The Power of Prayer and of Praying Parents

Judy Kostelni, a Ph.D. candidate at Catholic University, is hosting a four-part retreat for all parents—and all parishioners—about the power of prayer and in particular the power of a praying parent.

This is illustrated by the account of St. Monica’s prayers to God about her son, now St. Augustine. And we can come to know and experience the power of our own parents’ prayers for children in growing and directing their trust to a loving and merciful God, a God who desires to be friends with us for all Eternity.

As I have noted at Mass, many “older” parents who raised their children in the Catholic faith, who took them to Mass regularly, lived the faith in the home and around the table, led them to faith formation (formerly CCD and religious education) but who now are confused and hurt that some children do not practice the faith or even go to Mass on “high Holy days. i.e., Christmas, Ash Wednesday, Palm Sunday or Easter”—and known to some as CAPE Catholics. Is it a rejection of their family’s faith? Is it purely cultural rejection? Or, is it too many choices to do on the weekend? Is it just lukewarmness or being over scheduled?

The power of praying parents is indeed important. When we ask God for help, in His time, God will provide us with the answer. He will listen, and He will answer. The question is: are we listening and well-disposed to listen?
Last week I made a statement at the confirmation parent meeting that might have hit home for some folks and perhaps made them feel uncomfortable. My intention was simply to make an important point: Why make your child receive the Sacrament of Confirmation (or any sacrament) if you as a family are not going to go to Mass, or don’t talk about Christ or faith at home? Children are smart and they absorb: they see the duplicity of saying one thing and of doing another. They are intelligent and know they just have to bide their time and once Confirmation is past, they too can leave the Church like mom and dad. Again, I was not being mean-spirited but rather just asking the question that if we believe God is God, then we must live like it.

It is easy to be overwhelmed in today’s hectic and over-scheduled world. But in the end, whether we live our faith or not, we shall meet the L0rd. And like the gospel for this week, Luke’s landowner, who hires people all day long to work in his fields and pays everyone the same amount—whether the worked 9-5 0r 4-5, it isn’t that we are “there from the get-go; but, that we come to Him…that we come to really,truly, wholeheartedly believe in Him. Live in Him. And, Share Him with others…especially our children, who at Baptism we were told by the Church that “Parents are the best and the first of teachers to their children in the ways of faith.” Parents are called by God to be guides to their children, not best friends,and a good guide takes us on the journey and knows how to describe what we are seeing. Check out the Power of a Praying Parent retreat here at St. Catherine of Siena.