535. Why is there a universal call to prayer?

Because through creation God first calls every being from nothingness. Even after the Fall man continues to be capable of recognizing his Creator and retains a desire for the One who has called him into existence. All religions, and the whole history of salvation in particular, bear witness to this human desire for God. It is God first of all, however, who ceaselessly draws every person to the mysterious encounter known as prayer.


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Paragraph 2566

2566. Man is in search of God. In the act of creation, God calls every being from nothingness into existence. "Crowned with glory and honor," man is, after the angels, capable of acknowledging "how majestic is the name of the Lord in all the earth."1 Even after losing through his sin his likeness to God, man remains an image of his Creator, and retains the desire for the one who calls him into existence. All religions bear witness to men's essential search for God.2

Paragraph 2567

2567. God calls man first. Man may forget his Creator or hide far from his face; he may run after idols or accuse the deity of having abandoned him; yet the living and true God tirelessly calls each person to that mysterious encounter known as prayer. In prayer, the faithful God's initiative of love always comes first; our own first step is always a response. As God gradually reveals himself and reveals man to himself, prayer appears as a reciprocal call, a covenant drama. Through words and actions, this drama engages the heart. It unfolds throughout the whole history of salvation.


Acesse nossos estudos biblicos:

What do Daniel’s visions of the ram and the goat in Daniel 8 mean?

How important is gratitude in the story of the healing of the ten lepers, described in Luke 17:11-19?

What is the responsibility of Christian leaders according to James 3:1-12?

What was the story of King Amon’s violent death and rebellion in 2 Kings 21-22?

What is the meaning of the “True Vine” metaphor in John 15:1-8?

What is the significance of David’s song of thanksgiving to God in 2 Samuel 22?

Manna in the Wilderness: How did God provide manna for his people in the desert and what does this teach us about providing it? (Exodus 16)