I think tears have a great cleansing power for poor sinners like myself. I feel I have dropped a heavy brden when I cry in prayer. James 4:9 Drawing Near to God …8Draw near to God and He will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners; and purify your hearts, you double-minded. 9Be miserable and mourn and weep; let your laughter be turned into mourning and your joy to gloom. 10Humble yourselves in the presence of the Lord, and He will exalt you.… View attachment 3554
If you have never heard of him there is a great Orthodox llving saint who gives great teaching on prayer.He is the Orthodox Patriache of Britian , ArchbishopAnthony Bloom. Not only is he himelf holy he is very wise and very well educated. On top of that a great commincator. A kind of living Orthodox version of Archbishop Sheen. I have read several of his books on prayer in the past and listened to his talks always with great joy.
Another Orthodox saint I am very fond of , this one long dead is St Silohan the Athonite (called Athoite because he lived on Mount Athos: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Silouan_the_Athonite
However I am just reading a book about a Spanish saint whom I have never heard of who died back in 1936, the mother of four children whose husband died after just six years of marriage. Her name was Praxides Fernandez. I would say what distinguishes Praxides was her great wisdom and prudence and Devotion to the Passion. Believe it or not she went to mass three times a day, though how she found the time..I am delighted with her, we have become great friends.
I will watch the videos Padraig and thank you. I do know of St. Siloham the Athonite and met him when reading on a prayerful topic called Enlargement of the Heart - one of those gems from the East. It is effectively God in his great love enlarging the heart/soul so that he can enter even more than before! Below are some notes that I made in my little prayer book on the subject: Once when I was reading the biography of St. Phillip Neri, I was fascinated by the mention of the time when the saint was praying and the Lord filled Phillip’s heart with so much love that he cried out, “Lord, please stop or you will kill me”. Years later, after Phillip had died his body was examined and prepared for burial. An old would was discovered. His heart had enlarged so much that it had broken two ribs. I mulled this strange (and holy) event over in my mind continuously during the following few days. Then while driving down the road one afternoon, I felt a powerful surge of God’s love flow in my heart. I was moved to tears and my heart felt like it was expanding as the Holy Spirit welled up in me like a spring. I immediately thought of St. Phillip and asked the Lord to break my ribs too. I have never forgotten that experience and the remembrance of it still brings me joy to this day. It seems to me that in my lack of theological training that the Lord has on many occasions chosen to first grant me an experience and then later provide a confirmation in books that I felt that he guided me to in order to better understand it. I learned from the Greek Fathers of the Church that this condition of the soul is called kenosis. The word kenosis means “space” and in this context it means an enlargement of the heart. The Lord will increase our capacity (and the size of our spiritual hearts) if we allow him to do so. This can be painful but God’s love even makes that a joy. St. Benedict, a 6th century Latin Father, speaks of the same truth when he says, “When the heart has been enlarged, the path of God’s commandments is run with unspeakable loving sweetness”. Centuries later, St Teresa of Avila would also speak about this gift from God in what that she termed as the Prayer of Quiet. She explains that this encounter with God in prayer occurs when one feels his sweetness flowing like a divine fountain into the soul and enlarging it. She says, “As I write this, I’m thinking again of that verse I mentioned: Dilatasti cor meum (Ps. 119:32), which says that the heart is expanded. But I still don’t think that this is an experience of the heart. I think its source is much deeper inside. I think it must come from the core of our being. I have seen secrets in the soul that have left me dumbfounded” (Interior Castle p. 98). This is not a gift that the Lord grants to those who labor in prayer or those who perform countless work of charity even though these are good and have their own rewards. That is certainly not the case with me as I am well aware that I am a sinner and come to the Lord as a beggar in need of his mercy. Yet, the Lord’s ways are mysterious and wonderful to behold. Further on St Teresa states that, “God gives it only to those to whom it is his will to give it, and often when the soul least expects it” (Interior Castle p.101). So it is with joy that I say that even those of us who deserve absolutely nothing are looked upon with great affection by God. Oh, how much we have underestimated our Lord’s desire to share his life with us. A few years after this experience, I was going through what seemed like a long period of dryness. I continued doing my daily prayers and trying to be constant but didn’t feel any consolation from Lord. I even began to doubt him wondering to myself why would he have left me after I had drunk from his well? Did I do something wrong? I know that I am weak and a sinner but now I was starting to get depressed. I went to a daily Mass one afternoon on my lunch hour and arrived early so that I could pray before the crowd got there. I sat in the pew and complained to myself that if the Lord had enlarged my heart maybe through my own actions and lack of love it had now decreased. As I was in prayer, I believe that a glimpse of my was soul given to me. It looked like a large Church with a towering ceiling like the Gothic Cathedrals in Europe. The view that I saw was from the back of the Church facing the altar, which was a great distance away. It was dark behind me and on either side. In front of me, however, behind the altar were several large completely clear windows that seemed to be hundreds of feet tall. Light was not only shining through every pane of glass. In fact, it looked more like it was pouring in than shining in. I remember thinking that God is at work in me even when I do not feel him. He is building a temple where I can meet him to pray. The soul is a marvelous creation. It is the dwelling place of God, even as the Apostle says that our bodies are temples of the Holy Spirit (I Cor 6:19). The Temple in Old Testament is where God’s people gathered to meet with him. Now that Temple has been replaced with the temple of our hearts where we make sacrifices and commune with God. The words of the Apocalypse came to mind while looking back on this, “Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, then I will enter his house and dine with him, and he with me” (Rev 3:20).
