Prayer is essential to the Christian life. It is the most profound expression of a relationship with God that is
both vital and personal (see Catechism of the Catholic Church 2558). Prayer is not one-sided. God desires a
relationship with us; he initiates this relationship, and when we pray, we respond to him. God doesn’t merely
want to engage with us at certain times, but at all times. For this reason, Saint Paul says we should “pray
constantly” (1 Thess 5:17). This exhortation doesn’t mean that we should be constantly reciting memorized
prayers. Instead, we should strive to develop our interior life with God. In our modern age, many people lack
an interior life and struggle to hear God’s voice. This difficulty may be due to a misunderstanding of the
dynamic nature of prayer. Saint John Paul II pointed out that prayer is multifaceted. Prayer is “thanksgiving,
praise, adoration, contemplation, listening, and ardent devotion,” he wrote, and each facet draws us close to
God (Novo millennio ineunte, no. 33).

Every person, regardless of his or her state in life, is called to pray. We must ask ourselves whether we believe
that God is personal and desires a relationship with us. Do we believe that God desires to encounter us in
prayer and that God thirsts for us? Many people are familiar with liturgical prayer (like Mass) or devotional
prayer (like the Rosary) but are unfamiliar with mental prayer, the kind of prayer that helps us develop a
deep interior life. During this course, we will explore this dynamic prayer as we respond to God’s loving call
for a relationship with him.