CENTERING PRAYER
(Christian Meditation)
Gratitude
to Fr. Thomas Keating &
Contemplative Outreach
for much
of the following material
www.contemplativeoutreach.org
And to Rev Dr Michael Milner for
the article at the bottom of the
page:
Lectio Divina & Centering
Prayer:
KEYS TO DEEPER COMMUNION WITH
GOD
Click Here for details about our
Centering Prayer Group & Book
Club
Centering Prayer Guidelines
1. Choose a sacred word as the
symbol of your intention to
consent to God’s presence and
action within.
2. Sitting comfortably and with eyes closed, settle
briefly and silently introduce
the sacred word as the symbol of
your consent to God’s presence
and action within.
3. When engaged with your thoughts*, return
ever-so-gently to the sacred
word.
4. At the end of the prayer period, remain in silence
with eyes closed for a couple of
minutes.
*thoughts include body
sensations, feelings, images,
and reflections
Explanation of the Centering
Prayer Guidelines
I.
Choose a sacred word as the
symbol of your
intention to consent to God’s
presence and
action within.
1.
The sacred word expresses our
intention
to consent to God’s presence and
action within.
2.
The sacred word is chosen during
a brief
period of prayer to the Holy
Spirit. Use a
word of one or two syllables,
such as:
God, Jesus, Abba, Father,
Mother, Mary, Amen.
Other possibilities include:
Love, Listen, Peace,
Mercy, Let Go, Silence,
Stillness, Faith, Trust
3.
Instead of a sacred word, a
simple inward
glance toward the Divine
Presence, or noticing
one’s breath may be more
suitable for some
persons. The same guidelines
apply to these
symbols as to the sacred word.
4.
The sacred word is sacred not
because of
its inherent meaning, but
because of the
meaning we give it as the
expression of our
intention to consent.
5. Having chosen a sacred word,
we do not
change it during the prayer
period because
that would be engaging thoughts
II. Sitting comfortably and
with eyes closed,
settle briefly and silently
introduce the sacred
word as the symbol of your
consent to God’s
presence and action within.
1.
“Sitting comfortably” means
relatively
comfortably so as not to
encourage sleep during
the time of prayer.
2.
Whatever sitting position we
choose, we
keep the back straight.
3.
We close our eyes as a symbol of
letting
go of what is going on around
and within us.
4.
We introduce the sacred word
inwardly
as gently as laying a feather on
a piece of
absorbent cotton.
5.
Should we fall asleep upon
awakening
we continue the prayer.
III. When engaged with your
thoughts,
return ever-so-gently to the
sacred word.
1.
“Thoughts” is an umbrella term
for every
perception, including body
senstations, sense
perceptions, feelings, images,
memories, plans,
reflections, concepts,
commentaries, and spiritual
experiences.
2.
Thoughts are an inevitable,
integral and
normal part of Centering Prayer.
3.
By “returning ever-so-gently to
the sacred
word” a minimum of effort is
indicated. This is
the only activity we initiate
during the time of
Centering Prayer.
4.
During the course of Centering
Prayer, the
sacred word may become vague or
disappear.
IV. At the end of the prayer
period, remain in
silence with eyes closed for a
couple of
minutes.
1.
The additional 2 minutes enables
us to bring
the atmosphere of silence into
everyday life.
2.
If this prayer is done in a
group, the leader
may slowly recite a prayer such
as the Lord’s
Prayer, while the others listen.
Some Practical Points
1. The minimum time for this
prayer is 20 minutes.
Two periods are recommended each
day, one first
thing in the morning and the
other in the afternoon or
early evening. With practice the
time may be
extended to 30 minutes or
longer.
2. The end of the prayer period
can be indicated by
a timer which does not have an
audible tick or loud
sound when it goes off.
3. Possible physical symptoms
during the prayer:
a. We may notice slight pains,
itches, or
twitches in various parts of the
body or a
generalized sense of
restlessness. These are
usually due to the untying of
emotional knots in
the body.
b. We may notice heaviness or
lightness in
our extremities. This is usually
due to a deep
level of spiritual
attentiveness.
c. In all cases we pay no
attention and everso-
gently return to the sacred
word.
4. The principal fruits of
centering prayer are experienced
in daily life and not during the
prayer period.
