<<  The Catechism of the Catholic Church Today!

 

 

This is what the Catechism of the Catholic Church states on this issue:

• The Communion of Saints
• Mary - Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church
• In communion with the holy Mother of God
• In The Age Of The Church
• Guides For Prayer — A cloud of witnesses

The Communion of Saints

946 After confessing "the holy catholic Church," the Apostles' Creed adds "the communion of saints." In a certain sense this article is a further explanation of the preceding: "What is the Church if not the assembly of all the saints?" (Nicetas, Expl. Symb., 10:PL 52:871B) The communion of saints is the Church.

947 "Since all the faithful form one body, the good of each is communicated to the others. . . . We must therefore believe that there exists a communion of goods in the Church. But the most important member is Christ, since he is the head. . . . Therefore, the riches of Christ are communicated to all the members, through the sacraments." (St. Thomas Aquinas, Symb., 10) "As this Church is governed by one and the same Spirit, all the goods she has received necessarily become a common fund." (Roman Catechism I, 10,24)

948 The term "communion of saints" therefore has two closely linked meanings: communion in holy things (sancta)" and "among holy persons (sancti)."

Sancta sanctis! ("God's holy gifts for God's holy people") is proclaimed by the celebrant in most Eastern liturgies during the elevation of the holy Gifts before the distribution of communion. The faithful (sancti) are fed by Christ's holy body and blood (sancta) to grow in the communion of the Holy Spirit (koinonia) and to communicate it to the world.

I. Communion In Spiritual Goods

949 In the primitive community of Jerusalem, the disciples "devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of the bread and the prayers." (Acts 2:42)

Communion in the faith. The faith of the faithful is the faith of the Church, received from the apostles. Faith is a treasure of life which is enriched by being shared.

950 Communion of the sacraments. "The fruit of all the sacraments belongs to all the faithful. All the sacraments are sacred links uniting the faithful with one another and binding them to Jesus Christ, and above all Baptism, the gate by which we enter into the Church. The communion of saints must be understood as the communion of the sacraments. . . . The name 'communion' can be applied to all of them, for they unite us to God. . . . But this name is better suited to the Eucharist than to any other, because it is primarily the Eucharist that brings this communion about." (Roman Catechism I, 10,24)

951 Communion of charisms. Within the communion of the Church, the Holy Spirit "distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank" for the building up of the Church. (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 12 § 2) Now, "to each is given the manifestation of the Spirit for the common good." (1 Corinthians 12:7)

952 "They had everything in common." (Acts 4:32) "Everything the true Christian has is to be regarded as a good possessed in common with everyone else. All Christians should be ready and eager to come to the help of the needy . . . and of their neighbors in want." (Roman Catechism I, 10,27) A Christian is a steward of the Lord's goods. (cf. Luke 16:1, 3)

953 Communion in charity. In the sanctorum communio, "None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself." (Romans 14:7) "If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it." (1 Corinthians 12:26-27) "Charity does not insist on its own way." (1 Corinthians 13:5; cf. 10:24) In this solidarity with all men, living or dead, which is founded on the communion of saints, the least of our acts done in charity redounds to the profit of all. Every sin harms this communion.

 

II. The Communion Of The Church Of Heaven And Earth

 

954 The three states of the Church. "When the Lord comes in glory, and all his angels with him, death will be no more and all things will be subject to him. But at the present time some of his disciples are pilgrims on earth. Others have died and are being purified, while still others are in glory, contemplating 'in full light, God himself triune and one, exactly as he is"': (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 49; cf. Matthew 25:31; 1 Corinthians 15:26-27; Council of Florence (1439):DS 1305)

All of us, however, in varying degrees and in different ways share in the same charity towards God and our neighbors, and we all sing the one hymn of glory to our God. All, indeed, who are of Christ and who have his Spirit form one Church and in Christ cleave together. (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 49; cf. Ephesians 4:16)

955 "So it is that the union of the wayfarers with the brethren who sleep in the peace of Christ is in no way interrupted, but on the contrary, according to the constant faith of the Church, this union is reinforced by an exchange of spiritual goods." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 49)

956 The intercession of the saints. "Being more closely united to Christ, those who dwell in Heaven fix the whole Church more firmly in holiness. . . . They do not cease to intercede with the Father for us, as they proffer the merits which they acquired on earth through the one mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus . . . . So by their fraternal concern is our weakness greatly helped." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 49; cf. 1 Timothy 2:5)

Do not weep, for I shall be more useful to you after my death and I shall help you then more effectively than during my life.

