This is the second day I read the letter of Saint Augustine to Proba (see Anicia Faltonia Proba by Tim Keller below). The theme is on prayers. Yesterday, I read "You will find no prayer that is not already contained in the Lord's Prayer" and he wrote (chapter 12 of Letter 130 A.D. 412, with bible links I found):
"Here are some examples.
When one prays: Be glorified among all nations as thou art glorified among us, and Let your prophets be proved true (Sirach 36:1-17), what else is one asking than Hallowed be thy name?
When the psalmist says: Bring us back, O God of hosts, let your face shine on us (various Psalms) and we shall be saved what else is he saying than Thy kingdom come?
When he says: Direct my steps according to your word (Proverbs 20:24), so that iniquity has no dominion over me what else is he saying than Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven?
When in the book of Proverbs it is said: give me neither poverty nor riches (Proverbs 30:8), grant me only my share of food what else is this than Give us this day our daily bread?
When the psalmist says Lord, remember David (Psalm 132) and how he served you or O Lord, if I have done this, if there is iniquity in my hands, if I have rewarded with evil those that did evil to me (1 Peter 3:9; Romans 12:17)what else is this than Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us?
When he says: Deliver me from my enemies (Psalms 59:1-2; 143:9), O my God, and defend me from those that rise up against me what else is this than Deliver us from evil?
And if you go over all the words of holy prayers, I think you will find nothing which cannot be comprised and summed up in the petitions of the Lord’s Prayer. So when we pray we are free to use different words to any extent, but we must ask the same things: in this we have no choice."
Today I read again St Augustine's letter to Proba: "We do not know how to pray as we ought" and he wrote:
"Perhaps you may still ask why St Paul said when we cannot choose words in order to pray properly, since it is impossible that he or those to whom he wrote should not have known the Lord’s Prayer.
Yet Paul himself was not exempt from such ignorance. When, to prevent him from becoming swollen-headed over the greatness of the revelations that had been given to him, he was given in addition a thorn in the flesh, a messenger of Satan to buffet him, he asked the Lord three times to take it away from him. Surely that was not knowing to pray as he ought? For in the end he heard the Lord’s reply, telling him why even such a great saint’s prayer had to be refused: My grace is enough for you: my power is at its best in weakness.
So when we are suffering afflictions that might be doing us either good or harm, we do not know how to pray as we ought. But because they are hard to endure and painful, because they are contrary to our nature (which is weak) we, like all mankind, pray to have our afflictions taken from us. At least, though, we owe this much respect to the Lord our God, that if he does not take our afflictions away we should not consider ourselves ignored and neglected, but should hope to gain some greater good through the patient acceptance of suffering. For my power is at its best in weakness."
He further writes:
"Hence if anything happens contrary to our prayer, we ought to bear the disappointment patiently, give thanks to God, and be sure that it was better for God’s will to be done than our own. The Mediator himself has given us an example of this. When he had prayed, My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass me by, he transformed the human will that was in him because he had assumed human nature and added Nevertheless, let it be as you, not I, would have it. Thus, truly, By the obedience of one man many have been made righteous."
One of my all time favourite preachers Tim Keller (especially when I was still a protestant) wrote this blog "Saint Augustine on Prayer" and he gave this background information:
"Anicia Faltonia Proba (died AD 432) was a Christian Roman noblewoman. She had the distinction of knowing both St. Augustine, who was the greatest theologian of the first millennium of Christian history, as well as John Chrysostom, who was its greatest preacher. We have two letters of Augustine to Proba, and the first (Letter 130) is the only single, substantial treatment on the subject of prayer that St. Augustine ever wrote... Anicia Proba was a widow by her early 30s. She was present when Rome was sacked in 410 and had to flee for her life with her granddaughter Demetrias to Africa where they met Augustine. Augustine concludes the letter by asking his friend, “Now what makes this work [of prayer] specially suitable to widows but their bereaved and desolate condition?” Should a widow not “commit her widowhood, so to speak, to her God as her shield in continual and most fervent prayer?” There is every reason to believe she accepted his invitation."
And he concludes:
"Augustine gives wise pastoral advice here. He first points to Jesus own prayer in Gethsemane, which was perfectly balanced between honest desire “let this cup pass from me” and submission to God “nevertheless, not my will but thine be done.” And he points to Romans 8:26, which promises that the Spirit will guide our hearts and prayers when we are groaning and confused—and God will hear them even in their imperfect state."
Let us pray.
Almighty, ever-living God,
make us ever obey you willingly and promptly.
Teach us how to serve you
with sincere and upright hearts
in every sphere of life.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
No comments:
Post a Comment