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2595 The prophets summoned the people
to conversion of heart and, while zealously seeking theface
of God, like Elijah, they intercededfor the people. 2596 The Psalms constitute the masterwork of prayer
in the Old Testament. They present
two inseparable qualities: the personal, and the communal.
They extend to all dimensions of history, recalling
God’s promises already fulfilled,
and looking for the coming of the Messiah.
2597 Prayed and fulfllled in Christ, the Psalms are an
essential and permanent element of the prayer of the Church.
They are suitable for men of every condition and time. 2598 The drama of prayer is fully revealed to us in
the Word who became flesh and dwells among us. To seek to
understand his prayer through what his witnesses
proclaim to us in the Gospel is to approach the holy Lord
Jesus as Moses approached the burning bush: first to
contemplate him in prayer, then to hear how he teaches us to
pray, in order to know how he hears our prayer. Jesus prays 2599 The Son of God who became Son of the Virgin
also learned to pray according to his human heart. He
learns the formulas of prayer from his mother, who kept in
her heart and meditated upon all the ‘great
things’ done by the Almighty.4’ He learns to pray
in the words and rhythms of the prayer of his people, in the
Synagogue at Nazareth and the Temple at Jerusalem. But his
prayer 584 springs from an otherwise secret source, as
he intimates at the age of twelve: ‘I must be in my
Father’s house.’42 Here the newness of ~ prayer in
the fullness of time begins to be revealed; his filial pra
yer, which the Father awaits from his children, is finally
going to be lived out by the only Son in his humanity, with
and for men. 2600 The Gospel
according to St Luke emphasizes the action of the Holy
Spirit and the meaning of prayer in Christ’s ministry.
Jesus prays before the decisive moments of his mission:
before his Father’s witness to him during his baptism
and Transfiguration, 535, 554 and before his own
fulfilment of the Father’s plan of love by his
Passion.43 He also prays before the decisive moments
involving 612 the mission of his apostles: at his
election and call of the Twelve, 858 |
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