for aid from the king), so God considers Himself, as it were, betrayed by him who, seeing himself beset by temptations, does not have recourse to Him for help, while He desires and is waiting to be asked, in order to succor him abundantly. Isaiah indeed declared this when, on God's behalf, he told King Ahaz to ask Him for some sign, in order to be assured of the help that the Lord wished to give him: Pete tibi signum a Domino Deo tuo (Ask a sign for yourself of the Lord your God) (Isa. 7:11-13). The wicked king replied: Non petam, et non tentabo Dominum (I will not ask, and I will not tempt the Lord). I will not ask it, because I will not tempt God. He said this because he trusted in his own strength to overcome the enemies without the divine aid. But the Prophet then reproved him: Audite ergo Domus David, numquid parum vobis est molestos esse hominibus, quia molesti estis et Deo meo? (Hear, therefore, O house of David: is it too little for you to be troublesome to men, that you are troublesome also to my God?) Thereby signifying to us that one who neglects to ask God for the graces that the Lord offers him becomes troublesome and offensive to God.
Venite ad me omnes, qui laboratis, et onerati estis, et ego reficiam vos (Come to Me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you) (Matt. 11:28). My poor children, says the Savior, who find yourselves harassed by the enemies and oppressed by the weight of your sins, do not lose heart; have recourse to Me in prayer, and I will give you strength to resist, and will provide a remedy for all your misfortunes. In another place He says through the mouth of Isaiah: Venite, et arguite me (dicit Dominus), si fuerint peccata vestra ut coccinum, quasi nix dealbabuntur (Come, and accuse Me, says the Lord: if your sins be as scarlet, they shall be made white as snow) (Isa. 1:18). Men (He says), have recourse to Me; and even though your consciences were deeply stained, do not fail to come, and I give you leave even to reproach Me (so to speak) if, after you have had recourse to Me, I do not cause you by My grace to become white as snow. What is prayer? Let us hear Chrysostom: Oratio est fluctuantibus anchora, pauperum thesaurus, morborum curatio, custodia sanitatis (Prayer is an anchor for those tossed by the waves, a treasure of the poor, a cure of diseases, a guardian of health). Prayer is a sure anchor for one who is in danger of shipwreck; it is an immense treasure of riches for one who is poor; it is a most efficacious medicine for one who is sick; and it is a certain safeguard for one who wishes to preserve himself in health. What does prayer do? Let us hear St. Lawrence Justinian: Placat Deum, postulata reportat, adversarios superat, immutat homines (It appeases God, obtains what is asked, overcomes adversaries, transforms men). Prayer appeases the wrath of God, who forgives him who prays to Him with humility; it obtains the grace of all that is asked; it overcomes all the powers of the enemies; in short, it changes men from blind to enlightened, from weak to strong, from sinners into saints. Let him who needs light ask it of God, and it will be given him: as soon as I had recourse to God, said Solomon, He granted me wisdom: Invocavi, et venit in me spiritus sapientiae (I called upon God, and the spirit of wisdom came upon me) (Wis. 7:7). Let him who needs fortitude ask it of God, and it will be bestowed upon him: as soon as I opened my mouth to pray, said David, I received help from God: Os meum aperui, et attraxi spiritum (I opened my mouth, and drew in the spirit) (Ps. 118:134). And how did the holy Martyrs acquire such great fortitude to resist the tyrants, if not by prayer, which obtained for them the vigor to overcome torments and death?
He who avails himself, in short, of this great weapon of prayer, says St. John Chrysostom: Nescit mortem, relinquit terras, Caelos intrat, convivit Deo (He knows not death, he leaves the earth, he enters heaven, he dwells with God). He does not fall into sin, he loses his attachment to the earth, he enters to dwell in heaven, and he begins already in this life to enjoy the conversation of God. What good is it, then, for anyone to distress himself by saying: Who knows whether I am written or not in the book of life? Who knows whether God will give me efficacious grace and perseverance? Nihil solliciti sitis, sed in omni oratione, et obsecratione, cum gratiarum actione, petitiones vestrae innotescant apud Deum (Be solicitous about nothing, but in every prayer and supplication, with thanksgiving, let your petitions be made known to God).
