Pope Francis has designated 2024 as a Year of Prayer in preparation for the Jubilee Year. Archbishop Rino Fisichella (Pro-prefect of the Dicastery for Evangelization) recommended the faithful study the 38 catechetical talks on prayer given by Pope Francis from May 6, 2020, to June 16, 2021.
The Holy Father said that prayer is the breath of faith. In the Gospel, the blind man, Bartimaeus, cried out to Jesus, saying, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!” (Mk 10:47)
He also made the request: “Rabbi, let me recover my sight.” (Mk 10:51)
Pope Francis said, “Jesus says to him: ‘Go your way; your faith has made you well’ (v. 52). He recognizes in that poor, defenceless and despised man, all the power of his faith, which attracts the mercy and the power of God. Faith is having two hands raised up, a voice that cries out to implore the gift of salvation.” The Catechism states that “humility is the foundation of prayer” and that “Man is a beggar before God.” (CCC 2559)
At Holy Mass, the priest invites the people: “Lift up your hearts,” and the people respond: “We lift them up to the Lord.” St. John Damascene wrote, “Prayer is an ascent of the mind to God, or the asking God for things which are fitting.” St. Therese of Lisieux wrote, “For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned toward heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy.”
The heart is the source of prayer. The Catechism states: “Where does prayer come from? Whether prayer is expressed in words or gestures, it is the whole man who prays. But in naming the source of prayer, Scripture speaks sometimes of the soul or the spirit, but most often of the heart (more than a thousand times). According to Scripture, it is the heart that prays. If our heart is far from God, the words of prayer are in vain.” Pope Francis said, “Feelings pray, but one cannot say that prayer is only feeling. Intelligence prays, but praying is not simply an intellectual act. The body prays, but one can speak with God even having the most serious disability. Thus the entire man prays if he prays with his ‘heart.’”
Relationship with God is at the heart of Christian prayer. The Catechism states: “Christian prayer is a covenant relationship between God and man in Christ.” (CCC 2564)
“In the New Covenant, prayer is the living relationship of the children of God with their Father who is good beyond measure, with his Son Jesus Christ and with the Holy Spirit.” (CCC 2565)
Pope Francis said, “God is always close to our heart’s door and he waits for us to open it to him. And sometimes he knocks on the heart, but he is not intrusive: he waits. God’s patience with us is the patience of a father, of one who loves us dearly.”
The Catechism states: “‘Crowned with glory and honour,’ man is, after the angels, capable of acknowledging ‘how majestic is the name of the Lord in all the earth.’” (CCC 2566) The beauty of Creation evokes prayer and the prayer of mankind is closely linked to the sentiment of wonder. Pope Francis said, “The relationship with God is man’s greatness, his enthronement. By nature we are almost nothing, small, but by vocation, by calling, we are the children of the great King!”
Prayer opens the door to hope. Pope Francis said, “Prayer is the first strength of hope. You pray and hope grows, it moves forward. I would say that prayer opens the door to hope. There is hope but I open the door with my prayer … Men and women who pray know that hope is stronger than discouragement. They believe that love is more powerful than death, and that surely one day it will triumph, even if in times and ways that we do not understand.”
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祈禱是希望之門
為善備禧年，教宗方濟各指定2024年為「祈禱年」。教廷傳信部的里諾.費斯切肋總主教(Archbishop Rino Fisichella)建議信眾，研讀教宗自2020年5月6日至2021年6月16日，三十八節有關教會要理的講話。
教宗形容「祈禱是信德的氣息」。福音中，原瞎子巴爾提買向耶穌喊叫說：「耶穌、達味之子，可憐我罷！（馬爾谷福音10:47）」又哀求說：「師傅！叫我看見！（馬爾谷福音10:51）」教宗方濟各解釋：「耶穌對他說：『去罷！你的信德救了你！（馬爾谷福音10:52）』，因為耶穌明白，那位可憐、無助和被鄙視的人，他強力的信德，吸引了天主的憐憫和全能。信德就像上展著雙臂，向天主哀求救贖的恩賜。」天主教教理#2559指出：「謙虛是祈禱的基礎 … 人在天主面前是個乞丐。」
彌撒聖祭中，司鐸邀請信眾：「請舉心向上」，而信眾回應說：「我們全心歸向上主」。聖若望.達瑪森寫道：「祈禱是思想向天主提昇，或向天主請求合適的恩賜。」聖女小德蘭亦寫道：「對我來說，祈禱是內心的奮發之情，向蒼天的淳樸凝視；是困苦中或歡樂中感恩報愛的頌謝聲。」
內心是祈禱的根源。天主教教理#2562指出：「人從哪裡發出祈禱？無論用甚麼語言（姿勢或言語），總是整個人在祈禱。但為了指出祈禱從那裡湧現出來，聖經有時說是靈魂或心神，而提及心的次數最多（超過一千次）。的確，是人的心在祈禱。如果心遠離天主，外表的祈禱就虛而不實。」教宗方濟各說：「用感覺去祈禱嗎？但祈禱不能單靠感覺。用智力去祈禱嗎？但祈禱不能只靠智力。用身體去表達祈禱嗎？但殘障的人仍可與天主對話。那麼，用『心』祈禱，就是整個人在祈禱了。」
與天主的關係是基督徒祈禱的核心』。「基督徒的祈禱是天主與人在基督內結盟的關係。它是天主的行動，也是人的行動；它發自聖神，也出自我們，並與降生成人的天主子的人性意願相結合，而完全指向天主聖父。」（天主教教理#2564）「在新約時代，祈禱是天主子女，跟無限美善的天父，偕同祂的聖子耶穌基督及聖神活生生的關係。」（天主教教理#2565）
教宗方濟各說道：「天主常常接近我們的心扉，等待著我們敞開；祂不會硬闖，只會輕扣我們的心窩，繼續等待。天主對我們是父愛的耐心、父親對兒女的深愛。」
「稍遜於天使『以光榮和榮耀作冠冕的人』，有能力確認『上主的名號何其偉大，遍及大地』。」（天主教教理#2566）受造物的美及奇妙，能喚起我們的祈禱。教宗方濟各說：「人的偉大、人的提升，是因為和天主的關係。我們本來就是渺小虛無，藉著被召喚，我們變成偉大王者的子女。」
祈禱是希望的大門。教宗方濟各又說：「祈禱是希望首要的力量。當你祈禱，你的希望自然增長，且向前邁進。我認為祈禱是希望的大門，我會以祈禱開啟希望 … 不論男女，只要祈禱，就明白希望比灰心更具力量。他們相信愛的力量遠勝死亡，即使是在不知不覺中，終有一天獲得了勝利。」
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