Prayer in the Catechism of the
Catholic Church #5
January 28, 1996
Brother John Raymond
Prayer is not something totally new that we need to explore all
by ourselves with no clue as to where we are going or how to
proceed. Man from the very beginning has prayed. The Old Testament
gives us examples of people of prayer. The Catechism of the Catholic
Church highlights some of them, like for instance Moses. Now some of
us may be familiar with the Hollywood Moses of "The Ten
Commandments" movie played by Charlton Heston. I must say that in
this movie we have much fiction mixed in with fact. But for all that
one cannot help seeing the familiar relationship Moses had with God.
But did this friendship begin with any initiative by Moses? No, it
was God Who revealed Himself to Moses beginning with the burning
bush on the mountain. God reveals Himself to save His people. Now
obviously God did not need Moses to help Him. Yet, He chose to
associate Moses in His saving work. Moses at first is not too keen
on cooperating in God's plan. He enters into a dialogue with God Who
confides in him. Moses, somewhat reluctant to carry out God's plan
at first, enters into debate with God. Finally, he agrees to be
God's "messenger, an associate in His compassion, His work of
salvation." (#2575)
It is interesting how amazed the people were concerning the
relationship between God and Moses. We are told that, "The Lord used
to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend." (Ex.
33,11) This was something new for people who thought of God as
distant and to be feared. Perhaps this attitude prevails among some
even today. From the initial hesitancy of Moses we see a progressive
growth in intimacy with God. So much so that Moses actually begins
to take on God's likeness. He becomes compassionate, interceding for
the stiff-necked people he led out of exile from Egypt. The people
rebelled repeatedly - against God and himself. From his intimacy
with God "Moses drew strength and determination for his
intercession. He does not pray for himself but for the people God
made His own." (#2577) This transforming prayer-relationship between
God and Moses made him "very humble, more so than anyone else on the
face of the earth." (Num. 12:3,7-8) Ultimately, "the prayer of Moses
becomes the most striking example of intercessory prayer, which will
be fulfilled in 'the one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus
Christ.'" (#2574)
It is amazing the degree of self-forgetfulness and self-sacrifice
Moses reached in His relationship with God. After Aaron made a
molten calf for the people to worship instead of the true God Moses
intercedes for the people. Moses goes so far as to tell God that if
He will forgive this sin of the people, he will be willing to have
his own name blotted out of the book God has written (perhaps the
Book of Life). (Ex. 32,32) Also, Moses went back up Mount Sinai, ate
and drank nothing for forty days and nights and obtained a renewed
covenant between God and the people. (Ex. 34:27,28) This all was
after God had told Moses that He would still make a great nation out
of him without these stiff-necked people. (Ex. 32,10)
From what has been said here we certainly can learn a lot about
prayer from Moses. Perhaps we could make it a point to read the Book
of Exodus concentrating on Moses' relationship with God asking
ourselves the following questions: How was Moses relationship unique
from others? How was Moses like the rest of us? What can we learn in
our own relationship with God from his example? What similarities
can we find between Moses and Jesus? With these suggested
reflections and others that may come to our minds let us look to
this great Old Testament man of prayer as an inspiration to our own
life of prayer.