St. Augustine Answers 101 Questions on Prayer

by Augustine of Hippo (Editor), Cliff Ermatinger (Editor)

Here are questions we all ask answered by a Saint! From over 200 works, Fr. Cliff Ermatinger has gathered and translated Augustine's teachings on prayer, and now presents them here in a simple question-and-answer format. What emerges is nothing less than a rich new "catechism on prayer" by one of the Church's greatest saints.

Genres: Religion, Prayer, Nonfiction

123 pages, Paperback

Published September 20, 2009

About the author

Early church father and philosopher Saint Augustine served from 396 as the bishop of Hippo in present-day Algeria and through such writings as the autobiographical Confessions in 397 and the voluminous City of God from 413 to 426 profoundly influenced Christianity, argued against Manichaeism and Donatism, and helped to establish the doctrine of original sin.

An Augustinian follows the principles and doctrines of Saint Augustine.

People also know Aurelius Augustinus in English of Regius (Annaba). From the Africa province of the Roman Empire, people generally consider this Latin theologian of the greatest thinkers of all times. He very developed the west. According to Jerome, a contemporary, Augustine renewed "the ancient Faith."

The Neo-Platonism of Plotinus afterward heavily weighed his years. After conversion and his baptism in 387, Augustine developed his own approach to theology and accommodated a variety of methods and different perspectives. He believed in the indispensable grace to human freedom and framed the concept of just war. When the Western Roman Empire started to disintegrate from the material earth, Augustine developed the concept of the distinct Catholic spirituality in a book of the same name. He thought the medieval worldview. Augustine closely identified with the community that worshiped the Trinity. The Catholics and the Anglican communion revere this preeminent doctor. Many Protestants, especially Calvinists, consider his due teaching on salvation and divine grace of the theology of the Reformation. The Eastern Orthodox also consider him. He carries the additional title of blessed. The Orthodox call him "Blessed Augustine" or "Saint Augustine the Blessed."

Santo Agostinho

Reviews

[K.D. Absolutely · Rating 3 out of 5]

For me, praying is conversing with God. I still remember a catechist when I was a small kid teaching us in a Sunday school that prayer can be one of the following: petition (when you ask for something), thanksgiving (when you say thank you to God) or praise (when you worship God). When I heard these forms of prayers at that time, I was confused because I thought that people only pray when they want to ask something from God. He being all powerful and rich just like Santa Clause during Christmastime. Even up to now, I still admit that I become more prayerful if I have a problem because I want to ask for God's intercession especially if there is nothing I can do anymore regarding whatever concern that I am facing.

Three years ago, I read and liked Confessions (3 stars) by Saint Augustine of Hippo. Saint Augustine (354-430) was a North African bishop whose writings were very influential in the development of Western Christianity and Western philosophy. His two books, Confessions and City of God are still being read today and are part of the reasons why he is one of the so called Church Fathers. For this reason, Fr. Cliff Ermatinger, the one compiled and edited of this book, thought of gathering frequently-asked questions about prayer and Fr. Ermatinger went back to St. Augustine's two books to answer them. The resulting product, this book, is an easier-to-understand version of Confessions because Fr. Ermatinger expounded on St. Augustine's teachings and words. If you have read or attempted to read Confessions you know what I am saying here.

Let me share with you some of St. Augustine's thoughts about prayer:

"Prayer is entrance into a relationship that elevates it to where divine light illuminates the soul."

The light here is Christ, for "Christ dwells in the interior man." Christ elevates the soul of the person in whom he dwells, so as to make communion and dialog possible. It is through prayer that we enter into a relationship with Christ. It is like frequently talking to a friend. You cannot build an relationship with anyone if you don't communicate with him.

"Many more thanks still shall be yours, if you not only claim an interest in my prayers, but also do not cease praying for me. For intercession on behalf of a brother is more pleasing to God when offered as an oblation of love."

This one is a revelation of sort for me. I normally pray for myself and my loved ones but I do not ask my friends to pray for me or for my family. With St. Augustine's words above, it seems that God is pleased more if others pray for us instead of us praying for ourselves.

"And if any of you are not yet called, we should pray for them that they indeed be called. It might be that they are so predestined to be included in our prayers and thereby receive the grace by which they are counted amongst the elect."

This lines struck me because in our Basic Apologetics Seminar we are taught how to defend the Catholic faith by arguing with non-Catholics on Catholic doctrines and teachings. Here, St. Augustine is saying the importance of praying for them. Probably, praying for them would be a good strategy as part of the preparation for a debate?

"Faith pours our prayer and the pouring out of prayer, in turn, obtains the strengthening of faith."

Faith, hope and love are basic prerequisites of prayer. You cannot pray if you don't have faith in God and the more you pray, the stronger your faith becomes. Same goes for hope and love.

"Therefore, if you want to be righteous, be God's beggar, since he just exhorted us in today's Gospel to ask, to seek, to knock... he exhorts you to ask. Will he refuse you what you ask?"

If God is all knowing and all powerful, why do we have to ask what we need? Doesn't God know our problem even before we ask him to help us? Why do we need to pray? St. Augustine says that we need to ask because God wants us to ask.

Lastly, why is it sometimes we feel that our prayer is not being answered by God? St. Augustine offers the following possibilities:

1) Perhaps we ask in a bad way - with distractions, for example.

2) Sometimes we manipulate God, turning him into a means to an end.

3) Perhaps God has an even better plan in store.

4) We ask for evil things.

5) Perhaps we do not see as God sees.

6) God does not heed the prayers of hypocrites.

7) When the suffering person's righteous request seems unanswered, confidence in God is counseled.

So there, we all have to be wary when we say a prayer of petition for God wants us to be sincere and trust him that he wants the best for us his children.

This book taught me a lot about prayers and I just cannot put them all here in my review. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to further his knowledge on how to make his prayerful life more fruitful so he can grow in faith and grace of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Amen.

[Douglas Domer · Rating 4 out of 5]

101 great questions from Augustine's writings. Oh, how little we know or think about prayer.

[Martha McSweeney Brower · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of food for thought in here. Things I've wondered about for years. An easy read.

[Tracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good presentation of St Augustine’s views on prayer. Well organised and easy to read.