Have you noticed I have been reflecting on prayer a lot these days? Not sure if you are a praying person, but I continue to ponder what prayer is and how I can pray faithfully. An image comes to mind from the bible of Jacob “wrestling with God.” Like Jacob at night, perhaps I will not be to be bruised in the encounter during this dark time.
Let me wonder a bit…
There are many definitions of prayer and a variety of ways to pray. Over nearly 80 years I have grown in my understanding. In the 60’s Meditation became popular. Often simply sitting and quieting my mind brought peace. Meditation literally means in the middle of, which suggests many possible settings or mind-sets. I learned that outdoors in the natural world was my favorite. I often hear friends say they feel the closest to God when they are hiking in the mountains or sitting by the seashore or watching a sunset.
In previous column, I shared my discovery that running was a form or prayer or meditation. The rhythmic movement of the body can have a calming effect with the added benefit of endorphins inducing a physical, runners high. Several friends who are dancers share the same wisdom. Having worn out my knees from too many miles pounding the pavement, I now enjoy paddling my kayak combining physical activity in the beauty of the natural world.
Science tells us that various forms of prayer and meditation and contemplating influence the brain. It’s called an “alpha” state as brain waves between 8-12 Hz represent a state of “relaxed alertness and calm mindfulness.” So whether you believe in a God or the Divine or the Holy, our wiring is wonder-full!
Along the way I have had several important mentors who have deepened my knowledge and experience of prayer.
My seminary professor and spiritual writer, Henri Nouwen, led retreats with my students when I was a campus pastor in California. We became friends and he witnessed my commitment to activism and work for justice. While affirming my efforts, he often told me that unless I rooted my work in prayer and scripture, I would burn out. That was a turning point.
I begin my day reading Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditation, which explores themes of faith and life with wisdom from a wide variety of teachers. Today he shared this insight from the mystic Thomas Merton.
The contemplative life of the Christian is not a life of abstraction, of secession, to concentrate upon ideal essences…. The freedom of the Christian contemplative is … the freedom to go out and meet God in the inscrutable mystery of [God’s] will here and now, in this precise moment in which [God] asks [humanity’s] cooperation in shaping the course of history according to the demands of divine truth, mercy and fidelity.
Father Richard teaches that action and contemplation are not an either/or but a both/and. His Center for Action and Contemplation provides more resources (practices, books, classes, and conferences. www.cac.org
During the pandemic, Rohr’s meditations were lifesaving. He shared a prayer which I learned by heart and pray to this day as a template for a holistic way of living.
O Great Love, thank you for living and loving in and through us.
May all that we do flow from our deep connection with you and all beings.
Help us become a community that vulnerably shares each other’s burdens and the weight of glory
Hear our heart’s longings for the healing of our broken world (please add your own intentions)
Knowing you are hearing us better than we are speaking, we offer all these prayers in all the holy names of God. Amen
I invite you to read the prayer several times and then used it to guide your meditation.
Find a quiet place and sit in an erect stance with hands open and raised slightly
Were you beginning to wonder when the “out loud” part of this column was coming?
Now…
I find that I am easily distracted as I offer this prayer and if I pray slowly and out loud my focus is sustained. I still get distracted, but praying “out loud” sets a vibration in my body and spirit that brings the words and thoughts to life. Sometimes I whisper the words. I also often repeat a line or even a word and that is enough!
May your contemplation and action stir and sustain your faith and life!
Amen
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