 

St. Dominic, dying, to his brothers

 

I want to spend my Heaven in doing good on earth.

 

St. Thérèse of Lisieux, The Final Conversations

957 Communion with the saints. "It is not merely by the title of example that we cherish the memory of those in Heaven ; we seek, rather, that by this devotion to the exercise of fraternal charity the union of the whole Church in the Spirit may be strengthened. Exactly as Christian communion among our fellow pilgrims brings us closer to Christ, so our communion with the saints joins us to Christ, from whom as from its fountain and head issues all grace, and the life of the People of God itself" (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 50; cf. Ephesians 4:1-6):

We worship Christ as God's Son; we love the martyrs as the Lord's disciples and imitators, and rightly so because of their matchless devotion towards their king and master. May we also be their companions and fellow disciples!

 

Martyrium Polycarpi, 17: Apostolic Fathers II/3,396

958 Communion with the dead. "In full consciousness of this communion of the whole Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, the Church in its pilgrim members, from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, has honored with great respect the memory of the dead; and 'because it is a holy and a wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from their sins' she offers her suffrages for them." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 50; cf. 2 Maccabees 12:45) Our prayer for them is capable not only of helping them, but also of making their intercession for us effective.

959 In the one family of God. "For if we continue to love one another and to join in praising the Most Holy Trinity - all of us who are sons of God and form one family in Christ - we will be faithful to the deepest vocation of the Church." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 51; cf. Hebrews 3:6)

 

In Brief

960 The Church is a "communion of saints": this expression refers first to the "holy things" (sancta), above all the Eucharist, by which "the unity of believers, who form one body in Christ, is both represented and brought about" (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 3).

 

961 The term "communion of saints" refers also to the communion of "holy persons" (sancti) in Christ who "died for all," so that what each one does or suffers in and for Christ bears fruit for all.

 

962 "We believe in the communion of all the faithful of Christ, those who are pilgrims on earth, the dead who are being purified, and the blessed in Heaven, all together forming one Church; and we believe that in this communion, the merciful love of God and his saints is always [attentive] to our prayers" (Pope Paul VI, Credo of the People of God § 30).

Mary - Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church

 

963 Since the Virgin Mary's role in the mystery of Christ and the Spirit has been treated, it is fitting now to consider her place in the mystery of the Church. "The Virgin Mary . . . is acknowledged and honored as being truly the Mother of God and of the redeemer. . . . She is 'clearly the mother of the members of Christ' . . . since she has by her charity joined in bringing about the birth of believers in the Church, who are members of its head." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 53; cf. St. Augustine, De virg. 6:PL 40,399) "Mary, Mother of Christ, Mother of the Church." (Pope Paul VI, Discourse, November 21, 1964)

 

I. Mary's Motherhood With Regard To The Church

 

Wholly united with her Son . . .

964 Mary's role in the Church is inseparable from her union with Christ and flows directly from it. "This union of the mother with the Son in the work of salvation is made manifest from the time of Christ's virginal conception up to his death"; (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 57) it is made manifest above all at the hour of his Passion:

Thus the Blessed Virgin advanced in her pilgrimage of faith, and faithfully persevered in her union with her Son unto the cross. There she stood, in keeping with the divine plan, enduring with her only begotten Son the intensity of his suffering, joining herself with his sacrifice in her mother's heart, and lovingly consenting to the immolation of this victim, born of her: to be given, by the same Christ Jesus dying on the cross, as a mother to his disciple, with these words: "Woman, behold your son." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 58; cf. John 19:26-27)

965 After her Son's Ascension, Mary "aided the beginnings of the Church by her prayers." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 69) In her association with the apostles and several women, "we also see Mary by her prayers imploring the gift of the Spirit, who had already overshadowed her in the Annunciation." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 59)