5. Centering Prayer familiarizes
us with God’s first
language which is silence.
Points for Further Development
1. During the prayer period,
various kinds of thoughts
may arise:
a. Ordinary wanderings of the
imagination or
memory.
b. Thoughts and feelings that
give rise to attractions
or aversions.
c. Insights and psychological
breakthroughs.
d. Self-reflections such as,
“How am I doing?”
or, “This peace is just great!”
e. Thoughts and feelings that
arise from the
unloading of the unconscious.
f. When engaged with any of
these thoughts
return ever-so-gently to the
sacred word.
2. During this prayer we avoid
analyzing our experience,
harboring expectations, or
aiming at
some specific goal such as:
a. Repeating the sacred word
continuously.
b. Having no thoughts.
c. Making the mind a blank.
d. Feeling peaceful or consoled.
e. Achieving a spiritual
experience.
Ways to Deepen Our Relationship
with God
1.
Practice two 20–30 minute
periods of centering prayer
daily.
2. Listen to the Word of God in
Scripture and study Open Mind,
Open Heart.
3. Select one or two of the
specific practices for everyday
life as suggested in Open Mind,
Open Heart, chapter twelve.
4. Join a weekly centering
prayer group.
a. It encourages the members of
the group to persevere in their
individual practices.
b. It provides an opportunity
for further input on a regular
basis through tapes, readings,
and discussion.
c. It offers an opportunity to
support and share the spiritual
journey.
What Centering
Prayer Is and Is Not
a. It is not a
technique but a way of
cultivating a deeper
relationship with God.
b. It is not a relaxation
exercise, but it may be quite
refreshing.
c. It is not a form of
self-hypnosis but a way to quiet
the mind while maintaining its
alertness.
d. It is not a charismatic gift
but a path of transformation.
e. It is not a para-psychological
experience but an exercise of
faith, hope, and selfless love.
f. If is not limited to the
“felt” presence of God but is
rather a deepening of faith in
God’s abiding presence.
g. It is not reflective or
spontaneous prayer but simply
resting in God beyond thoughts,
words, and emotions.
©
Keating, Thomas.
Open Mind, Open Heart 20th
Anniversary Edition, 2006.
Lectio Divina
&
Centering Prayer
KEYS TO DEEPER COMMUNION WITH
GOD
BY
THE MOST REV. DR. MICHAEL
MILNER, D.MIN., TH.D., PH.D.
Our
planet is waking up, the
struggle for liberation is on,
and a new global culture is
emerging which yearns to be free
from the enslaving political,
ideological and religious
constraints of the past. In
Christ there is power, wisdom
and grace to make the dream a
reality. But centuries of
religious repression and
dogmatism have blinded many
people to the liberating power
of Christ. They are turning to
non-Christian paths, the new age
movement, and secular psychology
for guidance.
Granted, the
Christian Tradition does not
have a monopoly on wisdom, and
there is useful knowledge to
discover outside of her walls.
But we who serve as shepherds to
the flock have a responsibility
to provide adequate spiritual
direction for those who seek it.
Our failure to do so has caused
large numbers of our brothers
and sisters in Christ to turn
away from the Christian
community. Spiritual seekers
today are not content with
moving church services and the
preachers’ intellectual
knowledge “about” God. They want
to know God personally by direct
experience. Divine union is the
root of true liberation, and if
Christian leaders do not point
the way, others will step in to
fill the gap, drawing many
sincere believers away from the
Christian Tradition. To heal the
breach and respond to the needs
of modern seekers, we must
revive the Christian
contemplative tradition,
offering it as a Christ-centered
mysticism for all who seek
direct communion with God.
Contemplative
prayer is simply resting in God,
silently absorbed in the Divine
Presence, beyond thoughts,
words, and images. Immersed in
Divine Love, we forget
ourselves, and a process of
interior transformation begins,
which leads, if we consent, to
an abiding state of divine
union. In this process, a total
restructuring of consciousness
occurs. We come to recognize and
experience God within us, as the
very ground of our being, and
simultaneously, we begin to see
God everywhere, in, through and
beyond all that exists. We even
discover God’s presence in the
people we have felt most
alienated from, and we find the
ability to love and to serve
them. Thus, contemplative prayer
works to bring healing to a
world torn by prejudice, hatred,
and greed.
