Prayer and Its Merit

Prayer is elevating the mind to the Almighty God and confiding with Him in spiritual utterances.  Through prayer we worship and thank Him and lay before Him our needs.

Prayer is not only an obligatory duty, but the first and the most beneficial one.  We were lead to it by natural instinct which guided us to approach our God, may He be exalted.  Moreover, God instructed us regarding prayer through children of Israel.  He taught them the principles of His worship in the elementary school of prophets until the time came when He sent His beloved Son, the Divine Teacher, who taught the world the perfect Law and true worship.

The effect of prayer is really mighty, as the Apostle points out: “Great is the power of prayer of a righteous man” (James 5:16), especially the perfect prayer of spiritual elders through which they receive divine gifts and see miraculous visions.  On this matter, they have experiences and stories that call for wonder, and that cannot come by except by total devotional effort.  In this connection, Yohanna Abu-Al-dawaly the Elder says: “whoever wants to devour the sweetness of Christ, let him labor to devote himself to prayer which draws one near to God more than any other spiritual exercise.  For with it, the mind associates itself with God and takes His likeness, gains His gifts, and becomes the fountain of His secret mysteries.  Through prayer, he opens His treasuries and apportions His treasures; he becomes worthy to see His glory and wanders in the clouds of the lights of His Majesty where the hosts of the Most High dwell.  He is then taken over by silence and bewilderment, stunned by the brilliant light rays shining on him.  Such is the life of spiritual men and their utmost pleasure”.

The honor of prayer is so great that it can hardly be spoken of.  It is more sublime than the honor of all other virtues and worthy actions, for the latter can only attain perfection through prayer.

As for the benefits of prayer, they are beyond demonstration or reckoning.  For, if those who sit with the learned and philosophers gain knowledge and understanding, what then can we say about those who confide with the Lord of both wisdom and the wise,  and the Creator of knowledge and the learned?  Let us ask Speaker of God (Moses) about the benefits of prayer.  His answer would be that through prayer he saved the people of God from many enemies, braided for them crowns of victory in many wars and received for them many graces.  Indeed, prayer is a weapon before which fail all war machines, a weapon that makes the valor of heroes void and puts legions to rout. 

Was it not prayer that quenched the burning fire heated seven times in the Babylonian furnace?  Was it not prayer that shut the mouths of savage and ravenous beasts in the den of loins?  Did it not prolong the life of Hezekiah the king fifteen years and rendered him victorious over his enemies?  Did it not bless the barren Hanna with Samuel, the chosen of the Lord, who was found to have no peer?  Did it not crown Prophet David with the crowns of victory in his repeated grievous wars?  Did it not become a haven of salvation from the surging waves of divine wrath?  Did it not confer upon Zacharia the priest with a fruit whose equal has never been seen among those born of women?  Did it not open the prison doors before the Apostle Peter?  Did it not bring the light of faith to Cornilius?

And what shall I say of the blessed Apostle Paul whose thirst for persistent prayer, while guiding many peoples to truth, was never quenched.  He realized that to pray, himself, was much more effective than commanding people to persistently do so.  This is just as true of all the rest of the Apostles, evangelists, martyrs, confessors, pastors, teachers, monks, solitarians and holy fathers.  Prayer was their perseverance and ultimate aim.  They turned to prayer to enlighten and guide the world.

What other work then, I wonder, is more venerable,  beneficial, honorable, and wiser than this praiseworthy work.  Said one of the Saints: “Prayer is wings by which we fly up high to God, and a ladder by which we ascend to Heaven.  It is a means of becoming partners with Angels, an unfailing hope, and a treasure that does not become exhausted or reached by moth or trees.  It is a sea that never dries up.  It is like trees that never wither and a trade that never loses.  Prayer is the origin of righteousness and the foundation of all virtues.  Moreover, prayer is the support that helps to stay firm in true faith and a reliable aid for honest work.  Blessed and happy are, therefore, those who make it their companion day and night.  For, in prayer, there exist happiness, joy, delight and benefit that can only be felt by those who have experienced them.

Make use of it, O’ Christian, for it is the aid for success for all works, for heaven has a door and a key.  Blessed be God who hears prayers and answers petitions.

The Necessity Of Prayer

The necessity of prayer is attested to in the Books of both the Old and the New Testaments, and by the lives of men of God by whose lights we are guided and by whose steps we follow.

