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 PRAYER

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PRAYER

from the beginning; nor has it ever been denied, except by the WycUfites and the Quietists. The former objected to it as unnecessary, as God does not need our words to know what goes on in our souls, and prayer being a spiritual act need be per- formed by the soul alone without the body. The latter regarded all external action in prayer as an untoward disturbance or interference with the passivity of the soul required, in their opinion, to pray properly. It is obvious that prayer must be the action of the entire man, body as well as soul; that God who created both is pleased with the service of both, and that when the two act in unison they help instead of interfering with one another's activi- ties. The WycUfites objected not only to all ex- ternal expression of prayer generally, but to vocal prayer in its proper sense, viz. prayer expressed in set form of words, excepting only the Our Father. The use of a variety of such forms is sanctioned by the prayer over the first-fruits (Deut., xxvi, 13). If it be right to use one form, that of the Our Father, why not others also? The Litany, Collective and Eucharist ic prayers of the early Church were surely set forms, and the familiar daily prayers, the Our Father, Hail Mary, Apostles' Creed, Confiteor, Acts of Faith, Hope, and Charity, all attest the usage of the Church in this respect and the preference of the faithful for such approved forms to others of their own composition.

Postures in Prayer. — Postures in prayer are also an evidence of the tendency in human nature to ex- press inward sentiment by outward sign. Not only among Jews and Christians, but among pagan peoples also, certain postures were considered appropriate in prayer, as, for instance, standing with arms raised among the Romans. The Orante (see Orans) in- dicates the postures favoured by the early Chris- tians, standing with hands extended, as Christ on the Cross, according to Tertullian; or with hands raised towards heaven, with bowed heads, or, for the faith- ful, with eyes raised towards heaven, and, for cate- chumens, with eyes bent on the earth; prostration, kneeling, genuflexion (q. v.), and such gestures as striking the breast are all outward signs of the rev- erence proper for prayer, whether in public or private.

Mental Prayer. — lileditation is a form of mental prayer consisting in the application of the various faculties of the soul, memory, imagination, intellect, and will, to the consideration of some mystery, principle, truth, or fact, with a view to exciting proper spiritual emotions and resolving on some act or course of action regarded as God's will and as a means of union with Him. In some degree or other it has always been practised by God-fearing souls. There is abundant evidence of this in the Old Testament, as, for instance, in Ps. xxxviii, 4; Ixii, 7; Ixxvi, 13; cxviii throughout; Ecclus., xiv, 22; Is., xxvi, 9; Ivii, 1; Jer., xii, 11. In the New Testament Christ gave frequent examples of it, and St. Paul often re- fers to it, as in Eph., vi, 18; Col., iv, 2; I Tun., iv, 15; I Cor., xiv, 1.5. It has always been practised in the Clmrch. Among others who have recom- mended it to the faithful are Chrysostom in his two books on prayer, as also in his "Horn, xxx in Gen." and"Hom.vi. in Isaiam" ; Cassian in "Conference ix"; St. Jerome in "Epistola 22 ad Eustochium" ; St. Basil in his "Homily on St. Julitta, M.", and "In regula breviori", 301; St. Cyprian, "In expositione ora- tionis dominicalis"; St. Ambrose, "De sacramentis", VI, iii; St. Augustine, "Epist. 121 ad Probam", cc. v, vi, vii; Boetius, "De spiritu et anima", xxxii; St. Leo, "Sermo viii de jejunio"; St. Bernard, "De consecratione", I, vii; St. Thomas, II-II, Q. Ixxxiii, a. 2.

The writings of the Fathers themselves and of the great theologians are in large measure tlie fruit of devout meditation as well as of study of the mys-

teries of religion. There is, however, no trace of methodical meditation before the fifteenth century. Prior to that time, even in monasteries, no regulation seems to have existed for the choice or arrangement of subject, the order, method, and time of the con- sideration. From the beginning, before the middle of the twelfth century, the Carthusians had times set apart for mental prayer, as appears from Guigo's "Consuetudinary", but no further regulation. About the beginning of the sixteenth century one of the Brothers of the Common Life, Jean Mombaer of Brussels, issued a series of subjects or points for meditation. The monastic rules generally prescribed times for common prayer, usually the recitation of the Office, leaving it to the individual to ponder as he might on one or other of the texts. Early in the six- teenth century the Dominican chapter of Milan prescribed mental prayer for half an hour morning and evening. Among the Franciscans there is record of methodical mental prayer about the middle of that century. Among the Carmelites there was no regu- lation for it until Saint Theresa introduced it for two hours daily. Although Saint Ignatius reduced meditation to such a definite method in his spiritual exercises, it was not made part of his rule until thirty years after the formation of the Society. His method and that of St. Sulpice have helped to spread the habit of meditating beyond the cloister among the faithful everywhere.

Methods of Meditation. — In the method of St. Ignatius the subject of the meditation is chosen before- hand, usually the previous evening. It may be any truth or fact whatever concerning God or the human soul, God's existence. His attributes, such as justice, mercy, love, wisdom, His law, providence, revelation, creation and its purpose, sin and its penalties, death, judgment, hell, redemption, etc. The precise aspect of the subject should be determined very definitely, otherwise its consideration will be general or super- ficial and of no practical benefit. As far as possible its application to one's spiritual needs should be fore- seen, and to work up interest in it, as one retires and rises, one should recall it to mind so as to make it a sleeping and a waking thought. When ready for meditation, a few moments should be given to recol- lecting what we are about to do so as to begin with quiet of mind and deeply impressed with the sacred- ness of prayer. A brief act of adoration of God naturally follows, with a petition that our intention to honour Him in prayer may be sincere and persever- ing, and that every faculty and act, interior and ex- terior, may contribute to His service and praise. The subject of the meditation is then recalled to mind, and in order to fix the attention, the imagination is here employed to construct some scene appropriate to the subject, e. g. the Garden of Paradise, if the medita- tion be on Creation, or the Fall of Man; the Valley of Jehosaphat, for the Last Judgment; or, for Hell, the bottomless and boundless pit of fire. This is called the composition of place, and even when the subject of meditation has no apparent material associations, the imagination can always devise some scene or sensible image that will help to fix or recall one's attention and appreciate the spiritual matter under consideration. Thus, when considering sin, especially carnal sin, as enslaving the soul, the Book of Wisdom, ix, 15, sug- gests the similarity of the body to the prison house of the soul: "The corruptible body is a load upon the soul, and the earthly habitation presseth down the mind that museth upon many things."

Quite often this initial step, or prelude as it is called, might occupy one profitably the entire time set apart for meditation; but ordinarily it should be made in a few minutes. A brief pet it ion follows fur the special grace one hopes to obtain and tlien tlie medita- tion proper begins. The memory recalls the subject as definitely as possible, one point at a time, repeating