Section 23
72. How are we to understand the injunction pray always?
Augustine has already told us that God does not demand the impossible from us. But when God does demand something beyond our own capabilities, he is more than willing to help us accomplish it.
"I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise shall ever be in my mouth. This is how Christ speaks, and so, too, should the Christian speak; because a Christian is a member of the Body of Christ ... When should I praise the Lord? ... In times of great blessing? No; `at all times.' Therefore, in those moments (of blessing) and when you experience the Lord's scourges, when good things are taken away ... you have sung, `I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise will ever be in my mouth,' both when he gives and when he takes away, because it is he who gives and he who takes away, but God will never take himself away from him who blesses
73. But who is capable of praying at all times?
The humble man, says St. Augustine, is capable of blessing the Lord at all times.
"How does man bless the Lord at all times? By not seeking praise for himself ... if you seek humility, repeat what is written, In the Lord shall my soul be praised: the humble shall hear him and rejoice. Be the Lord's donkey, be humble. He who sits on you, rules you. Don't fear getting tripped up or falling head first - for that is the nature of your weakness. Simply consider who it is that rides on you - you carry Christ. He came into the city on a donkey, and that animal was gentle."254
Since it is necessary to pray always, but it is impossible to pray in every moment with words, Augustine suggests, "If you sing with the voice, soon you must be silent. In those moments, sing with your life in such a way that your song is never silent."255 And all of this should be done:
• "With insistence";256
• "With perseverance";257
• "Without laziness"258 or "getting discouraged."259
74. But when prayer is understood in its narrow sense, how long should it last? How long should I prolong my prayer?
"It is neither illicit nor unprofitable to pray at length, if your time allows for it without conflicting with your obligations and duty-bound work - even in the doing of these things, as I have already said, we should exercise holy desire, which is praying without ceasing."260
75. 1 thought Christ said we shouldn't pray with lots of words. How do we reconcile that with what Augustine says about praying at length?
Spending long periods in prayer is not, as many believe, the same as "praying with lots of words." An accumulation of words is one thing, heartfelt desire extended over long periods is quite another. "It is written that even the Lord himself spent entire nights in prayer, and that his prayer was even with more insistence when he was in agony. In all of this, do we not see the example of our needed Intercessor who is in time, who, with the Father is also the eternal Hearer of prayer?""'
76. Since we are encouraged to pray at length and this even vocally when we can, what form does that take?
"The brethren in Egypt, it is said, had recourse to frequent prayers, but they were quite brief - spontaneous maxims, as it were, lest their attentive and alert minds, necessary for prolonged prayer, lose their edge or simply dissipate. Here they show us plainly, that as the attention cannot continue long if fatigued, so, too, it should not be pendant if it is to be maintained. Nor should we use `lots of words' in our prayer, nor should we avoid prolonged prayer if we have the fervent attention to do so. `Lots of words' in prayer means speaking too much while asking for what we need. Prolonged prayer means a throbbing heart full of holy sentiments for him to whom we pray. Often, prayer is more groaning than talking, more tears than words. But our tears are not lost on him, and our groaning is ever before him who made the word and has no need of human words."262
77. What form does this "desire" take in our prayer?
"When we relish continuous desire, accompanied by the practice of faith, hope, and charity, then we `pray always.' "263
Desire is central for St. Augustine's theology of prayer. He recognizes the constant need to reorient his easily distracted heart toward its true and divine Love, because "if I love all things when I do not possess them, and when I do possess them, I despise them, what good thing, then, can satisfy me?"264 "Desire is the soul's thirst";265 it is "the most intimate portion of the heart. 11266 Intimate knowledge of the Beloved reveals his goodness to the man of prayer, and prayer orders and orients his desire toward the Beloved. This makes "the whole of the life of a Christian to be one holy desire, and it is only this that makes us Christians."267
78. What are the fruits of this desire in prayer?
"We learn to correct ourselves, we discover what spiritual progress we have made through desire, and we affectionately arouse in our souls the ability to receive even more strength. The effects of prayer will be just as good for the soul as the degree of fervent desire which provoked its expression."268 "Desire renders much sweeter what has been desired over much time, once it has been obtained,"269 "while it capacitates the soul to receive to an even greater degree what it has so ardently longed for. It is not joy that capacitates the soul, but
79. What will help me to achieve this desire?
Regardless of our circumstances, direct contact with Sacred Scripture helps us keep our focus.
"As pilgrims, distant from the Lord, we walk in the obscurity of this world. Since we walk by faith, not sight (cf. 2 Cor. 5:6), the Christian soul should experience desolation, continuing in prayer and learning to set his eye on the word of divine Sacred Scripture, as on a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns, and the day-star arises in our hearts ... and we know that when it shall be revealed, we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is (1 John 3:2). For after death comes the true life, and after desolation, true consolation. That life shall free our `souls from death'; that consolation shall free our `eyes from tears,' and, as the psalm continues, our `feet shall be saved from falling'; for there shall be no temptation there.""'
80. Given the all-important role of desire in prayer, should we conclude that prayer regimens and fixed prayer times constrict our desire?
"The words of the Lord, in fact, pray without ceasing, and the apostle, pray without interruption, are reasonably understood in the sense that on no given day should the established prayer times be omitted.""' "Men pray every day, the saints never abandon the time and place reserved for prayer."273
Augustine marks out the usual times for prayer as follows:
After the cock crows (although really fervent souls have already begun their prayer before that);274
When the bread is blessed and consecrated (morning
• Before lunch;276
• More often during Lent.277