What Is Christian Meditation?
Christian Meditation is a prayer of the heart. It involves the silent repetition of a single word or phrase (the mantra). The continual gentle repetition of the mantra leads to an experience of silence, stillness, and simplicity.
Silence means letting go of thoughts.
Stillness means letting go of desire.
Simplicity means letting go of self-analysis.
Meditation is a universal spiritual wisdom and a practice that we find at the core of all the great religious traditions, leading from the mind to the heart. It is a way of simplicity, silence and stillness. Anyone can begin from wherever you are on your life’s journey. It is only necessary to be clear about the practice and then to begin – and keep on beginning.
In a world that is growing increasingly aware of its need for stability and depth, Christian Meditation is speaking to more and more people. It is rooted both in Christian tradition and experience. In Christianity, this tradition became marginalized and even forgotten. In recent times a great recovery of the contemplative dimension of Christian faith has been happening. This is the rediscovery of the practice of meditation in the Christian tradition that comes to us from the early Christian monks -- the Desert Fathers and Mothers. This form of prayer allows us to put into practice the teaching of Jesus on prayer in a radical and simple way.
The purpose of meditation is not to "lose" awareness and strive to reach an altered state. Quite simply, as one sits with the mantra, one becomes intensely aware without becoming involved in the experience of each moment, be it thought, image, emotion or sound. This is a path beyond thought and imagination into the presence of the risen Christ who dwells in our hearts. The way is one of simplicity and discipline.
“The wonderful beauty of prayer is that
the opening of our heart is as natural
as the opening of a flower.”
John Main, OSB