Wilfrid Stinissen OCD
(According to the Swedish magazine Karmel, August 1996)
In a perfect Christian life, interior prayer is inseparably connected to liturgical prayer. Some "discover" interior prayer first, and only gradually come to liturgical prayer, while for others it is the opposite. However, for those who sincerely seek God, it is absolutely essential that both forms of prayer increasingly merge into one. Whoever is on the path of knowing God cannot fail to realize that God reveals Himself in the silence of the unfathomable depths of our soul and also manifests Himself to His creation through words and signs.
"The spiritual life," teaches the Second Vatican Council, "does not consist only in participating in the sacred liturgy. A Christian is indeed called to communal prayer, yet he must also enter his room to pray to the Father in secret, and he must pray without ceasing, as the Apostle Paul teaches" (SC 12).
Dialogue between God and Man
In the General Guidelines for the Church's Daily Prayer, it states that its task is to establish "contact or rather dialogue between God and people, where 'God speaks to His people... and the people respond to God with songs and prayer'" (14).
The Church's liturgical prayer is the true Jacob's ladder, up which God's angels ascend and descend (Gn 28:12; John 1:51). The salvific word of God comes to us in the readings, but often also in the psalms, and we respond by praising God with gratitude. The dual movement, ascending and descending, is very aptly summarized in the first words of the Gloria of the Holy Mass: "Gloria in excelsis Deo – et in terra pax hominibus" (Glory to God in the highest – and peace on earth to men of goodwill). Our hymn of praise rises from below, ascending upward, and glorifies God in the highest. God's words, speaking of His love for us, come from above, descend downwards, and bring peace to people on earth. What a wonderful dialogue!
What always happens in dialogue at a deep level also applies here. Both movements, from man to God and from God to man, merge into one another, and ultimately, they cannot be distinguished. When "the Lord God surely speaks of peace for His people and for His saints" (Ps 85:9), He glorifies Himself. Everything He does for man reveals His own splendor. "The glory of God is a living man," writes Irenaeus of Lyon (+ around 200): when a man truly lives, when he is well in every way, he radiates something of God's glory. "A tree is known by its fruit" (Mt 12:33). If a man is good fruit, he testifies that God is a good tree. On the other hand, it benefits man to forget himself and glorify God. In this hymnal praise, he will find his deepest joy. He "will shine" (Ps 34:6) when he praises God. Then he lives precisely for what he was created: he is a stream directed towards God. He is on the right path, and therefore feels peace in his soul: for according to Augustine, peace means that tranquility which surrounds us when everything is in proper order.
That both of these directions of movement (man praises God – God sanctifies man) merge is most clearly seen in Christ. The liturgical constitution speaks of His "great work, which perfectly glorifies God and sanctifies man" (SC 7). Was the Word made flesh for man or for the Father? The question is, of course, wrongly posed. There is no 'either – or' here. The glorification of the Father is the salvation of man. Some people frown when it is said that everything is created for God's glory: What an egotist God must be! They do not understand that when God glorifies Himself, He glorifies love. God is love, after all. When God proclaims His own glory, it means that He shows His love in all its brilliance, demonstrating that He never thinks of His own benefit, but only of His Son and all of us whom He has included. It is simply not possible to be more distant from egotism!
A person also wants to glorify himself. In itself, there is nothing wrong with that. If we were as God intended us to be, we would truly have the right to seek our honor, our true honor. We would have the right to love ourselves, that is, the true depth of our being, which is nothing but love, pure love that constantly gives and receives. Sin, however, and egoism have turned everything upside down, so that love for ourselves now often occurs at the expense of our neighbors. Whoever loves himself in the right way loves the love for which he was created.
When in the liturgy we glorify and praise God, we also glorify God's image in ourselves. There is no place for pride, egoism, or contempt for others. The liturgical hymn of praise very actively involves the body. Every bodily activity is incorporated into the liturgy. The same body that performs its daily duties deeply bows before God in the liturgy; the same voice that sounds in daily life praises God in the liturgy. If we realize the dignity our body receives and often give it the opportunity to participate in the liturgy, this dignity will accompany us everywhere. In His infinite goodness, God actually celebrates us more in the liturgy than we celebrate Him. However, there is a danger for those who frequently participate in the liturgy – especially for religious – that instead of being accompanied by the dignity of the liturgy into daily life, we allow a banal attitude of everyday life to permeate the liturgy.
