It is rather that faith will sometimes gain what prayer hardly dares ask.

 

St. Bernard characterizes one who has reached the highest step to humility, and in contrast one who has abandoned humility. “The just man who has climbed all the steps of humility runs on to life with a ready heart and with the ease of good habit; the evil man who has dropped down to the bottom is ruled by evil habit, and, unchecked by fear he runs boldly on to death. … hurried, unresisting, by the downward pull of cupidity.”

He then intimates that prayer may not help such a one by quoting the first letter of John.

“If anyone sees his brother sinning, if the sin is not deadly, he should pray to God, and he will give him life. This is only for those whose sin is not deadly. There is such a thing as deadly sin, about which I do not say that you should pray.” 1 Jn 5:16

Recognizing the apparent lack of hope in John’s statement St. Bernard feels the need to explain.

“What then, O Blessed Apostle, is he to despair?"

"'I can give you an example of one who believed and hoped even when the case seemed to be beyond prayer. ‘Lord,’ she said, ‘If you had been there my brother would have not died.’ She must have had faith, a strong faith …. ‘But even now I know that whatever you ask from God he will give to you.”’

Citing this example of Martha’s deep faith, St Bernard makes this point, “It is rather that faith will sometimes gain what prayer hardly dares ask.”

He continues: “We are praying, praying all the better when we voice no prayer. We trust all the more strongly when we seem to doubt. We show our faith, we show our love; and he who needs no telling knows what we desire.”