The Fourth and final part of the Catechism begins with paragraph n.2558. It tells us what the contents of all four parts are: it says, ‘ “Great is the mystery of Faith!” The Church professes this mystery in the Apostles’ Creed (Part One) and celebrates it in the sacramental liturgy (Part Two), so that the life of the faithful may be conformed to Christ in the Holy Spirit to the glory of God the Father (Part Three). This mystery, then, requires that the faithful believe in it, that they celebrate it and that they live from it in a vital and personal relationship with the living and true God. This relationship is prayer.’
The first three parts explore the mystery of faith and the fourth part deals with how to live the ‘great mystery of faith’ in relationship with the living and true God: Prayer. The first question it asks after outlining the connection between the four parts is, “What is Prayer?’ It answers by quoting St. Therese of Lisieux: “For me, prayer is a surge of the heart; it is a simple look turned towards heaven, it is a cry of recognition and of love, embracing both trial and joy.”
We get an example of the spiritual life of a saint and see how she views her relationship with God. Part Four is divided into two sections. The first section looks at prayer from Old Testament times through the New Testament and the different ways people pray. Section Two takes the Lord’s Prayer, the ‘Our Father’, and explores it, teasing out meaning from its words and phrases and can help one to focus better on a prayer we pray so often.