The Jesus
Prayer
by
Fr. Rich Hasselbach
The Prayer of the Heart is a simple form of meditation that can be
used at any time during the day.
"Lord Jesus Christ,
Son of God,
have mercy on me, a sinner"
This little prayer, called the Prayer of the Heart, or the Jesus
Prayer, is an ancient Christian spiritual practice that comes to us
from the monks who lived in the Egyptian desert during the second
through fourth Christian centuries, who tried to respond to St.
Paul's challenge to "pray without ceasing." The monks would pray
this prayer throughout the day - while working, eating, and even as
they went to sleep - and they would make these words the heart of
their focused meditation.
The Jesus Prayer is a way
to focus concentration in meditation - and it can become a focal
point for our inner life. It is used like a
mantra, said over and over again. It is best prayed in conjunction
with your breathing. Breathing in you say "Lord Jesus Christ, son
of God," symbolically inviting the Lord's presence into the depths
of your person. Breathing out you pray "have mercy on me, a
sinner," symbolically expelling your sins and claiming God's
healing love. At the end of the out-breath, of course, you are
momentarily out of air - that is, helpless - and symbolizing your
dependence on the Lord's mercy. This should be repeated
continuously, over and over again - so that the name of Jesus seeps
into the depths of your heart.
The prayer is not simply a technique for clearing and stilling the
mind - it must be prayed out of faith in Jesus, who is Lord, and
through whom we find infinite, undeserved and unmerited mercy. It
is also a prayer FOR faith - one that, over time, deepens our
faith.
In his classic "Frannie and Zooey" J.D. Salinger accurately
describes the results of the Prayer of the Heart in the life of one
who prayed it regularly:
Sometimes my
heart would feel as though it were bubbling with joy, such
lightness, freedom, and consolation were in it. Sometimes I felt a
burning love for Jesus Christ and for all God's creatures.
Sometimes my eyes brimmed over with tears of thankfulness to God,
who was so merciful to me, a wretched sinner.... Sometimes by
calling upon the name of Jesus I was overwhelmed with bliss, and
now I knew the meaning of the words, "The Kingdom of God is within
you."
The Jesus prayer is a wonderful way to
deepen your spiritual life, and it is a truly Christian means of
meditation.
What follows are some thoughts about the prayer from one of the
early Church Fathers:
When the clouds disperse, the air appears pure. When passionate fantasies are dispersed by the Sun of Truth, Jesus Christ, radiant and star-like thoughts are naturally born in the hearts with his light.
From Nicephorus the Solitary...
You know that our breathing is the inhaling and exhaling of air. The organ which serves for this is the lungs which lie round the heart, so that the air passing through them thereby envelopes the heart. Thus breathing is a natural way to the heart, and so, having collected your wind within--lead it into the channel of breathing through which air reaches the heart and together with this inhaled air, force your mind to descend into the heart and to remain there, accustom it, brother, not to come out of the heart too soon, for at first it feels very lonely in that inner seclusion and imprisonment. But when it gets accustomed to it, it begins on the contrary to dislike its aimless circling outside, for it is no longer unpleasant and wearisome for it to be within. Just as a man who has been away from home, when he returns, is beside himself with joy at seeing again his children and wife, embraces them and cannot talk to them enough, so the mind, when it unites with the heart, is filled with unspeakable joy and delight. Then a man sees that the kingdom of heaven is truly within us; and seeing it now in himself, he strives with pure prayer to keep it and strengthen it there.
When you thus enter into the place of the heart as I have shown you, give thanks to God, and praising His mercy, keep always to this doing, and it will teach you things which in no other way you will ever learn. Moreover, you should know that when your mind becomes firmly established in the heart, it must not remain there, silent and idle, but it should constantly repeat the prayer: 'Lord, Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy upon me!' and never cease. For this practice, keeping the mind from dreams, renders it elusive and impenetrable to hostile suggestions and everyday leads it more and more to love and longing for God.
If you do this with strong desire and attention, full of sweetness, a whole host of virtues will come to you--love, joy, peace, and others, through which, later, every petition of yours will be answered in the name of Jesus Christ, our Lord, to whom, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, is glory and power, honour and worship, now and always, and for ever and ever. Amen.
| From Hesychius of
Jerusalem... |