3. Intercession Prayer
Another common type of prayer, that of intercession, “is a prayer of petition that shapes us very closely with the prayer of Jesus. He is the only intercessor before the Father in favor of all men, of sinners in particular “(2634).
It is an ancient type of prayer found in the Bible. The Catechism explains: “To intercede, to ask in favor of another, is, from Abraham, the very thing of a heart according to the mercy of God. In the time of the Church, Christian intercession participates in that of Christ: it is the expression of the communion of the saints. In intercession, he who prays seeks “not his own interest but […] that of others,” until he pleads for those who do him evil “(2635).
Intercessory prayer can be very powerful and God is especially attentive to those who pray for others who suffer. An example of this kind of intercession can be found in the Gospels, when Jesus healed a paralyzed man that they took to the house through the roof. Mark documents: “Seeing the faith of these men, Jesus said to the paralytic: ‘Son, your sins are forgiven you'” (Mark 2,5).
