Sunday, June 7, 2015

Houses of Prayer

For in that they ought neither to sell nor to buy, but to give their time to prayer, being assembled in a house of prayer.

- Origen

Let no one therefore do ought in the oratory, but that for which it was made and whence it got its name.

- St. Augustine

A reflection on Matthew 21:13. The Oratory is a sacred space, meant for reverence and prayer. St. Augustine later clarifies what is meant by "prayer:"

The mental posture of prayer calms and purifies the soul, and makes it of more capacity to receive the divine gifts which are poured into it. For God does not hear us for the prevailing force of our pleadings; He is at all times ready to give us His light, but we are not ready to receive it, but prone to other things.

Let our prayer in the oratory prepare us to receive His light, and nothing else. Let our prayer turn our minds away from other things--such as distractions, preoccupation with self, and pride.


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