 

. . . also in her Assumption

 

966 "Finally the Immaculate Virgin, preserved free from all stain of original sin, when the course of her earthly life was finished, was taken up body and soul into heavenly glory, and exalted by the Lord as Queen over all things, so that she might be the more fully conformed to her Son, the Lord of lords and conqueror of sin and death." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 59; cf. Pius XII, Munificentissimus Deus (1950):DS 3903; cf. Revelation 19:16) The Assumption of the Blessed Virgin is a singular participation in her Son's Resurrection and an anticipation of the resurrection of other Christians:

In giving birth you kept your virginity; in your Dormition you did not leave the world, O Mother of God, but were joined to the source of Life. You conceived the living God and, by your prayers, will deliver our souls from death.

 

Byzantine Liturgy, Troparion, Feast of the Dormition, August 15th

. . . she is our Mother in the order of grace

 

967 By her complete adherence to the Father's will, to his Son's redemptive work, and to every prompting of the Holy Spirit, the Virgin Mary is the Church's model of faith and charity. Thus she is a "preeminent and . . . wholly unique member of the Church"; indeed, she is the "exemplary realization" (typus) (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 53; 63) of the Church.

 

968 Her role in relation to the Church and to all humanity goes still further. "In a wholly singular way she cooperated by her obedience, faith, hope, and burning charity in the Savior's work of restoring supernatural life to souls. For this reason she is a mother to us in the order of grace." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 61)

 

969 "This motherhood of Mary in the order of grace continues uninterruptedly from the consent which she loyally gave at the Annunciation and which she sustained without wavering beneath the cross, until the eternal fulfillment of all the elect. Taken up to Heaven she did not lay aside this saving office but by her manifold intercession continues to bring us the gifts of eternal salvation . . . . Therefore the Blessed Virgin is invoked in the Church under the titles of Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 62)

 

970 "Mary's function as mother of men in no way obscures or diminishes this unique mediation of Christ, but rather shows its power. But the Blessed Virgin's salutary influence on men . . . flows forth from the superabundance of the merits of Christ, rests on his mediation, depends entirely on it, and draws all its power from it." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 60) "No creature could ever be counted along with the Incarnate Word and Redeemer; but just as the priesthood of Christ is shared in various ways both by his ministers and the faithful, and as the one goodness of God is radiated in different ways among his creatures, so also the unique mediation of the Redeemer does not exclude but rather gives rise to a manifold cooperation which is but a sharing in this one source." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 62)

 

II. Devotion To The Blessed Virgin

 

971 "All generations will call me blessed": "The Church's devotion to the Blessed Virgin is intrinsic to Christian worship." (Luke 1:48; Pope Paul VI, Marialis Cultus 56) The Church rightly honors "the Blessed Virgin with special devotion. From the most ancient times the Blessed Virgin has been honored with the title of 'Mother of God,' to whose protection the faithful fly in all their dangers and needs. . . . This very special devotion . . . differs essentially from the adoration which is given to the incarnate Word and equally to the Father and the Holy Spirit, and greatly fosters this adoration." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 66) The liturgical feasts dedicated to the Mother of God and Marian prayer, such as the rosary, an "epitome of the whole Gospel," express this devotion to the Virgin Mary. (cf. Pope Paul VI, Marialis Cultus 42; Vatican II, Sacrosanctum Concilium 103)

 

III. Mary - Eschatological Icon Of The Church

 

972 After speaking of the Church, her origin, mission, and destiny, we can find no better way to conclude than by looking to Mary. In her we contemplate what the Church already is in her mystery on her own "pilgrimage of faith," and what she will be in the homeland at the end of her journey. There, "in the glory of the Most Holy and Undivided Trinity," "in the communion of all the saints," (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 69) the Church is awaited by the one she venerates as Mother of her Lord and as her own mother.

