12 A BRIEF PRIMER ON PRAYER other—it is just the beginning. Because the compassion, the generosity, the self-gift, the sacrifice of the other on our behalf fills us with gratitude, humility, joy, wonder, and awe without limit. We cannot be thankful enough to this one who came to rescue us when we were most powerless and trapped. In fact, in many ways our life is really defined by this moment of liberation, and we continuously return to the memory of it so that we will never lose sight of just how deeply we have been cared for and watched over, and so that we might never become ungrateful. So, too, prayer is the way that we live in the memory of the saving events of our life. This One who comes to save us from our imprisonment is the One who has always wanted us to exist, who loved us into existence, who sustains us in our being, and who rejoices to be our Lord and Redeemer. Our friend. The most reasonable, the most human thing we can do as we face the challenges of our day-to-day existence is to call upon this One in prayer. Prayer generates us. It is a prayer that expresses our profound thankfulness, that offers our praise and adoration, that begs for forgiveness for our forgetfulness and failings, and that petitions in faith and trust for the help we need. A primer on prayer This little book aims to offer insight and encouragement for those longing to go deeper into prayer. The theme that recurs throughout these pages is simply this: Prayer is a response to the love of God who delights to dialogue with us. Prayer is both communication with 13 the Lord and the means to deeper communion with him. He loves for us to spend time with him, to silence all our distractions so that we can hear his voice, to find consolation in his Presence. Prayer is the greatest realism. Life is filled with non-stop struggles, with injustices, with sadness and loss, with suffering and pain. The weight of it can appear overwhelming. Until we enter into prayer with our Savior. United with Jesus Christ in the tender stillness of prayer, we are strengthened, lifted up, illuminated, and made happy and blessed with a resilience to face life’s surprises. Time spent in prayer is never time wasted. Every time we go to prayer, we come away closer to God and to his saints. We become more ourselves. The encounter of prayer is the best way to prepare for the eternity of heaven. We pray to savor the mercy that has come to rescue us in our distress. Mercy opens our prison doors and beckons us forth to flourish in faith, hope, and love. To pray is to embrace the freedom that has come to set us free. To pray is to be caught up in the gaze of Jesus Christ so that we can become Christ’s face to others. Fr. Peter John Cameron, o.p. Preface
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