Contemplative Prayer, Faith and A Whole New Way of Being with God

Unfortunately, for some reason, the Catholic mystical tradition both from the west and from the east has been forgotten.  Perhaps, years ago, many thought that mysticism was reserved for consecrated men and women who lived in monasteries. 

CORPUS CHRISTI, TX (Catholic Online) - Last week we began our considerations of the gift of contemplative prayer.  Let us continue our discussion by considering two methods of prayer that help prepare the soul to receive the gift of contemplative prayer.  The two most effective methods are centering prayer and lectio divina. 

Regarding centering prayer, let us limit our discussion to centering prayer as understood by Fr. Thomas Keating and Fr. Basil Pennington. Both Keating and Pennington have done much work on the topic.  Other authors have written about centering prayer, but in order to properly understand centering prayer as a method of prayer and in order to answer the concerns that some people have regarding this topic, the scope of this discussion will be limited to the work of Keating and Pennington. 

What then is centering prayer? 

Fr. Keating writes: "Centering prayer brings us into the presence of God and fosters the contemplative attitude of listening and receptivity.  It is not contemplation in the strict sense, which in the Catholic tradition has always been regarded as a pure gift of the Spirit, but rather it is a preparation for contemplation by reducing the obstacles caused by the hyperactivity of our minds and of our lives" (Intimacy with God, p. 11).

Centering prayer is quite simple.  Rather than repeating a word over and over again like a "mantra," Keating suggests taking one word to express our intention.  The word is not used to maintain attention.  Intention and attention: here lies the crux of the matter when understanding centering prayer from other methods of prayer. 

The word that we choose is called the sacred word.  It can be any word that indicates our intention.  Examples are such words as Father, Lord, Jesus, Spirit, Abba and yes. 

Again, the sacred word is not be repeated over and over again during your time of prayer.  Simply use the word when your mind becomes noisy with your thoughts.  The goal is to arrive at a mind that is silent.  This is totally different than "emptying the mind."  There is nothing Buddhist, Hindu or New Age about a silent mind. 

Centering prayer is a name that Keating and Pennington applied to an ancient form of Christian prayer that is principally rooted in a 14th century work called The Cloud of Unknowing and in the works of Saint John of the Cross.  They came up with a new name for something quite ancient, because they wanted to attract a multitude of people, especially young people, who were leaving Catholicism in order to find mysticism in eastern religions.  Interestingly, Saint John of the Cross was accused of being Buddhist by his contemporaries. 

Unfortunately, for some reason, the Catholic mystical tradition both from the west and from the east has been forgotten.  Perhaps, years ago, many thought that mysticism was reserved for consecrated men and women who lived in monasteries. 

Thousands were starving for a profound way of praying that was already such a rich part of our Catholic Faith, but had been virtually unknown.

The Centering Prayer movement that Keating, Pennington and their community launched has revived a new interest in this beautiful form of prayer. 

Centering prayer is one method for preparing the soul to receive the gift of contemplative prayer.  It is a method.  There are other methods.  But, I join others who make the argument that it is the best method for the modern soul to receive the gift of contemplative prayer from the Holy Spirit. 

We live in a hyperactive world where we are immersed in noise.  We have abundant noise at home, in the car, at work and most of all, in our heads. 

What we moderns need is the profound experience of silence.

Order, peace and joy will come to us through silence.  The world needs silence. 

Father Murchadh O' Madagain, a priest from Ireland, has written an excellent book which explores centering prayer and the writings of Father Keating. 

He writes:  "This kind of prayer is in fact a very self-less and pure kind of prayer, since, if it is done properly, it is complete giving of oneself to God.  It does not seek anything for itself or involve judging how one is doing.  Rather it calls for a total letting go of everything, including our thoughts, in order to be present to God.  In this way it could be said to be a perfect response to the commandment, 'You must love the Lord your God with all your hear, with all your soul and with all your strength' (cf. Dt. 6: 5).  It is a total giving of oneself to God without asking for anything back" (Centering Prayer and the Healing of the Unconscious, p. 42).

Here is a simple way of doing centering prayer:

Before the Blessed Sacrament - sit or kneel.  Gaze into the Tabernacle or look into the Monstrance.  Be still.  Focus on your breathing.   Ask Mary to help you to pray.  Pray to the Holy Spirit.  Then peacefully repeat a word:  Father, Jesus, Spirit, Abba, peace, silence, etc.  Do not continue to repeat the word or the words over and over again.  Only use the word when your mind begins to wander or be flooded with thoughts. The purpose of using a word is to express your intention of being in the presence of God.  Focus your gaze on the Eucharist.  Be open to whatever Jesus is asking of you.  Don't be looking for messages. Don't ask for anything. Just be with God. 

At home - sit or kneel.  Close your eyes.  Again, be still and focus on your breathing. Ask Mary to help you to pray.  Pray to the Holy Spirit.  As before, repeat a word.   Do not repeat the word or words over and over again.  Remember to use the word only when your mind begins to wander or is flooded with thoughts.  The purpose of the word is to express your intention to be in the presence of God.  Focus your gaze on the loving presence of God within you.   If you begin to feel embraced by God, be still and be silent.  Just allow the Holy Spirit to pray within you. Allow God to love you.

Next week, we will consider lectio divina as another method to prepare the soul for the gift of contemplative prayer.

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Father James Farfaglia is a contributing writer for Catholic Online and author of Get Serious! - A Survival Guide for Serious Catholics.  You can visit him on the web at www.fatherjames.org.  

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