          In the Old Testament, we find the following: “You shall fear the Lord Your God and Him shall You serve“.(Deuteronomy 6:13; 10:20);  “Praise the Lord, praise, O you servants of the Lord, praise the name of the Lord”. (Psalm 113);  “Blessed are they that dwell in Your house; they shall praise You forever.” Psalm 85:4);  “O You Who hears prayer, unto You all flesh shall come.” (Psalm 65:2)

          In the New Testament, we read:  “Watch and Pray.” (Matthew. 26, 41), so watch, you, and pray always;  See also the parable of the Unjust Judge. (Luke 18).  We further read: “Continue steadfastly in prayer being watchful in it with thanksgiving.” (Colossians 4:2); “Pray without ceasing.” (Thessalonians, 5:17);  “Be constant in prayer.” (Romans 12:12),  “Pray at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplications for all the Saints.” (Ephesians 6:18).

          Thus we see that in both Testaments men of God made praying and worshipping Him their supreme concern.  For instance, in Genesis 12:8 we read of Abraham, “the close Friend of God, "that he “built an altar to the Lord and called on His name.” Likewise did Isaac and Jacob (Genesis 26:25).  Moses Says “I fell down before the Lord…I prayed therefore unto the Lord and said…” (Deuteronomy. 9:25).  Of Hannah, mother of Samuel, it is recorded: “She prayed to God and wept bitterly.”  Jonah, too, “Prayed to the Lord his God from the belly of the whale.”  Daniel is reported to have prayed three times daily, kneeling on his Knees. Look over the prayer of Hezekiah, as given in Isaiah 37, and the prayer of Solomon, recorded in II Chronicles 6.  As for David, the Prophet and the great king, his famous psalms attest to his worshipping God since his early youth.  Hannah the Prophetess used to worship God in fasting and prayer night and day. (Luke 2:37).  The Apostles, Mary the Mother of Jesus, His brethren and all the holy women “continued earnestly in prayer with one accord.” (Acts 1:14; 2:46).

          But of more significance than all is the fact that Christ, may His name be exalted, Who Himself laid down the path of divine worship, made prayer our duty, taught us how to pray persistently, showed us the fruit of prayer, and Himself prayed giving us a good example.  In this connection, Mor Yacoub, the Doctor of the Church, says: “If the One Who hears and heeds our supplications Himself prayed, who then would not be industrious in prayer? If, indeed, the One Who needed not to pray, nevertheless gave Himself earnestly to prayer on our behalf, what would be the situation of him who stands in need of it if he did not pray? Take heart, O You who prays, and weary not, for the prayer of Son of God is in Your behalf.  Let your prayer join His mighty one. He will accept it for the sake of His own prayer.” The early Apostles and believers followed this example.  The forefathers, the successors to the Apostles, the Saints and the faithful everywhere in the world followed suit.  Mor Ephraim Said: “Be constant in prayer day and night, for prayer helps him who loves it in both worlds.  Persist in it for the farmer who frequently cultivates his fields, reaps increased yields. Do not be like the slothful in whose fields thorns will grow.”

          Having then seen the necessity and advantage of prayer, let us not fall into the error of thinking that it is necessary only at the time of need.  Rather, it must be continuous as it is nourishment to the soul as food is for the body, especially since the body and the soul of man has constant needs.  Further, man is always exposed to tribulation, misfortunes, falling into grave offenses and faults.  What better vessel than prayer is there to cross the stormy seas of trial and temptation, and reach the haven of safety?

          If we assume that man might sometimes be free of physical pains and circumstantial trials, can he escape from spiritual trials and mental warfare?  The fire of this warfare is constantly being set ablaze by the Enemy of the soul against whom the Apostle warns us saying: “Be sober, be watchful.  Your adversary the devil prowls like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” (I Peter 5:8).  If we assume that some time may pass in one’s live when he may not come upon physical distress or spiritual trial, he still needs to be cautious not to get entangled in them.  This is Christ’s commandment to us: “Watch and pray lest you enter into temptation.”. (Matthew. 26:41).  If one is in a virtuous state, he must ask God to remain in it.  Even if one thinks that God is the Lord of knowledge and wisdom and thus knows what the needs of His servants are before they ask, and that He grants their requests freely, he should nonetheless make his petitions known to Him, thanking His graces, lest we would be put at the level of dumb animals.

The wisdom of God requires that He grants not our needs unless we ask so that he makes known to us the magnitude of His graces and thus we may receive them with due thanksgiving and make not light of them.  For this reason, He taught us to ask diligently that we may receive, to seek insistently that we may find, and to knock at the doors of His mercy pressingly that they may be opened to us.  For he who asks receives, he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it shall be opened.

