Contemplative Prayer & Jack Hammers

Contemplative Prayer is the mystical dimension of the Gospel, now almost completly forgotten or abandoned by Todays Christians-those more interested in their own speech, prayer agendas, pet doctrines, than about truly seeking God.

What do I mean? I am being a bit hyperbolic in the above statement, on hand. Yet, there is this other side of the faith, treated like a Cynderella and pushed in the dungeons out of sight. Its the side of Contemplative Prayer, silence, and meditation on God. Most of us only pursue God by what the early Fathers of the Church referred to as Kataphatic Theology (kata in Greek means according to)- the theology of God based on the use of our own faculties of thought and reason, etc. to study, learn, and understand God revelations to us through the created order (general revelation) and his Special Revelation of Himself through Holy Scriptures.

However, there has always been another aspect, the way of Apophatic Theology (apo in greek means away from)- away from our faculties. That is, we approach God by way of negation. It is not possible for us mere mortals to comprehend God as He is in His Essence, His own Being, as He knows Himself to be. What understanding we may glean by way of kataphatic theology can never be comprehensive, it is still but a shadow for God is above our comprehension! So, we come to Him in loving attentativeness by way of stillness and silence! As the Psalmist said, "Be still and know that I am God."

It is learning to sit in His presence in silence and stillness, seeking only the eternal "THOU" as He knows himself to be. St Augustine once said, "Silence is God's first language." Should we not then learn His language? Be still, rest in his presence, with nothing but our naked and loving gaze toward him (The Cloud of Unknowing by an anonymous Christian author).

But we tend not to do so. We tend, rather, to come to Him with our agendas asking Him to Bless our purposes, even though they may be disguises as Christian works of service or charity. Many are afraid of the silence. Once we turn inward, we discover an inner world that revolves around our own ego, our own inner voice which never stops talking. Try, if you have never done so, to sit for just a few minutes in silence and see how noisy it is inside! We are full of our selves, our thoughts, our ego, our purpose, our agendas. Is it not time we laid these things down at the feet of Jesus, even surrendering our own ego. "Let Go My Ego!" But we don't want to let go.

If we are ever to truly put on the mind of Christ, we must learn to take off the Old Man- that is, our ego centered way of thinking, even at the very depths of our interior lives. As we learn by way of silence, to let go our ego, the polarity of our orbit begins to shift, and the Eternal Ego- the Great "I AM" begins to dwell and reign more and more in our lives. We become more aware of his abiding presence in our lives.

There are many wonderful Devotional Masters in the Christian Faith who can help take us there. Read the works of St. John of the Cross, St Teresa of Avila, St. Augustine, Brother Lawrence, for starters.

May the Lord help each of us to take the time to simply be with Him in silent prayer of stillness.

Be Still and know that I AM God!

Of course there are hinderances to challenge us. One of them is the City Workers outside today digging up the street with Jack Hammers!