 

In the meantime the Mother of Jesus, in the glory which she possesses in body and soul in Heaven, is the image and beginning of the Church as it is to be perfected in the world to come. Likewise she shines forth on earth until the day of the Lord shall come, a sign of certain hope and comfort to the pilgrim People of God." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 68; cf. 2 Peter 3 10)

 

 

In Brief

 

973 By pronouncing her "fiat" at the Annunciation and giving her consent to the Incarnation, Mary was already collaborating with the whole work her Son was to accomplish. She is mother wherever he is Savior and head of the Mystical Body.

 

974 The Most Blessed Virgin Mary, when the course of her earthly life was completed, was taken up body and soul into the glory of Heaven, where she already shares in the glory of her Son's Resurrection, anticipating the resurrection of all members of his Body.

 

975 "We believe that the Holy Mother of God, the new Eve, Mother of the Church, continues in Heaven to exercise her maternal role on behalf of the members of Christ" (Pope Paul VI, Credo of the People of God § 15)

 

 

 

 

In communion with the holy Mother of God

 

2673 In prayer the Holy Spirit unites us to the person of the only Son, in his glorified humanity, through which and in which our filial prayer unites us in the Church with the Mother of Jesus. (cf. Acts 1:14)

 

2674 Mary gave her consent in faith at the Annunciation and maintained it without hesitation at the foot of the Cross. Ever since, her motherhood has extended to the brothers and sisters of her Son "who still journey on earth surrounded by dangers and difficulties." (Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 62) Jesus, the only mediator, is the way of our prayer; Mary, his mother and ours, is wholly transparent to him: she "shows the way" (hodigitria), and is herself "the Sign" of the way, according to the traditional

 

2675 Beginning with Mary's unique cooperation with the working of the Holy Spirit, the Churches developed their prayer to the holy Mother of God, centering it on the person of Christ manifested in his mysteries. In countless hymns and antiphons expressing this prayer, two movements usually alternate with one another: the first "magnifies" the Lord for the "great things" he did for his lowly servant and through her for all human beings (cf. Luke 1:46-55) the second entrusts the supplications and praises of the children of God to the Mother of Jesus, because she now knows the humanity which, in her, the Son of God espoused.

 

2676 This twofold movement of prayer to Mary has found a privileged expression in the
Ave Maria[ — Hail Mary]:

 

Hail Mary [or Rejoice, Mary]: the greeting of the angel Gabriel opens this prayer. It is God himself who, through his angel as intermediary, greets Mary. Our prayer dares to take up this greeting to Mary with the regard God had for the lowliness of his humble servant and to exult in the joy he finds in her. (cf. Luke 1:48; Zephaniah 3:17b)

 

Full of grace, the Lord is with thee: These two phrases of the angel's greeting shed light on one another. Mary is full of grace because the Lord is with her. The grace with which she is filled is the presence of him who is the source of all grace. "Rejoice . . . O Daughter of Jerusalem . . . the Lord your God is in your midst." (Zephaniah 3:14,17a) Mary, in whom the Lord himself has just made his dwelling, is the daughter of Zion in person, the ark of the covenant, the place where the glory of the Lord dwells. She is "the dwelling of God . . . with men." (Revelation 21:3) Full of grace, Mary is wholly given over to him who has come to dwell in her and whom she is about to give to the world.

 

Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus. After the angel's greeting, we make Elizabeth's greeting our own. "Filled with the Holy Spirit," Elizabeth is the first in the long succession of generations who have called Mary "blessed." (Luke 1:41, 48) "Blessed is she who believed. . . . " (Luke 1:45) Mary is "blessed among women" because she believed in the fulfillment of the Lord's word. Abraham. because of his faith, became a blessing for all the nations of the earth. (cf. Genesis 12:3) Mary, because of her faith, became the mother of believers, through whom all nations of the earth receive him who is God's own blessing: Jesus, the "fruit of thy womb."

 

2677 Holy Mary, Mother of God: With Elizabeth we marvel, "And why is this granted me, that the mother of my Lord should come to me?" (Luke 1:43) Because she gives us Jesus, her son, Mary is Mother of God and our mother; we can entrust all our cares and petitions to her: she prays for us as she prayed for herself: "Let it be to me according to your word." (Luke 1:38) By entrusting ourselves to her prayer, we abandon ourselves to the will of God together with her: "Thy will be done."

