Whether It Is Becoming of Christ to Pray?
Objection 1: It would seem unbecoming that Christ should pray. For,
as Damascene says (De Fide Orth. iii, 24), "prayer is the asking for
becoming things from God." But since Christ could do all things, it
does not seem becoming to Him to ask anything from anyone. Therefore
it does not seem fitting that Christ should pray.
Obj. 2: Further, we need not ask in prayer for what we know for
certain will happen; thus, we do not pray that the sun may rise
tomorrow. Nor is it fitting that anyone should ask in prayer for what
he knows will not happen. But Christ in all things knew what would
happen. Therefore it was not fitting that He should ask anything in
prayer.
Obj. 3: Further, Damascene says (De Fide Orth. iii, 24) that "prayer
is the raising up of the mind to God." Now Christ's mind needed no
uplifting to God, since His mind was always united to God, not only
by the union of the hypostasis, but by the fruition of beatitude.
Therefore it was not fitting that Christ should pray.
_On the contrary,_ It is written (Luke 6:12): "And it came to pass in
those days, that He went out into a mountain, and He passed the whole
night in the prayer of God."
_I answer that,_ As was said in the Second Part (Q. 83, AA. 1, 2),
prayer is the unfolding of our will to God, that He may fulfill it.
If, therefore, there had been but one will in Christ, viz. the
Divine, it would nowise belong to Him to pray, since the Divine will
of itself is effective of whatever He wishes by it, according to Ps.
134:6: "Whatsoever the Lord pleased, He hath done." But because the
Divine and the human wills are distinct in Christ, and the human will
of itself is not efficacious enough to do what it wishes, except by
Divine power, hence to pray belongs to Christ as man and as having a
human will.
Reply Obj. 1: Christ as God and not as man was able to carry out all
He wished, since as man He was not omnipotent, as stated above (Q.
13, A. 1). Nevertheless being both God and man, He wished to offer
prayers to the Father, not as though He were incompetent, but for our
instruction. First, that He might show Himself to be from the Father;
hence He says (John 11:42): "Because of the people who stand about I
have said it" (i.e. the words of the prayer) "that they may believe
that Thou hast sent Me." Hence Hilary says (De Trin. x): "He did not
need prayer. It was for us He prayed, lest the Son should be
unknown." Secondly, to give us an example of prayer; hence Ambrose
says (on Luke 6:12): "Be not deceived, nor think that the Son of God
prays as a weakling, in order to beseech what He cannot effect. For
the Author of power, the Master of obedience persuades us to the
precepts of virtue by His example." Hence Augustine says (Tract. civ
in Joan.): "Our Lord in the form of a servant could have prayed in
silence, if need be, but He wished to show Himself a suppliant of the
Father, in such sort as to bear in mind that He was our Teacher."
Reply Obj. 2: Amongst the other things which He knew would happen, He
knew that some would be brought about by His prayer; and for these He
not unbecomingly besought God.
Reply Obj. 3: To rise is nothing more than to move towards what is
above. Now movement is taken in two ways, as is said _De Anima_ iii,
7; first, strictly, according as it implies the passing from
potentiality to act, inasmuch as it is the act of something
imperfect, and thus to rise pertains to what is potentially and not
actually above. Now in this sense, as Damascene says (De Fide Orth.
iii, 24), "the human mind of Christ did not need to rise to God,
since it was ever united to God both by personal being and by the
blessed vision." Secondly, movement signifies the act of something
perfect, i.e. something existing in act, as to understand and to feel
are called movements; and in this sense the mind of Christ was always
raised up to God, since He was always contemplating Him as existing
above Himself.
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