When we pray, we open ourselves to God as the flower opens itself to the sun. We only need to sit in the Presence of God for this to happen. Prayer is really what God does; we just allow ourselves to be loved.
Having said the above, let us look at today's Responsorial Psalm "Lord, listen to my groaning." What a response to say during the Liturgy today - "Lord, listen to my groaning!" Psalm 5 says, "Hearken to my words, O Lord, attend to my sighing. Heed my call for help...at dawn I bring my plea expectantly before you."
Lord, we are groaning under the injustice that we have done in torturing prisoners; we are groaning with compassion for the victims of floods, earthquakes, cyclone, and tornadoes. Heed our call for help for all those in need today.
Basil Pennington, in his introduction to Psalms: A Spiritual Commentary
says that the Psalms "are love songs giving expression to the most extraordinary love affair possible: that of God with his People. They can give meaningful and powerful voice to our own personal love affair with this amazing God." I believe this and wish I had learned more verses from the Psalms by heart. I was walking on the beach with a dear friend who has eleven children and she began quoting the Psalms and could recite whole Psalms from memory! Perhaps it is not too late for me to begin to learn some of the wisdom of the Psalms by heart so I can pray them when needed.
Pennington has only commented on some of the Psalms; each has an illustration by Phillip Ratner that adds to the appeal of the book. Maybe I will make a list of my favorite Psalms and try to learn a few verses each day. You might want to try this, too.
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