Mt 6,7-15 – Thursday of the XI Week of Ordinary Time
“When praying, do not waste words like the pagans, who believe they will be heard by words.” This recommendation from Jesus, in today’s Gospel, is capable of completely changing our way of understanding prayer. Very often in fact we think that praying means saying many things to Godconvince him of our reasons or draw his attention to our needs. Jesus, on the other hand, reminds us that prayer comes from a much deeper certainty: God already knows what we need, because he loves us before we even ask him.
For this reason the heart of Christian prayer does not consist in the words we pronounce, but in the relationship we experience. Praying means being able to truthfully say the word “Father”. Not as a habitual formula or a religious expression among many, but as the greatest discovery of our lives. If God is truly Father, then nothing remains the same. Change the way you look at the futureto face trials, to interpret our fragilities and even to live our fears.
Prayer is the continuous return to this fundamental truth. It’s choosing every day to be on the side of trust instead of that of anguish. It’s reminding ourselves that we are not orphans, that we are not abandoned to chance, that there is a love that precedes us and accompanies us in every circumstance. But the Gospel also suggests to us that there is something that can profoundly hinder this experience. It’s the resentment we keep in our hearts. Those who live clinging to the wounds received, those who continually fuel resentment and the desire for revenge, end up closing within themselves the space in which grace can live. Not because God stops loving, but because our heart becomes too busy to welcome his love. For this reason, forgiveness is not only a consequence of prayer, but also a condition of it.
Praying means let God’s love enter our lives. And where the love of God truly enters, mercy, reconciliation and peace slowly also find their place. Ultimately, learning to pray means learning to live as children. And learning to live as children means letting yourself be loved by the Father to the point of becoming capable of forgiving like Him.
Thursday 18 June 2026 – (Thursday of the XI Week of Ordinary Time – Even Year)