 

Pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death: By asking Mary to pray for us, we acknowledge ourselves to be poor sinners and we address ourselves to the "Mother of Mercy," the All-Holy One. We give ourselves over to her now, in the Today of our lives. And our trust broadens further, already at the present moment, to surrender "the hour of our death" wholly to her care. May she be there as she was at her son's death on the cross. May she welcome us as our mother at the hour of our passing (cf. John 19:27) to lead us to her son, Jesus, in paradise.

 

2678 Medieval piety in the West developed the prayer of the rosary as a popular substitute for the Liturgy of the Hours. In the East, the litany called the Akathistos and the Paraclesis remained closer to the choral office in the Byzantine churches, while the Armenian, Coptic, and Syriac traditions preferred popular hymns and songs to the Mother of God. But in the Ave Maria, the theotokia, the hymns of St. Ephrem or St. Gregory of Narek, the tradition of prayer is basically the same.

 

2679 Mary is the perfect Orans (pray-er), a figure of the Church. When we pray to her, we are adhering with her to the plan of the Father, who sends his Son to save all men. Like the beloved disciple we welcome Jesus' mother into our homes, (cf. John 19:27) for she has become the mother of all the living. We can pray with and to her. The prayer of the Church is sustained by the prayer of Mary and united with it in hope. (cf. Vatican II, Lumen Gentium 68-69)

 

In Brief

 

2680 Prayer is primarily addressed to the Father; it can also be directed toward Jesus, particularly by the invocation of his holy name: "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on us sinners."

 

2681 "No one can say 'Jesus is Lord', except by the Holy Spirit". (1 Corinthians 12:3) The Church invites us to invoke the Holy Spirit as the interior Teacher of Christian prayer.

 

2682 Because of Mary's singular cooperation with the action of the Holy Spirit, the Church loves to pray in communion with the Virgin Mary, to magnify with her the great things the Lord has done for her, and to entrust supplications and praises to her.

 

 

 

In The Age Of The Church

 

2623 On the day of Pentecost, the Spirit of the Promise was poured out on the disciples, gathered "together in one place." (Acts 2:1) While awaiting the Spirit, "all these with one accord devoted themselves to prayer." (Acts 1:14) The Spirit who teaches the Church and recalls for her everything that Jesus said (cf. John 14:26) was also to form her in the life of prayer.

 

2624 In the first community of Jerusalem, believers "devoted themselves to the apostles' teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and the prayers." (Acts 2:42) This sequence is characteristic of the Church's prayer: founded on the apostolic faith; authenticated by charity; nourished in the Eucharist.

 

2625 In the first place these are prayers that the faithful hear and read in the Scriptures, but also that they make their own - especially those of the Psalms, in view of their fulfillment in Christ. (cf. Luke 24:27,44) The Holy Spirit, who thus keeps the memory of Christ alive in his Church at prayer, also leads her toward the fullness of truth and inspires new formulations expressing the unfathomable mystery of Christ at work in his Church's life, sacraments, and mission. These formulations are developed in the great liturgical and spiritual traditions. The forms of prayer revealed in the apostolic and canonical Scriptures remain normative for Christian prayer.

 

I. Blessing And Adoration

 

2626 Blessing expresses the basic movement of Christian prayer: it is an encounter between God and man. In blessing, God's gift and man's acceptance of it are united in dialogue with each other. The prayer of blessing is man's response to God's gifts: because God blesses, the human heart can in return bless the One who is the source of every blessing.

 

2627 Two fundamental forms express this movement:

1. our prayer ascends in the Holy Spirit through Christ to the Father - we bless him for having blessed us; (cf. Ephesians 1:3-14; 2 Corinthians 1:3-7; 1 Peter 1:3-9)
2. it implores the grace of the Holy Spirit that descends through Christ from the Father -
   he blesses us. (cf. 2 Corinthians 13:14; Romans 15:5-6,13; Ephesians 6:23-24)

2628 Adoration is the first attitude of man acknowledging that he is a creature before his Creator. It exalts the greatness of the Lord who made us (cf. Psalm 95:1-6) and the almighty power of the Savior who sets us free from evil. Adoration is homage of the spirit to the "King of Glory," (Psalm 24, 9-10) respectful silence in the presence of the "ever greater" God. (cf. St. Augustine, En. in Ps. 62,16:PL 36,757-758) Adoration of the thrice-holy and sovereign God of love blends with humility and gives assurance to our supplications.

