The Essence of Prayer

“The essence of prayer is to hear the voice of another, of Christ, but likewise to hear the voice of each person I meet in whom Christ also addresses me. His voice comes to me in every human voice, and his face is infinitely varied. It is present in the face of the wayfarer on the road to Emmaus; it is present in the gardener speaking to Mary Magdalen, it is present in my next-door neighbor. God became incarnate so that man might contemplate his face in every face. Perfect prayer seeks this presence of Christ and recognizes it in every human face. The unique image of Christ is the ikon, but every human face is an ikon of Christ, discovered by a prayerful person.”

Catherine de Hueck Doherty

For more about prayer see these posts:

Lots of Prayer

A Prayer for Unity with Christ

A Funeral Prayer

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About jculler1972

My husband is the retired pastor of St. Paul's Free Lutheran Church in Leitersburg, Maryland. I have two grown daughters, three grandchildren and am retired after a career in Purchasing. I have published articles in The Lutheran Ambassador, Lutheran Witness, and Lutheran Digest. My Bible study on the Book of Acts was published in 2016 by the Women's Missionary Federation of the AFLC(Association of Free Lutheran Churches).