What good is it, says the Apostle, to perplex yourselves amid these anguishes and fears? Come, cast away from yourselves all these anxieties, which serve only to lessen your confidence and to make you more tepid and slothful in walking the way of salvation. Pray, seek always, and make your prayers heard by God, and always thank Him for the promises He has made you of granting you the gifts you desire (provided you ask Him for them): efficacious grace, perseverance, salvation, and all that you desire. The Lord has placed us in the battle to fight against powerful enemies, but He is faithful in His promises, nor does He suffer us to be assailed beyond what we are able to resist: Fidelis autem Deus est, qui non patietur vos tentari supra id quod potestis (But God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that which you are able) (1 Cor. 10:13). He is faithful, for He at once succors him who invokes Him. The most learned and eminent Cardinal Gotti writes that the Lord is not otherwise bound always to give us a grace equal to the temptation; but He is obliged, when we are tempted and have recourse to Him, to supply us through grace (which He holds prepared and offers to all) with sufficient strength whereby we can actually resist the temptation: Tenetur
Deus, cum tentamur, nobis ad Eum confugientibus per gratiam a Deo paratam et oblatam vires adfuturas praebere, et qua possimus resistere, et actu resistamus; omnia enim possumus in Eo, qui nos confortat per gratiam, si humiliter petamus (God is bound, when we are tempted, to furnish us who flee to Him, through the grace prepared and offered by God, with the strength that will be at hand, by which we both can resist and actually do resist; for we can do all things in Him who strengthens us by grace, if we humbly ask). We can do all things with the divine aid, which is given to everyone who humbly asks for it; hence we have no excuse when we let ourselves be overcome by temptation. We are conquered solely through our own fault, because we do not pray. By prayer all the snares and forces of the enemies are indeed overcome: Per Orationem cuncta noxia effugantur (By prayer all harmful things are put to flight), wrote
St. Augustine.
St. Bernardine of Siena says that prayer is a faithful ambassadress, well known to the King of heaven, and wont to enter even into His private chamber, and by her importunity to bend the merciful heart of the King to grant every succor to us poor wretches, who groan amid so many combats and miseries in this valley of tears: Est Oratio Nuncius fidelissimus, notus Regi, qui cubiculum Regis adire, et qui importunitate pium Regis animum flectere, et laborantibus opem impetrare solitus est (Prayer is a most faithful messenger, known to the King, who is wont to enter the King's chamber, and by her importunity to bend the King's merciful heart, and to obtain aid for those who labor). Isaiah likewise assures us that when the Lord hears our prayers, He is at once moved to compassion for us, and does not leave us long weeping, but at that very moment answers us and grants us whatever we ask of Him: Plorans nequaquam plorabis, miserans miserebitur tui, ad vocem clamoris tui, statim ut audierit, respondebit tibi (Weeping, you shall not weep; having mercy, He will have mercy on you; at the voice of your cry, as soon as He hears it, He will answer you) (Isa. 30:19). And in another place the Lord speaks through the mouth of Jeremiah, and complaining of us He says: Numquid solitudo factus sum Israeli, aut terra serotina? Quare ergo dixit Populus meus: Recessimus, non veniemus ultra ad te? (Have I become a wilderness to Israel, or a late-fruiting land? Why then has My people said: We have gone away, we will come to You no more?) (Jer. 2:31). Why (says God) do you say that you will have recourse to Me no more? Is My mercy perhaps a barren land for you, that it cannot yield you any fruit of graces? Or a tardy land, that yields its fruit very late? By this our loving Lord wished to give us to understand that He never fails to hear, and to hear at once, our prayers; and by it He also wished to reprove those who cease to pray to Him out of distrust of being heard.
If God admitted us to lay our petitions before Him once a month, it would still be a great favor. The kings of the earth give audience a few times a year, but God always gives audience. St. Chrysostom writes that God is continually ready to hear our prayers; nor is there ever a case in which He, being invoked as He ought to be, fails to hear the one who prays to Him: Deus paratus continue ad vocem Servorum suorum est, nec unquam ut oportet vocatus non obaudivit (God is continually attentive to the voice of His servants, nor, when invoked as He ought to be, has He ever failed to hear). And elsewhere he says that when we pray to God, before we finish laying our petitions before Him, He already grants them: Semper obtinetur, etiam dum adhuc oramus (It is always obtained, even while we are still praying).
