By Devin Watkins
“Let us pray that we might again learn how to discern, to know how to choose paths of life and reject everything that leads us away from Christ and the Gospel.”
Pope Leo XIV made that invitation in his prayer intention for July 2025, released in The Pope Video, which accompanies his monthly intention.
In the video produced by the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, the Holy Father offers a prayer to guide Christians in our discernment process (see below).
He prays that the Holy Spirit may inform our decisions and that we may learn to listen attentively to God’s gentle voice.
In listening, he says, we learn to “discern the hidden paths of my heart” and understand what truly matters to God.
“I ask you for the grace to learn how to pause,” he prays, “to become aware of the way I act, of the feelings that dwell within me, and of the thoughts that overwhelm me, which, so often, I fail to notice.”
Pope Leo leads the viewer to pray that our choices may lead us “to the joy of the Gospel,” despite moments of doubt and fatigue, constantly seeking to begin anew.
“Because, at the end of the journey, your consolation is the fruit of the right decision,” he affirms.
The Pope concludes his prayer asking God to help us understand better “what moves me, so that I may reject what draws me away from Christ, and love him and serve him more fully.”
Discernment and rejecting temptation
A press release accompanying The Pope Video notes that each person faces “infinite possibilities in life” that can leave us paralyzed or afraid.
The Pope’s prayer for discernment, it says, invites the Holy Spirit to help us take the right path for our lives by listening deeply to His voice in our hearts.
The video shows a young woman walking lost in a forest as she looks for the correct path. As she searches for the way to go, she frees herself from unnecessary burdens and finds a compass and map to guide her steps. After opening the Gospel, the woman comes to a grotto with an image of Mary, where she prays in silence for guidance.
The Pope’s original prayer echoes the famous prayer of St Augustine in the Confessions: “Oh God, let me know myself that I might know You!”
“In order to discern, it is necessary to place oneself in truth before God, to enter into oneself, to admit one’s own weaknesses, and to ask the Lord for healing,” explains the press release. “These are the steps to rebirth through an authentic relationship with God.”
This process is known as discernment and helps Christians discover the path toward God—lived in the actions of every day—that already lies deep within our hearts.
In the press release, Fr Cristóbal Fones, SJ, International Director of the Pope’s Worldwide Prayer Network, explains that each of us must learn and be guided in order to discern well.
Formation in discernment, he says, “includes prayer, personal reflection, the study of Scripture and spiritual direction. Cultivating a deep relationship with Jesus is the most important aspect.”
Pope Leo XIV’s prayer for discernment
Holy Spirit, you, light of our understanding,
gentle breath that guides our decisions,
grant me the grace to listen attentively to your voice
and to discern the hidden paths of my heart,
so that I may grasp what truly matters to you,
and free my heart from its troubles.
I ask you for the grace to learn how to pause,
to become aware of the way I act,
of the feelings that dwell within me,
and of the thoughts that overwhelm me
which, so often, I fail to notice.
I long for my choices
to lead me to the joy of the Gospel.
Even if I must go through moments of doubt and fatigue,
even if I must struggle, reflect, search, and begin again…
Because, at the end of the journey,
your consolation is the fruit of the right decision.
Grant me a deeper understanding of what moves me,
so that I may reject what draws me away from Christ,
and love him and serve him more fully.
Amen. – Vatican News