          We wish to add that man has three enemies: Satan, flesh and the World.  There are likewise three weapons against them: prayer against Satan, fasting against flesh, and almsgiving against the World. 

          Man’s duty is also threefold: towards God, towards himself, and towards his neighbor.  With prayer he fulfills what he owes to God; with fasting he pays his debt to his body; and with almsgiving he performs his duty to his neighbor. How good prayer is when accompanied by fasting, almsgiving, and righteousness. (Tobias 12:8).

Forms And Divisions Of Prayer

There are two forms of prayer: mental and oral.  Mental prayer is spiritual meditation exercised by the mind and the heart without the involvement of the tongue. Oral prayer is translation in spoken words the hidden emotions of the heart.

          Oral prayer is divided into three types, namely, Praise, Thanksgiving and Petition.  These constitute the contents of the Psalms which are inspired by the Holy Spirit, and they are the best form of prayer.  For if we fix the eyes of the mind on the grand Omnipotence of the Lord of the Universe and meditate on His marvelous Creation and His grand makings in the sky and earth, we cannot but break into praise and magnification to the Wise Creator, singing with the Prophet: “O Lord how manifold are Your works! In wisdom have You made them all.”? (Psalms. 104:24),

          If the mute creation is bidden to offer praise to its Creator, how can Man, who is endowed with the faculty of speech, lag in utterance of praise to Him?  Now let us reflect on His boundless goodness to us- not the least part of which was His having brought us out of nothingness to this noble image and fine form, and raised us from the level of animals by endowing us with rational articulate soul, in the likeness of Angels.  He, May His name be glorified, takes care of us wholly as long as we live and tolerates us whenever we commit sin.  He confers upon us the graces of divine forgiveness and the great gift of the grace of redemption. Who can, then, reckon up all His ineffable graces? Who can even do without raising praise and thanksgiving to His divine goodness?  Everyone must thank God for He is Good and His mercy endures forever. (Psalms 118:1).

          Since God is our Father and Lord, before His bounty we bring our needs.  We ask Him to grant us our necessities, both spiritual and corporeal, and deliver us from all forms of temptation and pitfalls.  We ask Him to grant us purity in soul and chastity in body.  We ask Him to forgive our sins and confirm us in true faith and work of righteousness.  We ask God, too, to implant His divine love in our hearts and aid us to acquire virtue.

          Who then is not in urgent need of all this? Who is he whose soul does not desire and his heart does not yearn to constantly recite the prayer of Jesse’s son: “Sprinkle me with hyssop, and I shall be clean…etc.”? (Palms 51:7)

          We also ask that Christ’s kingdom may extend throughout the whole world, that the Lord may reign over all humanity pouring concord and peace upon churches so  that true and Orthodox faith prevail among them.  We further ask that He may grant peace and security to the world that we may live in happiness…etc.

 Concentration in Prayer

As prayer is an intimate discourse with God Almighty, it is imperative that we collect the mind and thought that they may meditate on their Lord and address themselves to Him without a mediator.  For if Moses the great was prevented from approaching the bush until after he had taken off his sandals from his feet, how is it that you intend to address Him Who is Most High and above any sense and thought, without casting off every recklessness and improper thought?

          Concentrating the mind and keeping it away from distraction is not easy.  It can be achieved only after long and hard work and persistence in spiritual worship.  No one can attain pure prayer without persistence in worshipping God with a bona fide heart, just as one cannot learn a trade until after certain length of time.  Therefore, if we do not posses something of these let us not think of leaving prayer until after our minds have been cleansed, otherwise we would be like those who seek perfection without laboring.  But let us pray, anyway, and pour our hearts and thoughts before The Merciful One.  He, The Most High, will guide us in His mercy to the haven of life and direct us as He wills.  This requires that our intention be well-meaning and our desire intense in concentrating our thought as best as possible.  Also, we should avoid everything that could cause us to be reckless, be it external or internal.  Let us act according to Father Makarius’s advice: “If your prayer is not spiritual, strive to attain verbal prayer.  The spiritual prayer then will grow.”

          Experienced people have known that even though it is difficult, initially, to achieve concentration of mind, it becomes easier, however, after good training, especially when it tastes the sweetness of prayer.  When it reaches this stage, it withdraws from all that exist on earth and in heaven and becomes absorbed by the love of its Lord and overwhelmed by His Majesty.  This is the situation with those who attain perfection.

