Vatican City, Nov 30, 2011 / 11:35 am
Pope Benedict XVI used his Nov. 30 general audience to discuss Jesus' prayer life and how it challenges Christians to faithfully devote time to prayer.
The Pope told pilgrims in the Paul VI Hall that Jesus “by his own example most fully reveals the mystery of Christian prayer.” The Lord's own prayer life, he said, was like “a hidden canal irrigating his life … and guiding him with increasing firmness to the total gift of self, in keeping with the loving plan of God the Father.”
Pope Benedict initially focused on the prayer of Jesus at the time of his baptism in the River Jordan.
He explained that Christ, who was without sin, chose to be baptized to show his “solidarity with people who recognize their sins, who chose to repent and change their lives.” In doing so, Jesus “helps us to understand that being part of the people of God means entering into a new life, a life in conformity with God.”