Indeed, of this we have the promise of God Himself: Adhuc illis loquentibus, ego audiam (While they are yet speaking, I will hear) (Isa. 65:24). The Lord, says David, is near to everyone who prays to Him, to please him, to hear him, and to save him: Prope est Dominus, omnibus invocantibus eum; omnibus invocantibus eum in veritate (that is, as they ought). Voluntatem timentium se faciet, et deprecationem exaudiet, et salvos faciet illos (The Lord is near to all who call upon Him, to all who call upon Him in truth; He will do the will of those who fear Him, and He will hear their prayer, and will save them) (Ps. 144:19). This was the very thing in which Moses gloried, saying: Non est alia Natio tam grandis, quae habeat deos appropinquantes sibi; sicut Deus noster adest cunctis obsecrationibus nostris (There is no other nation so great that has gods drawing near to it, as our God is present to all our petitions) (Deut. 4:7). The gods of the Gentiles were deaf to those who invoked them, because they were wretched creatures that could do nothing; but our God, who can do all things, is not deaf to our prayers, but is always near to the one who prays to Him and ready to grant all the graces he asks: In quacunque die invocavero te, ecce cognovi, quoniam Deus meus es (On whatsoever day I call upon You, behold, I have known that You are my God) (Ps. 55:11). "Lord," said the Psalmist, "in this I have known that You are my God, all Goodness and Mercy: in seeing that whenever I have recourse to You, You at once come to my aid."
We are poor in everything, but if we ask, we are no longer poor. If we are poor, God is rich; and God is all-generous, says the Apostle, toward those who call upon Him for help: Dives in omnes, qui invocant illum (Rich toward all who call upon Him) (Rom. 10:12). Since then (St. Augustine exhorts us) we have to do with a Lord of infinite power and infinite riches, let us not ask Him for small and paltry things, but let us ask Him for something great: Ab Omnipotente petitis, aliquid magnum petite (Since you ask of the Omnipotent, ask for something great). If someone were to ask a king for a paltry coin, a farthing, it would seem that he did the king a dishonor. On the contrary, we honor God, we honor His Mercy and His Generosity, when, seeing ourselves as wretched as we are and unworthy of every benefit, we nonetheless ask Him for great graces, trusting in the Goodness of God and in His Faithfulness, because of the promise He made to grant to whoever prays to Him whatever grace he asks: Quodcumque volueritis petetis, et fiet vobis (Whatsoever you will, you shall ask, and it shall be done for you) (John 15:7). St. Mary Magdalene de' Pazzi used to say that the Lord feels so honored, and is so consoled, when we ask Him for graces, that in a certain way He thanks us, since it seems that we then open the way for Him to benefit us and to satisfy His inclination, which is to do good to all. And let us be convinced that when we ask God for graces, He always gives us more than we ask of Him. Si quis indiget sapientia, postulet a Deo, qui dat omnibus affluenter, nec improperat (If any one lack wisdom, let him ask of God, who gives to all abundantly, and upbraids not) (Jas. 1:5). So says St. James, to show us that God is not, like men, miserly with His goods. Men, however rich, however pious and generous, when they dispense alms are always tight-fisted, and for the most part give less than what is asked of them, because their wealth, however great it may be, is always finite wealth; hence the more they give, the more they come to lack. But God, when He is prayed to, gives His goods affluenter — that is, with an open hand — always giving more than what is asked of Him, because His wealth is infinite; the more He gives, the more He has left to give. Quoniam tu Domine suavis, et mitis, et multae misericordiae omnibus invocantibus te (For You, O Lord, are sweet and mild, and of great mercy to all who call upon You) (Ps. 85:5). "You, my God," said David, "are too generous and gracious toward those who invoke You; the mercies You show them are all abundant — they surpass their petitions."
In this, then, all our attention must consist: in praying with confidence, certain that by praying all the treasures of heaven will be opened in our favor. Hoc studeamus (says St. Chrysostom), et aperiemus nobis Caelum (Let us give heed to this, and we shall open heaven for ourselves). Prayer is a treasure: the more one prays, the more one receives of it. St. Bonaventure says that every time a man devoutly turns to God in prayer, he gains goods that are worth more than the whole world: In quacumque die lucratur homo oratione devota plus, quam valeat totus Mundus (On whatsoever day a man prays devoutly, he gains more than the whole world is worth). Some devout souls spend a great deal of time in reading and meditating, but attend little to praying. There is no doubt that spiritual reading and the meditation of the eternal truths are very useful things; but far more useful, says St. Augustine, is praying. In reading and meditating we understand our obligations, but by prayer we obtain the grace to fulfill them: Melius est orare quam legere; in lectione cognoscimus quae facere debemus, in oratione accipimus quae postulamus (It is better to pray than to read; in reading we learn what we ought to do, in prayer we receive what we ask). What good is it to know what we are obliged to do and then not do it, except to make ourselves more guilty before God? Let us read and meditate as much as we wish; we shall never satisfy our obligations if we do not ask God for the help to fulfill them.