Mor Isaac the Elder says: “Prayer is not a matter of knowledge and eloquent phraseology.  It is rather a Matter of clearing one’s mind from extraneous thoughts, rendering it serene in a state of concentration attained by silence of movements and serenity of senses”.  He further says: “pure prayer calls for concentration of mind, serenity of conscience, tranquility of thoughts, reflection on the new world, hidden comfort, and discourse with God” 

Father Oghris incites collecting the mind away from recklessness saying: “strive to make your mind silent when at prayer never letting it talk.  Only then you will be able to pray.”  Mor Yacoub says: “When you hear the sound of the bell, O wise one, hasten to church for prayer.  Let your thoughts be collected, not meandering amongst trivialities.  It is disgraceful to be in church yourself and let the mind tarry in the market- half of you in one place and the second half in another! Let your whole self be in the church and pray to God humbly and with a sincere intention.  Ask Him for mercy and compassion, for He is compassionate, and He answers him who calls upon Him with a  submissive heart.”

          Saint Ephraim says: “When you pray, have your mind well in control and restrain your thoughts directing them towards your heart.  Let not your body be standing there and your mind off on some other occupation.  Rather, make of your body a church, and of your mind a splendid temple.  Make of your mouth a censer, of your lips incense, and of your tongue a deacon that you may please God.”  Inciting prayer, he further says: “Will you not, O lover of  profits, stand upright for prayer wholeheartedly for you will derive benefit from it in both worlds.  Do not consider the time of prayer worthless.  For every time you pray you store up in the Highest a treasure for yourself.  Steal away an hour of your day and pray to your Lord. Your prayer will not be snatched away from you nor will you be robbed of your petition”  The chosen Apostle Paul sums this all up when he says, “I will pray with the spirit; and I will pray with the mind also” (I Corinthians. 14:15).

Conditions Of Perfect Prayer

The first of the essential conditions of prayer is faith.  We should couple our prayer with firm and unshakable faith that we may receive what we ask for.  This was enjoined on us by the Lord Himself: “Therefor I tell you, whatever you ask in prayer, believe that you receive it, and you will.” (Mark 11:24).  Likewise the Apostle says: “But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea that is driven and tossed by the wind.  For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord.” (James 1: 6,7)

          The second condition is that we must link to our petition a strong and firm hope, so that if our prayer is not answered quickly or not answered at all, we should not give up.  Rather, we should persist in our petitions and call on the Almighty, night and day, as He instructed us to do in Luke 11:5,18, and in the night of His betrayal when He repeated three times the same words in His prayer. (Matthew 26:44)

          The fact that our petitions are not always granted does not mean that God is unaware of them, or that He does not care for us. You see, God has His divine purposes, one of which is that if He granted us our requests easily we might come to regard the matter too lightly, and this would lead to ingratitude on  our part.  Also, the denial of a petition may be for reasons quite unknown to us.  One of these reasons could be that a particular request might not be to our good.  Since God knows better than we do what is good for each one of us, He does not pay attention to some of our petitions, simply because He is merciful towards His servants and wants them to be saved. (I Timothy 2:4).

          It is also possible that a particular petition may not be in harmony with the holiness of God and His divine will.  Therefore, be careful, O you who seek to pray in the spirit and truth, not to ask of your Lord anything that is in conflict with His perfection -thus revert in harm to you.  Rather, accept God’s plan for you.  This is what you mean when you say in your prayer: “Your will be done, as it is in heaven so on earth.”  Will it be palatable to us, then, after we have called Him “our Father”  and submitted to Him our will, to worry or loose our hope just because He did not answer our prayer?

          The third condition is that our prayer should be offered in much love to God and to the neighbor.  As to love to God, it is love that stirs man to glorify his Creator Who, through this love, dwells in his heart and makes Himself an abode there.  As to the love of neighbor, it is incumbent on us to forgive those who trespass against us so that He may see our love towards them and thus treat us as we treat them, as He made clear in Matthew 6:14, 15.  Also, we should pray for the wellbeing of all our Christian brethren, asking for repentance for sinners, guidance for strays, persistence for the repentant, and relief for those who are in distress of any kind.

          Clarity of thoughts should be added to the above. In this connection Mor Isaac the Elder says: “Purity of prayer does not mean that no idea whatsoever should occur to the mind.  It does mean, however, that one should not entertain such ideas and thus stray.”

          One should also understand prayer.  He who does not understand what he says had better keep silent.

