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Brookline Carmel Bulletin                         J M J T

October 4, 1959

 

 

Cogitatio Sancta

(Holy Meditation)

 

Suggestions for Mental Prayer

 

In our last bulletin, we spoke of “talking with God”.  We purposely said “with” rather than “to,” in order to indicate that prayer is a conversation.  According to St. Teresa’s oft-quoted definition, “Prayer is a loving conversation with God, Who we know loves us.” 

 

As conversation, it should not be all one-sided.  Prayer does not consist merely in saying things to God.  We must pause from time to time in our speaking (whether it be vocal or simply mental) and be alert to hear whatever He may have to say in reply.  By being too engrossed in our own talking, we may fail to hear the gentle voice of the Holy Spirit as He speaks to us.  (This does not mean that we will hear actual words.  If we expect or desire this, the devil may produce counterfeit visions and locutions to lead us astray.  But we can expect, from time to time, to receive holy inspirations from God during our prayer, and it is these that we should listen for at intervals.  How can we be sure that these inspirations are really from God, and not devices of the devil?  The best general answer to this question is probably our Lord’s admonition, “By their fruits you shall know them.”  If we are inspired to do good and to practice charity, it is most likely the Holy Spirit Who is directing us; if, on the other hand, we are led to do something odd or extraordinary, especially if it be contrary to directions we have received from the representatives of God’s Church, we do well to be suspicious from the beginning.

 

At times we may not be sure whether the “inspiration” is truly such or whether it is merely a holy thought which had been stored in our memory from previous reading, etc., and which has now come to light at a seemingly appropriate moment.  We need not worry about this point, provided the thought is really a good one.  If we are in doubt about its goodness, then it is best to proceed cautiously and, if possible, seek direction.  We might conclude this parenthetical digression, already grown much too long – in this, at least, we resemble our holy mother, St. Teresa – by quoting the words of our holy Father, St. John of the Cross, from our last bulletin:  “There is no lie so carefully devised and composed that, if we study it carefully, we cannot tell it in one way or another to be a lie.”)

 

Another suggestion for mental prayer is not to be overly intent upon following a particular system or series of points.  A person of systematic nature may feel some dissatisfaction with his prayer if there is no clearly defined outline to it.  Although a method can be of great help, we should never allow it to dominate us.  It is a crutch, to be thrown away when we are able to walk without it.  If we become too engrossed in it, we risk the danger mentioned above, viz., of doing so much talking that we fail to hear, and to be led by the gentle voice of the Holy Spirit.  A certain docility is desirable here.  We plot the course of our prayer, but we are ever ready to allow the Holy Spirit to alter that course.  “The Spirit breathes where He will.”  Father Marie-Eugene, O.C.D., in his I Want to See God, asserts that “among the manifold methods of prayer, the best will be the one that will best unite the soul to God.  Independent, as it is, of any external, preconceived forms, Teresian prayer recognizes no other law than the free expression of two loves that meet and surrender themselves to each other.”  The soul in prayer should not be hampered by unnecessary rules of procedure.  It should speak to God as it wishes, freely and spontaneously, without being a slave to method.  This is the kind of mental prayer most pleasing to God.  The soul should be free to address God as it feels inspired, and God should find no obstacle in the way when He chooses to address the soul.

 

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“God deliver us from saying, ‘We are not angels,’ or ‘We are not saints,’ whenever we commit some imperfection.  We may not be; but what a good thing it is for us to reflect that we can be if we will only try and if God gives us His hand!  Do not be afraid that He will fail to do His part if we do not fail to do ours.”  (St. Teresa, Way of Perfection, chap. 16).

 

L D V M

 

 

 

 

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