And therefore St. Isidore observes that at no other time does the Devil labor harder to turn us aside with thoughts of temporal cares than when he notices that we are praying and asking God for graces: Tunc magis Diabolus cogitationes ingerit, quando orantem aspexerit (The Devil injects more thoughts when he sees a man praying). And why? Because the Enemy sees that at no other time do we gain more treasures of heavenly goods than when we pray. This is the greatest fruit of mental prayer: to ask God for the graces we need for perseverance and for eternal salvation. It is principally for this reason that mental prayer is morally necessary for the soul to preserve itself in the grace of God: for if a person does not collect himself at the time of meditation to ask for the aids that are necessary for perseverance, he will not do so at any other time, since without meditating he will not think of the need he has to ask for them. On the contrary, one who makes his meditation every day will clearly see the needs of his soul, the dangers in which he finds himself, and the necessity he has to pray; and so he will pray and obtain the graces that will then make him persevere and be saved. Fr. Segneri used to say, speaking of himself, that at the beginning, in meditation, he dwelt more on making affections than on petitions, but afterward, recognizing the necessity and the immense benefit of prayer, from then on, in the abundant mental prayer he made, he applied himself for the most part to praying.
Sicut pullus hirundinis, sic clamabo (Like a young swallow, so will I cry), said the devout King Hezekiah (Isa. 38:14).
The chicks of swallows do nothing but cry out, thereby seeking help and nourishment from their mothers. So must we all do, if we wish to preserve in ourselves the life of grace: we must always cry out, asking God for help, in order to avoid the death of sin and to advance in His holy love. Fr. Rodriguez relates that the ancient Fathers, who were our first masters of the spiritual life, took counsel among themselves to see which exercise was the most useful and most necessary for eternal salvation, and they resolved that it was the frequent repetition of the short prayer of David: Deus in adjutorium meum intende (O God, come to my assistance). The same (writes Cassian) must one do who wishes to be saved, always saying: "My God, help me; my God, help me." This we must do from the moment we awake in the morning, and then continue doing it in all our needs and in all the occupations in which we find ourselves, spiritual as well as temporal, and most especially when we see ourselves troubled by some temptation or passion. St. Bonaventure says that sometimes grace is obtained more quickly by a short prayer than by many other good works: Quandoque citius brevi oratione aliquis obtinet, quod piis operibus vix obtineret (Sometimes one obtains by a short prayer more quickly what he would scarcely obtain by pious works). St. Ambrose added that one who prays already obtains while he prays; for the very act of asking is receiving: Qui petit a Deo, dum petit, accipit; ipsum namque petere est accipere (He who asks of God receives while he asks; for the asking itself is receiving). Hence St. Chrysostom wrote that there is no one more powerful than a man who prays: Nihil potentius homine orante (Nothing is more powerful than a man who prays), because such a one becomes a sharer in the power of God. To ascend to perfection, said St. Bernard, meditation and prayer are needed: by meditation we see what we lack, by prayer we receive what we need: Ascendamus meditatione, et oratione; illa docet quid desit, haec ne desit obtinet (Let us ascend by meditation and prayer; the former teaches what is lacking, the latter obtains that it be not lacking).
In short, to be saved without praying is most difficult, indeed impossible (as we have seen) according to the ordinary divine providence; but by praying, to be saved is a sure and very easy thing. To be saved it is not necessary to go among the infidels to give one's life; it is not necessary to withdraw into the deserts to feed on herbs. What does it take to say: "My God, help me; Lord, assist me; have pity on me"? Is there anything easier than this? And this little will be enough to save us, if we are careful to do it. St. Lawrence Justinian especially exhorts us to force ourselves to pray at least at the beginning of every action: Connitendum est, ut in primordio saltem cujusque operis dirigatur oratio (We must strive that prayer be offered at least at the beginning of every work). Cassian attests that the ancient Fathers most earnestly exhorted having recourse to God with short but frequent prayers. Let no one think little of his prayer (said St. Bernard), since God does not think little of it, and He then gives us either what we seek or what is more profitable for us: Nemo parvipendat orationem suam, quia Deus non parvipendit eam... aut dabit quod petimus, aut quod novit utilius (Let no one esteem his prayer lightly, for God does not esteem it lightly... He will give either what we ask or what He knows to be more profitable). And let us understand that if we do not pray, there is no excuse for us, because the grace to pray is given to everyone; it is in our hands to pray whenever we wish, as David said, speaking of himself: Apud me oratio Deo vitae meae, dicam Deo, susceptor meus es (With me is prayer to the God of my life; I will say to God: You are my support) (Ps. 41:9-10). This point will be treated at length in Part Two, in which I will make it clear enough that God gives to all the grace to pray, so that by praying they may then obtain all the aids, even abundant ones, to observe the Divine Law and to persevere until death. For now I say only this: if we are not saved, the whole fault will be ours, and we shall have only ourselves to blame, because we did not pray.