Br. Bartholomew Calvano, O.P., on Prayers that Appear to Be Unanswered

"God always answers our prayers. He doesn't always give us what we ask for. If we ask for something bad, God will of course not give it to us. However, even if we ask for something good, it is often the case that we don't get what we are asking for. So then, how must we ask God if we want to receive what we are asking for? Let's consider what St. John tells us: 'And this is the boldness we have in him, that if we ask anything according to his will, he hears us. And if we know that he hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have obtained the requests made of him' (1 Jn 5:14-15). We have to ask according to his will.

"Of course, it's not always easy to figure out the particulars of what God's will is. Since we don't generally know God's exact will, it's right to ask God for good thing. . . ."

In a recent commentary and using examples from saints, including St. Therese of Lisieux and St. Dominic, Brother Bartholomew Calvano, O.P., reflected on how varied God's response to the same prayer can be from person to person.

To access Br. Bartholomew's complete post, please visit:

Dominicana: Unanswered Prayers? (1 OCT 18)