The Prayers of the Priest

Main Idea

This lecture explains the depth and completeness of the priest’s prayers in the Church, showing how no person or situation is left unmentioned before God, whether in the Agpeya prayers, the Divine Liturgy, Holy Week prayers, or the secret prayers.

Comprehensiveness of Priestly Prayers

His Holiness Pope Shenouda III clarifies that the priest’s prayers include every detail of human life: forgiveness of sins in all their kinds, preparation for the Second Coming, inner peace, and complete purification of soul, body, mind, and intention.

Praying for Everyone

The priest prays for the living and the departed, the sick and the bound, prisoners and exiles, the oppressed and the sorrowful, the hungry and the thirsty, widows and orphans, travelers by land, sea, and air, and even those “who have no one to remember them.”

Precision of Spiritual Details

The prayers mention visible and hidden sins, night and day sins, voluntary and involuntary sins, and ask for the lifting of trials, tribulations, and spiritual warfare, with true intercession coming from a compassionate heart.

The Secret Prayers

The teaching highlights the secret prayers offered by the priest during the readings of the Epistles and the Gospel, asking for spiritual understanding for the people, imitation of the apostles, and living according to God’s word, not merely hearing it.

Prayer from the Heart

The main emphasis is that the value of prayer is not in repetition, but in being offered from a living heart that feels others’ pain, because the people can clearly discern prayer spoken from the heart versus prayer said by habit.

A Call to Contemplation

The call is directed to both priests and people to pray with understanding and depth, and to contemplate the meanings of the liturgical prayers, because they carry the theology and faith of the Church.

Conclusion

The priest’s prayers are a comprehensive ministry of love, carrying the Church and the whole world before God, revealing the heart of a watchful shepherd who forgets no one.

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الصلاة
Prayer