“Thy Will Be Done”: The Power of Prayer

On Thursday May 6th we in the United States observe the National Day of Prayer. In our nation there are some who may question whether a secular and pluralistic society should espouse an official event that has religious overtones. I deeply admire our pluralistic society and I wholeheartedly agree with protecting religious liberty and to that extant separating church authority from the power of the state. But while the power of the state must be independent of any official church sponsorship the very mission of our nation is founded on a core theological principle:

“That all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Right.”

This is a statement that is completely independent of any organized religion or Church, but nevertheless it is a theological statement. This statement is absolutely vital for our own national identity. It brings an element of healthy humility to our American identity. We do not celebrate our equality because of our own achievements and merit. We recognize our equality by virtue that we are all part of a greater divine purpose through the power of the one we rightfully address as the Creator. From this theological principle we base the notion that we are all share in a divine equality which no other human can usurp. We do not just recognize the God given equality of Americans but of all the members of the human community.

It is based on this principle that I support a national day of prayer and thanksgiving. For me the first Thursday of May and the last Thursday of November are related observances. During these times we take time out to place ourselves in right relationship to our common humanity by being thankful and humbling ourselves before the Creator which many of us in the Judeo Christian tradition call God.

Prayer is an opportunity for us to communicate with God. Contemplative religious communities like the Passionist value prayer as an essential aspect of our own identify and spirituality. Whatever our ministries are they need to serve the vision and Will of God whom we serve. If our ministries serve our own individual or corporate interest then they are missing the point. By taking time during the day to pray and reflect we are taking time to keep ourselves and our ministries oriented towards the Divine plan rather than our own self interest. Justice, peace and integrity of creation ministries must also have the same orientation. We struggle to promote and advocate for justice and peace because it is an intricate component of the Gospel mission. Like equality, justice and peace are values that come from the Divine purpose of the Creator. But the pursuit of real justice cannot be achieved without God’s help. As Pope Benedict XVI mentioned in his encyclical Spe Salvi:

Certainly we must do whatever we can to reduce suffering: to avoid as far as possible the suffering of the innocent; to soothe pain; to give assistance in overcoming mental suffering. These are obligations both in justice and in love. … Indeed, we must do all we can to overcome suffering, but to banish it from the world altogether is not in our power… Only God is able to do this: only a God who personally enters history by making himself man and suffering within history. #36

The ministries of Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation require us to hold the issues of social suffering in prayer. When we struggle with an issue of social or ecological concern it is right and appropriate that we offer these petitions to God. In this way we are intimately connecting with those who suffer by placing them and us into a deeper and divine relationship.

Prayer is a communication with God. Through prayer we ask God for social and personal requests and we thank God for all that he has already given. While we may offer God our own petitions we sometimes realize that some of those petitions may go unanswered. When this happens it is important to recall that one phrase that Jesus used when he taught the disciples to pray and when he prayed at the Garden of Gethsemane: “Thy Will be done”. Sometime personal and social suffering will be part of God’s plan. By undergoing the process of pain and suffering we are sometimes being given an opportunity to grow in a different direction. When this is happening it is all the more important to pray for wisdom and courage, wisdom to understand what it is we are going through and courage to persevere during difficult times. One of my absolute favorite and simple prayers that I can use for personal or social struggles is the Serenity prayer:

God, Grant me the Serenity
to Accept the things I cannot change, 
Courage to change the things I can,
and Wisdom to know the Difference.

The Prayer for a World Renewed is another favorite prayer of mine that I will share in this post. Through this prayer I am requesting from God the courage to struggle for His vision of justice, peace and the integrity of creation by promoting the values for a culture of life.

O God,
our creator and sustainer,
we pray to you:
We want to celebrate life.

We cry out against all that kills life:
hunger, poverty, unemployment, sickness,
debt, repression, individualism,
abuse of the earth, injustice,
and all other forms of slavery.

We want to announce fullness of life:
work, education, health, housing,
safe environment, bread for all.

We want communion, solidarity,
a world renewed. We hope against hope.
With the God of history,
We want to make things new again.
Amen

One Response to ““Thy Will Be Done”: The Power of Prayer”

1. Crystal Maynard says:

   May 23, 2010 at 4:58 pm

   Well, Thanks for making my morning a little bit better with this great article!!