WHAT IS THE MEANING OF PRAYER?

First  and foremost , prayer is an expression of our relationship with God.  God is our father and we are his children.  As such we are dependent in Him.  Therefore it is a relationship of dependency. Rashi the 11^th century biblical commentator, explains that God has not brought rain because He wanted the first human being to pray for it for it. Indeed, when they recognized the need for rain  in the world,  they prayed for it. This is the first hint that the basic relationship between humanity and God is expressed through prayer.

WHAT IS THE REAL REASON FOR PRAYER

                          As human beings one can choose to pray the recitation of blessings and Psalms -  in fact  advice it…but prayer can never be a formality.  It is not  dashing off a bunch of words in a prescribed sequences.  It is speaking of God our creature to father to the almighty from the innermost recesses of our being.  The shortest prayer reported in the Bible is the prayer of Moses when he discovered that his beloved sister Mariam has been afflicted with leprosy.  He cries out to God from the depth of his belly “Please Lord heal her now”. This prayer is seeing as it is simple and it captures his anguish and his deep faith in God that his prayer can and will be answered….and it is.  Actually prayer is not a half hearted ritual recitation of words, but is an out pouring of the heart.

 WHO TEACH US TO PRAY

           The tax collector (chunkackaran) and the Thief of Right (valathu bhagathe kallan) and the vesya sthree…. Among them,  see,  the difference of their attitude towards the prayer… The first given all of his property to the poor and went  behind the Jesus.with out extra force  . The thief just have seen His struggles while crucifying and believed and begged to him…..for the  heaven(parudeesa)and the third…the bitch…she realized and repented about her sin and prayed……she was the one, has  received the first chance to see the resurrected Jesus..  They  were very notorious to the society but they become a  part of the Holy Bible and good moral to us…

 Now in the Great Lent  {40 days Lent}we should look into ourselves…Take the morals of the above….pray..Our prayers should be our work…Our work should lead us to worship…Let us all be good morals to the society. and prepare for the part of the Grate  Resurrection………….of Jesus Christ.

BINOY THANKACHAN