 

II. Prayer Of Petition

 

2629 The vocabulary of supplication in the New Testament is rich in shades of meaning: ask, beseech, plead, invoke, entreat, cry out, even "struggle in prayer." (cf. Romans 15:30; Colossians 4:12) Its most usual form, because the most spontaneous, is petition: by prayer of petition we express awareness of our relationship with God. We are creatures who are not our own beginning, not the masters of adversity, not our own last end. We are sinners who as Christians know that we have turned away from our Father. Our petition is already a turning back to him.

 

2630 The New Testament contains scarcely any prayers of lamentation, so frequent in the Old Testament. In the risen Christ the Church's petition is buoyed by hope, even if we still wait in a state of expectation and must be converted anew every day. Christian petition, what St. Paul calls "groaning," arises from another depth, that of creation "in labor pains" and that of ourselves "as we wait for the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved." (Romans 8:22-24) In the end, however, "with sighs too deep for words" the Holy Spirit "helps us in our weakness; for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with sighs too deep for words." (Romans 8:26)

 

2631 The first movement of the prayer of petition is asking forgiveness, like the tax collector in the parable: "God, be merciful to me a sinner!" (Luke 18:13) It is a prerequisite for righteous and pure prayer. A trusting humility brings us back into the light of communion between the Father and his Son Jesus Christ and with one another, so that "we receive from him whatever we ask." (1 John 3:22; cf. 1:7-2:2) Asking forgiveness is the prerequisite for both the Eucharistic liturgy and personal prayer.

 

2632 Christian petition is centered on the desire and search for the Kingdom to come, in keeping with the teaching of Christ. (cf. Matthew 6:10,33; Luke 11:2,13) There is a hierarchy in these petitions: we pray first for the Kingdom, then for what is necessary to welcome it and cooperate with its coming. This collaboration with the mission of Christ and the Holy Spirit, which is now that of the Church, is the object of the prayer of the apostolic community. (cf. Acts 6:6; 13:3) It is the prayer of Paul, the apostle par excellence, which reveals to us how the divine solicitude for all the churches ought to inspire Christian prayer. (cf. Romans 10:1; Ephesians 1:16-23; Philippians 1:9-11; Colossians 1:3-6; 4:3-4,12) By prayer every baptized person works for the coming of the Kingdom.

 

2633 When we share in God's saving love, we understand that every need can become the object of petition. Christ, who assumed all things in order to redeem all things, is glorified by what we ask the Father in his name. (cf. John 14:13) It is with this confidence that St. James and St. Paul exhort us to pray at all times. (cf. James 1:5-8; Ephesians 5:20; Philippians 4:6-7; Colossians 3:16-17; 1 Thessalonians 5:17-18)

 

III. Prayer Of Intercession

 

2634 Intercession is a prayer of petition which leads us to pray as Jesus did. He is the one intercessor with the Father on behalf of all men, especially sinners. (cf. Romans 8:34; 1 John 2:1; 1 Timothy 2:5-8) He is "able for all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them." (Hebrews 7:25) The Holy Spirit "himself intercedes for us . . . and intercedes for the saints according to the will of God." (Romans 8:26 27)

 

2635 Since Abraham, intercession - asking on behalf of another has been characteristic of a heart attuned to God's mercy. In the age of the Church, Christian intercession participates in Christ's, as an expression of the communion of saints. In intercession, he who prays looks "not only to his own interests, but also to the interests of others," even to the point of praying for those who do him harm. (Philippians 2:4; cf. Acts 7:60; Luke 23:28,34)

 

