Prayer, in one form or another, is essential to the life of a Christian, being nothing less than “the living relationship of the children of God with their Father” (Catechism, 2565). Whenever I direct my thoughts, feelings, and resolutions to God—I am praying. If I thank God for a sunset, or I tell him my fears—I am praying—and such prayers are heartfelt. Some people may equate “prayer” with formal prayers like the Our Father, the Hail Mary, or the psalms of the Bible, but these prayers are treasured precisely for their capacity to move hearts to the love of God. They have inspired countless generations because they express in words some of the most intimate relationships between God and human beings that the world has ever known, including the relationship between Jesus and his Father. Formal prayers teach of God’s unbounded goodness and tell of a miraculous love for God that is potentially ours. Through prayer, according to Fr. Thomas Keating, OCSO, we develop our relationship to God, somewhat as a man and woman develop their relationship through marriage. Formal prayer is central to the getting-to-know-you phase, involving much conversation and activity. Over time, however, one may start feeling intimately close to God in prayer without the need to say anything. This is the beginning of “contemplation”, described somewhere as, “I look at him and he looks at me, and we are happy together”. Contemplation is experienced not uncommonly by those who spend time in wordless adoration before the Blessed Sacrament.