Catechism of the Catholic Church

Life in Christ 509 2097 To adore God is to acknowledge, in respect and absolute submission, the “nothingness of the creature” who would not exist but for God. To adore God is to praise and exalt him and to humble oneself, as Mary did in the Magnificat, confessing with gratitude that he has done great things and holy is his name. 14 The worship of the one God sets man free from turning in on himself, from the slavery of sin and the idolatry of the world. Prayer 2098 The acts of faith, hope, and charity enjoined by the first commandment are accomplished in prayer. Lifting up the mind toward God is an expression of our adoration of God: prayer of praise and thanksgiving, intercession and petition. Prayer is an indispensable condition for being able to obey God’s command­ ments. “[We] ought always to pray and not lose heart.” 15 Sacrifice 2099 It is right to offer sacrifice to God as a sign of adoration and gratitude, supplication and communion: “Every action done so as to cling to God in communion of holiness, and thus achieve bless­ edness, is a true sacrifice.” 16 2100 Outward sacrifice, to be genuine, must be the expression of spiritual sacrifice: “The sacrifice acceptable to God is a broken spirit. . . .” 17 The prophets of the Old Covenant often denounced sacrifices that were not from the heart or not coupled with love of neighbor. 18 Jesus recalls the words of the prophet Hosea: “I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.” 19 The only perfect sacrifice is the one that Christ offered on the cross as a total offering to the Father’s love and for our salvation. 20 By uniting ourselves with his sacrifice we can make our lives a sacrifice to God. 14 Cf. Lk 1:46-49. 15 Lk 18:1. 16 St. Augustine, De civ. Dei 10, 6: PL 41, 283. 17 Ps 51:17. 18 Cf. Am 5:21-25; Isa 1:10-20. 19 Mt 9:13; 12:7; cf. Hos 6:6. 20 Cf. Heb 9:13-14. 2807 2558 2742 613 2711 614 618