2636 The first Christian communities lived this form of fellowship intensely. (cf. Acts 12:5; 20:36; 21:5; 2 Corinthians 9:14) Thus the Apostle Paul gives them a share in his ministry of preaching the Gospel (cf. Ephesians 6:18-20; Colossians 4:3-4; 1 Thessalonians 5:25) but also intercedes for them. (cf. 2 Thessalonians 1:11; Colossians 1:3; Philippians 1:3-4) The intercession of Christians recognizes no boundaries: "for all men, for kings and all who are in high positions," for persecutors, for the salvation of those who reject the Gospel. (2 Timothy 2:1; cf. Romans 12:14; 10:1)

 

IV. Prayer Of Thanksgiving

 

2637 Thanksgiving characterizes the prayer of the Church which, in celebrating the Eucharist, reveals and becomes more fully what she is. Indeed, in the work of salvation, Christ sets creation free from sin and death to consecrate it anew and make it return to the Father, for his glory. The thanksgiving of the members of the Body participates in that of their Head.

 

2638 As in the prayer of petition, every event and need can become an offering of thanksgiving. The letters of St. Paul often begin and end with thanksgiving, and the Lord Jesus is always present in it: "Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you"; "Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving." (1 Thessalonians 5:18; Colossians 4:2)

 

V. Prayer Of Praise

 

2639 Praise is the form of prayer which recognizes most immediately that God is God. It lauds God for his own sake and gives him glory, quite beyond what he does, but simply because HE IS. It shares in the blessed happiness of the pure of heart who love God in faith before seeing him in glory. By praise, the Spirit is joined to our spirits to bear witness that we are children of God, (cf. Romans 8:16) testifying to the only Son in whom we are adopted and by whom we glorify the Father. Praise embraces the other forms of prayer and carries them toward him who is its source and goal: the "one God, the Father, from whom are all things and for whom we exist." (1 Corinthians 8:6)

 

2640 St. Luke in his gospel often expresses wonder and praise at the marvels of Christ and in his Acts of the Apostles stresses them as actions of the Holy Spirit: the community of Jerusalem, the invalid healed by Peter and John, the crowd that gives glory to God for that, and the pagans of Pisidia who "were glad and glorified the word of God." (Acts 2:47; 3:9; 4:21; 13:48)

 

2641 "[Address] one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all your heart." (Ephesians 5:19; Colossians 3:16) Like the inspired writers of the New Testament, the first Christian communities read the Book of Psalms in a new way, singing in it the mystery of Christ. In the newness of the Spirit, they also composed hymns and canticles in the light of the unheard-of event that God accomplished in his Son: his Incarnation, his death which conquered death, his Resurrection, and Ascension to the right hand of the Father. (cf. Philippians 2:6-11; Colossians 1:15-20; Ephesians 5:14; 1 Timothy 3:16; 6:15-16; 2 Timothy 2:11-13)

 

Doxology, the praise of God, arises from this "marvelous work" of the whole economy of salvation. (cf. Ephesians 1:3-14; Romans 16:25-27; Ephesians 3:20-21; Jude 24-25)

 

2642 The Revelation of "what must soon take place," the Apocalypse, is borne along by the songs of the heavenly liturgy (cf. Revelation 4:8-11; 5:9-14; 7:10-12) but also by the intercession of the "witnesses" (martyrs). (Revelation 6:10) The prophets and the saints, all those who were slain on earth for their witness to Jesus, the vast throng of those who, having come through the great tribulation, have gone before us into the Kingdom, all sing the praise and glory of him who sits on the throne, and of the Lamb. (cf. Revelation 18:24; 19:1-8) In communion with them, the Church on earth also sings these songs with faith in the midst of trial. By means of petition and intercession, faith hopes against all hope and gives thanks to the "Father of lights," from whom "every perfect gift" comes down. (James 1:17) Thus faith is pure praise.

 

2643 The Eucharist contains and expresses all forms of prayer: it is "the pure offering" of the whole Body of Christ to the glory of God's name (cf. Malachi 1:11) and, according to the traditions of East and West, it is the "sacrifice of praise."

 

In Brief

2644 The Holy Spirit who teaches the Church and recalls to her all that Jesus said also instructs her in the life of prayer, inspiring new expressions of the same basic forms of prayer: blessing, petition, intercession, thanksgiving, and praise.