Contemplative
prayer is a gift of God, a
spontaneous unfolding of the
grace of Christ within us, and
no technique can produce it.
But there are things we can do
to prepare ourselves for the
gift, instead of waiting for God
to do it all. For instance,
certain Eastern methods can help
lay the groundwork for
contemplation by calming the
mind and harmonizing the body
with the spirit (a possibility
long ignored in the West). Some
Eastern practices can also help
us channel and integrate the
spiritual energy released in
contemplation. But Eastern
traditions generally make the
assumption that the proper
spiritual technique will
methodically and systematically
produce Divine Union. In the
Christian Tradition we
understand and affirm boldly
that communion with God is
purely a gift of grace, by
invitation only.
So while many
Eastern methods and meditative
practices are not harmful and
may even be helpful, true
Christian contemplation is the
fruit of our relationship with
Christ, and cultivating that
relationship must be our primary
focus. One of the best ways to
do this is the practice of
lectio divina, literally “divine
reading,” a way of prayer used
by both monks and lay people in
the first Christian centuries
and the core of the Benedictine
Prayer Tradition to this day. Lectio divina has four stages.
It begins with 1) reading or
listening a passage of Scripture
(Latin: “lectio”), followed by
2) reflection or “meditation” on
the text (Latin: “meditatio”),
leading to 3) the spontaneous
prayer of the heart as we
communicate with God about what
moved us during our reading and
meditation (Latin: “oratio”),
and finally to 4) interior
silence also known as
Contemplation or simply resting
in the presence of God (Latin: “contemplatio”).
Initially,
viewed as the normal experience
of anyone practicing lectio, by
the sixteenth century,
contemplation came to be
regarded as something for only
extraordinary souls, and the
contemplative tradition was
suppressed. This persisted well
into the twentieth century, when
widespread interest in Eastern
meditation and other forms of
mysticism sparked a
contemplative renewal in the
Church. From this emerged
“Centering Prayer,” a
contemporary presentation of an
ancient method used by the
Desert Fathers to move from the
first three phases of lectio to
the final stage of resting in
God. It is especially helpful
for Western people whose
tendency to be too analytical
makes it difficult to move from
reflection to spontaneous
prayer, and from spontaneous
prayer to interior silence.
To PRACTICE CENTERING PRAYER:
1. Choose a sacred word of one
or two syllables which
symbolizes your intention to
consent to the presence and
action of God within. (The word
could be Jesus, Yahweh, Abba,
Spirit, Peace, Silence, etc.).
2. Sit
comfortably, with eyes closed.
Silently introduce the sacred
word as the symbol of your
consent to the presence and
action of God within. (You need
not repeat it continually; it
may fade out, become vague or
disappear).
3. If you are caught up in any
thought, feeling or perception,
very gently release it, and
return to the sacred word.
4. At the end of the
prayer time, remain in silence
with eyes closed for a couple of
minutes, before resuming
activity.
You will
probably be aware of a continual
stream of thoughts and images.
This is not an obstacle to
centering prayer. Make no
attempt to repress them. Just
keep letting them go, and rest
in the presence of God, by
returning ever so gently to the
sacred word.
Before you
decide if centering prayer is
working for you, commit yourself
to do it for at least twenty
minutes, twice a day, for a
month. Contemplative grace is
very subtle, and you may not
perceive what is happening
during the time of prayer. So do
not measure it by the
experiences you have in prayer,
but by the fruit it bears in
your life, the fruit of peace
which comes from yielding daily
to God’s presence at the deepest
core of your being.
If we balance
the practice of Lectio Divina
and Centering Prayer with
faithful participation in the
liturgy and Sacraments of the
Church, and a life of loving
service to others, we will be
transformed and become healers
of the Church and of the world.
RECOMMENDED READING:
Hall, Thelma. Too Deep for
Words: Rediscovering Lectio
Divina (New York: Paulist
Press, 1988).
Keating, Thomas. Open Mind,
Open Heart (Continuum).
The most excellent book I know
of on centering prayer!
Keating, Thomas.
Invitation to Love: The Way of
Christian Contemplation
(Continuum).
Everything by Thomas Keating is
highly recommended!
Copyright © 2003
Maclin R. Milner, Jr.
All Rights
Reserved
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