In the morning, while it was still very dark, he got up and went out to a deserted place, and there he prayed.

Mark 1:35

Then Jesus went with them to a place called Gethsemane; and he said to his disciples, "Sit here while I go over there and pray."

Mt 26:36

There are many Gospel passages that note how Jesus went off to pray often. Here is what the Catechism of the Catholic Church says about the centrality of prayer in Jesus’ life:

Jesus prays before the decisive moment of his mission: before his Father’s witness to him during his baptism and Transfiguration, and before his own fulfillment of the Father’s plan of love by his passion. He also prays before the decisive moments involving the mission of his apostles: at his election and call of the Twelve, before Peter’s confession of him as “the Christ of God,” and again that the faith of the chief of the Apostles may not fail when tempted. Jesus’ prayer before the events of salvation that the Father had asked him to fulfill is a humble and trusting commitment of his human will to the loving will of the Father. ¶ 2600

Jesus’ persistent practice of prayer impressed His disciples, who asked Him how to pray. At this point, He taught them what we have come to call The Lord’s Prayer.

"Pray then in this way: Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not bring us to the time of trial, but rescue us from the evil one.”

Mt 6:9-13

(A similar version of The Lord’s Prayer is found in Lk 11:2-4. Owing to various translations and formulations over the centuries, neither is identical with the form we generally learn at home and in religion classes, but all three express the same meaning.)

While Jesus taught the disciples The Lord’s Prayer, it is not the only way he prayed. Other examples of Jesus praying can be found in John 17:1-26 (the entire 17th chapter of St. John’s Gospel) and in Matthew 26:39, where we read: And going a little farther, he threw himself on the ground and prayed, "My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from me; yet not what I want but what you want."

Just as Jesus prayed in different ways in different moods and circumstances, so too should we pray in ways that are appropriate to our many different moods and circumstances.

Continue to "Many Ways to Pray"