There are many servants of prayer within the Christian way of life. The first servant of prayer is the Christian family. Such an affirmation is an acknowledgement of the sacredness of married life and the vocation of parents to be the primary teachers of their children in the ways of faith.

The family is so fundamental to teaching the faith, that the Catechism of the Catholic Church places it even above the ministry of the ordained. The work of the ordained is listed after the family, since – in the right order of things – the shepherds of the Church should always be in service to the family and then to all the People of God who desire to grow in the spiritual life.

In their various ministries, those who have been ordained – deacons, priests, and bishops – are called to teach the ways of prayer and form the baptized in the movements of the interior life. The Catechism teaches: “Ordained ministers are also responsible for the formation in prayer of their brothers and sisters in Christ.”

In their task of guiding the baptized along the path of the spiritual life, the ordained reflect and continue the work of the Good Shepherd. The Lord Jesus called himself the Good Shepherd and showed by his holy life that he was a credible and reliable shepherd. He is a shepherd who knows the way and who can be trusted. Deacons, priests, and bishops are to similarly have a knowledge of the interior life and a dependable ability to teach and guide others in its ways.

The ordained shepherds of the Church are not to direct the baptized to themselves. There should be no cult of personality in the life of the Church. The shepherds are always to point others to the living God. The shepherds are the representatives and ambassadors of God. They should always remember that sacred responsibility and keep before them the sobering truth that people are seeking God, not a puffed-up human being.

In their efforts to direct people to God, the shepherds should rely on the living waters of prayer. The Catechism emphasizes this task: “Servants of the Good Shepherd, they are ordained to lead the People of God to the living waters of prayer: the Word of God, the liturgy, the theological life (the life of faith, hope, and charity), and the Today of God in concrete situations.”

By leading people to these sources of living water, the shepherds of the Church fulfill their sacred duty and live up to the graces of their ordination.

After the ordained ministers, the Catechism shifts its attention to the religious of the Church, those consecrated souls who perpetually seek God’s face. It is the consecrated religious men and women of the Church who are the spiritual leaven of the Church. It is their vocation that strengthens and convicts the entire body of believers to seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness. It is the religious who call us all to pray and to rely on God’s providence in all things.

The Catechism observes: “Many religious have consecrated their whole lives to prayer. Hermits, monks, and nuns since the time of the desert fathers have devoted their time to praising God and interceding for his people.”

The religious of the Church find their strength in prayer. It is prayer that enlivens their witness and spreads it throughout the Church as blood throughout a body. The religious life makes no sense without prayer. It is for prayer that the Holy Spirit has raised up this vocation in the Church.

The Catechism asserts: “The consecrated life cannot be sustained or spread without prayer; it is one of the living sources of contemplation and the spiritual life of the Church.”

The prayers and spiritual force of religious make the Church strong. The religious vocation lifts us all up and fortifies the prayers of all believers. It is the religious who rest in the heart of the Church and give her life.

As believers, we are summoned to welcome the instruction of the shepherds and the spiritual assistance of the religious. No one in the Church walks alone and no one writes their own plan. We need each other. As the shepherds and religious help us, so we help them by our prayers. In this way, there is a mutual exchange of spiritual goods and the entire body is elevated and made strong.

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