Pope Francis urged us to remember Jesus' praying for us as he continued his series on prayer at the June 2 general audience.
The fact that Jesus prays for us before the Father is one of the great certainties of Pope Francis, who has often reflected on this during his pontificate.
At this audience, he looked at various Scripture passages to emphasize how Jesus is praying for us even when we've sinned.
Our Lord shows the Father "the wounds He carried with Him" to heaven, "to show the Father the price of our salvation, it is the love that He holds for us," the Pope said.
[Follow the Sacred Heart Novena with the Pope's mediations on the Wounds of Jesus.]
-- "Jesus chooses the apostles after a night of prayer. It seems that there is no criterion in this choice other than prayer, the dialogue of Jesus with the Father."
-- "The Apostles sometimes become a cause of concern for Him, but Jesus, as He received them from the Father, after prayer, thus He carries them in His heart, even in their errors, even when they fall."
-- "At the Last Supper he says to him: 'Simon, Simon, behold' - the word we heard at the beginning of the audience - 'Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail ...'"
-- "... the great turning points of Jesus' mission are always preceded by prayer, but not just in passing, by intense, prolonged prayer." (Here, Pope Francis noted how Jesus was praying before he asked the Apostles, "Who do you say that I am?")
-- "... this anticipated manifestation of the glory of Jesus [at the Transfiguration] took place in prayer, while the Son was immersed in communion with the Father and fully consented to His will of love, to His plan of salvation."
With this "quick journey through the Gospel," the Pope said, "we learn that Jesus not only wants us to pray as He prays, but assures us that, even if our attempts at prayer are completely vain and ineffective, we can always count on His prayer."
Regarding Peter's failure and Christ's prayer for him, the Pope emphasized that Jesus continues praying for us even when we sin.
The Holy Father insisted that we must find consolation in this awareness. He told the story of a bishop who was going through a "very, very, very great trial, in which all was in darkness." The bishop saw in the basilica a phrase written, "I, Peter, will pray for you."
All of this, the Pope reflected, is a consolation when our own prayer is weak.