 

2645 Because God blesses the human heart, it can in return bless him who is the source of every blessing.

 

2646 Forgiveness, the quest for the Kingdom, and every true need are objects of the prayer of petition.

 

2647 Prayer of intercession consists in asking on behalf of another. It knows no boundaries and extends to one's enemies.

 

2648 Every joy and suffering, every event and need can become the matter for thanksgiving which, sharing in that of Christ, should fill one's whole life: "Give thanks in all circumstances". (1 Thessalonians 5:18)

 

2649 Prayer of praise is entirely disinterested and rises to God, lauds him, and gives him glory for his own sake, quite beyond what he has done, but simply because HE IS.

 

 

 

Guides For Prayer — A cloud of witnesses

 

2683 The witnesses who have preceded us into the kingdom, (cf. Hebrews 12:1) especially those whom the Church recognizes as saints, share in the living tradition of prayer by the example of their lives, the transmission of their writings, and their prayer today. They contemplate God, praise him and constantly care for those whom they have left on earth. When they entered into the joy of their Master, they were "put in charge of many things." (cf. Matthew 25:21) Their intercession is their most exalted service to God's plan. We can and should ask them to intercede for us and for the whole world.

 

2684 In the communion of saints, many and varied spiritualities have been developed throughout the history of the churches. The personal charism of some witnesses to God's love for men has been handed on, like "the spirit" of Elijah to Elisha and John the Baptist, so that their followers may have a share in this spirit. (cf. 2 Kings 2:9; Luke 1:1; Vatican II, Perfectae Caritatis 2)
A distinct spirituality can also arise at the point of convergence of liturgical and theological currents, bearing witness to the integration of the faith into a particular human environment and its history. The different schools of Christian spirituality share in the living tradition of prayer and are essential guides for the faithful. In their rich diversity they are refractions of the one pure light of the Holy Spirit.

The Spirit is truly the dwelling of the saints and the saints are for the Spirit a place where he dwells as in his own home since they offer themselves as a dwelling place for God and are called his temple.

 

St. Basil, De Spiritu Sancto, 26,62:PG 32,184

In Brief

 

2692 In prayer, the pilgrim Church is associated with that of the saints, whose intercession she asks.

 

2693 The different schools of Christian spirituality share in the living tradition of prayer and are precious guides for the spiritual life.

 

 

 

1. — Church of Antioch, (A.D. c.30-40)
   — St. Ignatius of Antioch, (A.D. 50-107)
   — St. Justin Martyr, (A.D. 100-163)
   — St. Irenæus of Lyons, (A.D. 125-202)
   — St. Clement of Alexandria, (A.D. 150-220)
   — Origen of Alexandria, (A.D. 184-253)
   — Pectorius of Autun, (end of 2nd to beginning of the 3rd century)
   — St. Cyprian of Carthage, (A.D. 200-258)
   — St. Ephrem the Syrian, (of Edessa), (A.D. 306-378)
   — St. Hilary of Poitiers, (A.D. 315-367)
   — St. Cyril of Jerusalem, (A.D. 315-386)
   — St. Gregory of Nazianzen, (A.D. 318-389)
   — St. Gregory of Nyssa, (A.D. c.335 - c.394)
   — St. Ambrose of Milan, (A.D. 340-396)
   — St. Jerome, (A.D. 342-420)
   — St. John Chrysostom, (A.D. 344 - 407)
   — Prudentius, (A.D. 348-c.413)
   — St. Maximus, (unknown-A.D.423)
   — St. Paulinus of Nola, (A.D. 353-431)
   — St. Augustine of Hippo, (A.D. 354-428)
   — Sulpicius Severus, (A.D. c.363-c.425)
   — The Liturgy of Saint Basil, (A.D. 370-379)
   — St. Valerian (of Abbenza), (A.D. 377-445)
   — St. Nilus the Elder, (A.D. c.385 - c.430)
   — St. Isidore of Pelusium, (unknown - A.D. 440)
   — Theodoret of Cyrus or Cyrrhus, (A.D. 393-458)
   — St. Avitus, (Alcimus Ecdicius), (A.D. c.470-525)