          Magnification of the Lord by the soul is part of prayer, as one contemplates the greatness of the majesty of God before Whom he stands.  As such, he realizes that he is unworthy to address Him, being himself of dust and in the likeness of the worms therein.

A sense of awe that stems from the omnipotence of The Mighty and Awe-Inspiring Lord of Lords should be present at prayer at all times.  Father Oghris says: “A prayer that is devoid of fear, tremble, concern and purity is useless”.

Remembering his sins at prayer, one should develop a sense of shame.  As such, one should dare not lift his eyes towards heaven.  Rather, he should call upon God with a contrite heart saying: “O God, I have sinned against heaven and before You; I am no longer worthy to be called Your son…”

          Hope is another element of prayer, called for by the abundant mercy of God towards the world.  Once it gets strong, it imparts the soul an ineffable joy.

          Let your prayer be based on seeking God’s good pleasure, His glory, the extension of His Kingdom and all other graces that are in harmony with the Divine Will.  However, if the object of the prayer is to realize worldly expectations or empty pleasures,  it will only bring disappointment.  This is what the Lord meant when He said, “You ask but you do not receive because you ask for bad things.  Do not multiply words as the pagans do.” (Matthew. 6:7).

 Times Of Prayer

The times of prayer have been handed down to the Church by her founders, the Apostles and Saints, with the guidance of the Holy Spirit and in pursuit to the example of the Prophets. The Apostles set the times for prayer at six. The doctors of the Church added a seventh, thus bringing to fulfillment what the Prophet said: “Seven times a day I praise you for your righteous ordinances.” (Psalms 119:164)   This is what our great scholar Mor Gregorius Bar Hebraeus said  in his book, “The Ethicon”.  This indicates that all servants of God glorify Him as Angels do.

The Seven Prayer Times are:

·    Evening Prayers or Vespers

·    Compline or Prayer upon retiring (sutoro)

·     Midnight Prayer

·     Morning Prayer (Matins)

·    Three O'clock Prayer

·     Six O'clock Prayer (Noon)

·      Nine O'clock Prayer

        We have placed Evening Prayer first as in our ecclesiastical tradition the day begins in the evening.  This is the order reported by Metropolitan Yacoub of Bartella in his book entitled: “The Treasures”

        We pray in the evening to give thanks to God who gave us night, so that we may rest after the toils of the day.  Upon retiring we pray to ask for protection from enemies of darkness and also because of the possibility that we might go to sleep and wake up in the world of eternity.  At midnight we pray to meditate on our Savior, Who passed the night of His Passion without sleep, to teach us to always stay awake and pray so that we may escape from the Evil One and his powers.

In the morning we pray to thank God who gave us day.  At The Third Hour we pray, for Jesus was condemned to death at that hour after being scourged.  Thus we reflect on His passion and thank him for bearing all that for us so that we might escape the pains of the Day of Righteous Judgment on the judgment day.  At the Sixth Hour, the hour of His crucifixion, we pray to ponder it and thank God for His goodness and His love. 

We pray At the Ninth Hour (three in the afternoon) because it is His actual hour of death.  At that hour the whole earth trembled and was shaken, and the whole creation shuddered at the dissimulation of the Jews.  We reflect over these things, and thank Him for His love which is the greatest of all.  We also ask Him to save us from eternal death and gather us with our faithful departed in the company of those of the right side. We learn from the Book of Acts (Acts 2:15) that the Apostles used to pray at the sixth hour. Peter also prayed  at the sixth hour (Acts 10:9), and he and John went up to the Temple to pray at the Ninth Hour (Acts 3:1).  Acts 16:25 tells of Paul and Silas praying and praising God at midnight. They never went to sleep or woke up in the morning without offering worship. (Acts 1:14; 2:43).

        Mor Gregorius informs us that the Ascetics added another prayer- the Eighth which is called Dawn Prayers.  Laymen, however, not being able to keep the seven times of prayer, pray in the morning, at noon and in the evening. As the Psalmist says: “As for me, I call upon God and God saves me, in the evening and in the morning and at noontide.”  Daniel, too, was to be found in his upper room, with windows open towards Jerusalem, kneeling humbly three times in the day and praying in the presence of his God, as he used to do before.

At the present time, however, the Church has condensed prayer times into morning and evening worship. The Night, Morning, Third Hour, and Sixth Hour prayers are offered in the morning. The Ninth Hour, Evening or Vesper, and Compline or Retiring prayers (Sootoro) are offered in the evening.

The source:

The Spiritual Treasure on Canonical Prayer, By: Mor Ignatius Ephrem Barsoum