The Prayer of All God's People
"Since it is the prayer of all God's people," writes Paul VI about the Church's daily prayer in the apostolic constitution Laudis canticum, which revives this prayer in 1970, "it has been arranged so that not only clergy can participate, but also religious persons and laity. The specific needs of people of various states and positions are taken into account by introducing various ways of celebration. Thus, the daily prayer of the Church can be adapted to different communities, which celebrate it according to their life conditions and mission" (1). "Therefore, the daily prayer of the Church is offered to all Christians," the Holy Father continues, "even to those who are not obliged to pray it." And also: "Above all, it is important that the people of God recognize the prayer of the psalms with anew love, which continually follows and proclaims God's work in the history of salvation."
For a long time, the almost universally held view was that the daily prayer of the Church pertained only to priests and religious, while laypeople should be satisfied with the rosary. If it was accessible only in Latin, this view was somewhat understandable. Latin formed a barrier between the clergy and the laity. In the early Church, this was not the case, as Latin (or Greek) was the language of the people. The daily prayer of the Church was a matter of active participation by the entire congregation of believers. When people no longer spoke Latin, a number of popular devotions arose. The most widespread of these is the rosary. Celebrating compline together with the entire family was virtually unthinkable before the council. In contrast, many Catholic families prayed the rosary every evening.
The Church considers the rosary to be very important. Due to its simplicity and meditative character, it will always hold a significant place in the prayer life of the Catholic Church. However, the rosary is not a typical morning or evening prayer. Praying a decade of the rosary in the morning does not hold the same weight as praying morning praises (laudes). When we pray the praises, we begin the day with glorifying God; a short reading serves as nourishment for the road, which we feed on throughout the day; in the intercessory prayers, we ask for strength for the tasks of the coming day. Moreover, we are aware that we do not pray alone, but together with the whole Church: the same prayer resonates worldwide. We are not left to ourselves: if we feel tired, sleepy, or distracted, we know that others offset our fatigue with their zeal. In a large choir, it matters less if some members are unsure or a little hoarse. They can still sing along with the others and do not have to fear disrupting the harmony. In the prayer of the daily prayer of the Church, we find ourselves at the center of the mystery. We are part of the mystical body of Christ. My insignificant 'I' as an individual has been placed within contexts that are boundless. Only when I am included in something larger than what I can directly perceive as 'myself' can I truly become 'myself'.
Naturally, most laypeople cannot pray the entire office. However, it is possible to pray either a part or just a section of a part. For example, during morning praises, one can limit oneself to just one psalm. Often we see only two options: everything or nothing. Thus we take the length of the office as an excuse not to pray at all. However, there is also a middle path: to select a part and be satisfied with that. The advantage for laypeople is the freedom regarding the quantity of prayer. A priest or religious is obligated to pray all parts of the Church's daily prayer in full. I speak of obligation, but it is a 'blessed' obligation. Being obligated by faith enriches me. However, it does bring with it a risk: wanting to 'get this over' as quickly as possible. The layperson, on the other hand, is not bound to a certain quantity, and can therefore think more about quality.
Christian tradition usually distinguishes between common and individual prayer. Both are important, and Jesus encourages both. "But when you pray, go into your room, close the door, and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees what is hidden will reward you" (Mt 6:6). Jesus Himself did this. His 'room' was often nature. "… He went up on a mountain to pray alone. When evening came, He was there alone" (Mt 14:23). However, Jesus also went to the synagogue and sang psalms together with His disciples. He says: "For where two or three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them" (Mt 18:20).
The Church's daily prayer is a typical prayer of the community of believers, characterized by communal prayer. It is meant for prayer in community and is best expressed when we pray it together with others. For example, the responsories presuppose that they are alternately sung (recited) by two choirs. For all who pray the hours together with others, it is also important to allow time for personal, private prayer, that is, the prayer for which we enter our 'room'. Prayer only in community is not enough.
Nevertheless, for a layperson who prays the daily prayer of the Church alone 'in his room', this prayer can be a beautiful synthesis of both communal and individual prayer, oral and contemplative prayer. They participate in the Church's prayer and are aware that they are connected with the Church, while still praying in solitude and having the opportunity to use their freedom, lingering over certain verses, thus allowing prayer to culminate in meditation and contemplation.
(Translated from Swedish by Prof. Dagmar Chvojková)
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