THE ROMAN CATHOLIC CHURCH Her Doctrine and Morals Fifth Sunday after Easter 29 May 2011

The Sunday Sermon

Dear Friends,

Anything you ask the Father in the name of Jesus, He will give it to you. The reason we have not received is because we have not yet asked. These are words to test how real our prayers are and ultimately how true our faith is.

St. Basil says: “Prayer is not made perfect by uttering syllables, but in the purpose of the soul, and in the just actions of a lifetime. Nor are we to believe that God has need of being reminded through our words. We are not to think that we complete our prayer by murmuring a number of syllables, but rather, by the purpose of our soul, and in deeds of virtue extending into every action and moment of our life. Neither are we to think that God needs the reminder of our spoken words; rather are we to believe that He knows our need whether we ask of Him or not. The ear of God has no need of our cry, since He can see even from the movements of our soul what it is that we seek for. . . . For the words of prayer that are simply uttered are of themselves of no avail unless they are sent upwards from a fervent soul.”

The prayers of the Pharisee, according to St. Basil, “are the occasion of His [God’s] resentment. It is as if someone should kill the beloved son of another, and then stretch forth to the afflicted father their hands still stained with blood; asking for the right hand of fellowship. Would not the blood of his son, still visible on the hand of his slayer, provoke him rather to just anger? And such are the prayers of the Jews. For when they stretch forth their hands in prayer, they but remind God the Father of their sin against His Son. And at every stretching forth of their hands they but make manifest that they are stained with the blood guilt of their fathers. For they cried out: ‘His blood be upon us, and upon our children’ (Mt. 27, 25)”

How many who call themselves Christians are to be classified with the Jews in their prayers? How many by their own personal sins make themselves guilty of the murder of the Son of God, then with a boldness and effrontery appeal to God for their worldly advantages?

It is time once again to examine ourselves. It is time to look into the depths of our own souls. What are the purposes of our souls? The words of our lips in prayer mean very little if we speak like those that Jesus condemns: “These people honor Me with their lips, but their heart is far from me.” (Mt. 15, 8) Our prayers must come forth from the depths of our souls. That which lives deep in our souls makes itself manifest in our lives. Whatever is held in our souls, is thought about in our minds, and is then spoken of with our lips and acted upon with our bodies. All our sins begin from within. Christ tells us that it is not that which enters the man that defiles him but it is that which comes forth from his heart.

There is too often a disconnect between our words and the desires of our hearts. This discordance within ourselves is the obstacle to having our prayers answered. Or perhaps it would be better said that it is the reason are prayers are answered, God gives us just what we want and expect from the depths of our souls. We ask one thing with our lips and at the same time we do not ask it with our hearts or we ask for something that is contrary to what our lips are asking for. We ask not expecting that our prayers will be heard and so we get our desire and our prayers are not heard. St. Augustine expresses this discordance within us in his confessions when he tells us that at the same time that he prayed that God would give him chastity another part of him prayed that he not give it right away. In this prayer nothing takes place because this prayer ultimately is one that asks that nothing take place.

Let us become one in all that we are: in our soul, in our thoughts, in our words and in our actions. Then in this singleness of prayer ask our Heavenly Father in the Name of Jesus and trust completely that we will receive that which we truly desire.