Clergy Reflection: Thursday Of The Second Week

Thursday of the Second Week

What is prayer? Is it an almost magical attempt to influence God, to change his will or to call Him to his duties? Certainly this is not prayer. The life, the will and the essence of God cannot change by a per- son’s prayers. What is prayer, then, and what is its importance? Prayer is a sacred activity through which God reaches his people. The main focus of prayer is not God but the one who is praying, aiming to receive “the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God the Father and the communion of the Holy Spirit” (Divine Liturgy). Prayer is a person’s preparation to discern the Holy in life as he/she lives it. St. Paul reminds us that prayer is a way of life (1 Thessalonians, 5:17) which leads us to the under- standing that “Christ is the one who lives in us” (Gal. 2:20).

Fr. Vassilios Bebis