In his fifth catechesis on prayer, Pope Francis reflects on the call of Abraham, who was invited to undertake a journey that seems absurd: called to leave his homeland and family, to embark into the unknown. Entirely based on trust in a promise, it is not easy, yet Abraham had this courage and trust.
He listens to the voice of God and trusts in His word, indeed Pope Francis says, “Abraham is thus the man of the Word.” He represents the religious journey of every believer: a vocation, a calling based on the power of a promise that one day will be fulfilled. “And Abraham believed God’s promise. He believed and he set out without knowing where he was going… he had trust.”
In prayer, in silence, and in acts of faith, Abraham comes to know the one true God as personal: a God who provides, a God who guides my steps, who does not abandon me. Abraham invites all of us to enter into this same relationship, to have a living experience of His presence. God is not abstract or just a cosmic force. “He is the God of a person, of a calling, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, of Jacob.”
Pope Francis invites us to meditate on the story of the sacrifice of Isaac (Gen 22:1-19). In this supreme test, God asks Abraham to sacrifice his beloved son and sole heir. “Here Abraham lives faith as a tragedy, as a groping walk in the night, under a sky that, this time, is starless. And many times this also happens to us, to walk in the dark but with faith.”
Let us learn from Abraham how to pray with faith: to listen to the Lord, to walk, to dialogue, even to argue. Yes to argue – to speak like a child with his dad – to listen to him, to reply, to dialogue with faith, but always willing to accept the Word of God and to put it into practice. This is how Abraham teaches us to pray, transparent like a son with his dad.
Read Pope Francis’ Catechesis on prayer 5. The prayer of Abraham >>>
(Did you miss the previous posts on the Pope’s catechesis? Click here.)