All that is mine is Yours – All that is Yours is mine– Therefore, I give you my mind, And I take Your mind to think with I give you my eyes, And I take Your eyes to see with I give you my mouth, And I take Your mouth to speak with I give you my ears, And I take Your ears to listen with, I give you my hands, And I take Your hands to work with, I give you my feet, And I take Your feet to walk with, I give you my heart, And I take Your Heart to love with!
Lynn Spoken like a true devotee of the Divine Will. Praying in the Divine Will is the highest form of prayer in my opinion. It may take the Church a while to draw forth the riches contained in the volumes. Keep sharing on the Divine Will. We are richer for it
Padraig Nice video regarding the Four Waters. I don't know how you find these videos but I like them. Andy We talked about numbers in scripture on anther thread about Angels. Just a short meditation on the number 4. In the opening words of the scriptures we read that the “Spirit of God hovered over the waters” (Gen 1:2). In the second account of creation we see that, “A river watering the garden flowed from Eden” (Gen 2:10) and branched into four rivers: the Pishon, the Gihon, the Tigris and the Euphrates. We see these same rivers again in the 24th chapter of Sirach. Wisdom says, “he who drinks of me will thirst for more” and the rivers now have new associations with them that resemble gifts of the Holy Spirit: Pishon – wisdom, Gihon – vintage time, Tigris – new fruits, Euphrates – understanding. Wisdom continues, “Now I, like a rivulet from her stream, channeling the waters into a garden, said to myself, ‘I will water my plants, my flower bed I will drench’; and suddenly this rivulet of mine became a river, then this stream of mine, a sea” (Sir 24:28). Isaiah too speaks of this water when he says, “With joy you will draw water at the fountain of salvation” (Is 12:3) and again, “All you who are thirsty, come to the water” (Is 55:1). In the 47th chapter of Ezekiel we see the angel tell the prophet to look at the water flowing from the Eastern gate of the temple. It is a trickle and he is asked to wade into the water. It then becomes bigger and he is now up to his ankles and then it is up to his knees. Then, “the water had risen so high it had become a river that could not be crossed except by swimming” (Ez 47:5). These four levels of water become deeper and deeper. In the New Testament, our dear Lord cries out, “Let anyone who thirsts come to me and drink. Whoever believes in me, as scripture says: 'Rivers of living water will flow from within him.' He said this in reference to the Spirit that those who came to believe in him were to receive” (Jn 7:37-39). These rivers now flow through the four Gospels giving life to all who believe. They flow through time to all of the children of God and in the end become one river again even as scripture says, “Then the angel showed me the river of life-giving water, sparkling like crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of its street. On either side of the river grew the tree of life that produces fruit twelve times a year, once each month; the leaves of the trees serve as medicine for the nations” (Rev. 22:2). You and I are those trees and the Holy Spirit pouring through us produces good fruit, 30, 60, 100 fold. Even the leaves have a healing effect on the world. David tells us in the first Psalm that the just, “are like a tree planted near streams of water that yields its fruit in season” and Ezekiel says of the River, “Along both banks of the river, fruit trees of every kind shall grow; their leaves shall not fade, nor their fruit fail. Every month they shall bear fresh fruit, for they shall be watered by the flow from the sanctuary. Their fruit shall serve for food, and their leaves for medicine" (Ez 47:12). Our dear Lord’s heart was pieced with a lance while on the Cross and “blood and water flowed out” (Jn 19:34). This water flowing (proceeding) from the side of Christ quenches the thirst of all who long for his Holy and Life-Giving Spirit yet they are never fully satisfied as He is infinite. Let us be thirsty for Him.
I like to pray the Rosary, and if possible the St Faustina chaplet afterwards. I try to do this nearly always whilst driving & without company. I drive quite a bit these days, but usually for about an hour alone. I keep track of where I am by gently tapping one finger on something, gear lever for left hand or steering wheel for right hand, to represent my location in the prayers. It generally works best through the working week, but rarely weekends or days off! Too many great distractions (family!) and wonderful noise (family!) DBM
I love the rosary and also the rosary to our Lady of sorrows.and the chaplet. I prayed to be given a love for the rosary and I am so glad that I was. Tomorrow is the feast of the Rosary
This is a really uplifting thread.am inspired by the posts here with so many wonderful gifts of prayer shared so generously. Thanks to everyone.
On the piercing of the heart. Orignally when I read about this phenomena (especially in the writings of St Teresa) I was inclined to treat it as purely subjective occurence , that what the wrte meant as, 'It felt like my heart ebing pierced. ' Which I suppose if the natural modern way of looking at things. To kind of psychologise them . However then I was thrown in the lives of several saints to discover that their hearts had, it appeared being radically affected (and not in a patholigally way) including the actual rib cage being moved. So it was back to drawing board for me and my pschology. I hesitate to give a definitive answer to a lot of these questions in Mystical Theology. So many people who give nailed down solutions open themselves to ridicule by their certitude about the solutions to mystery. But if you look at the case of Padre Pio and his radical stigmata. Now compare Padre Pio to say, St Therese of Liseaux. The Little Flower (and most other saints) had no stigmata and unlike Padre Pio her body totally decayed after her death whilst Padre Pio's remains perfectly intact. Now does this mean Padre Pio was more holy than St Therese because of theese things? Well of course not. But it does pose the question of wqhy this phenomena hits some saints but does not come to others. If we were being really honest we would simply say we do not know and wil lhave to wait to get to heaven and find out. But if I had to guess I would say it was to assist Padre Pio's ministry , to give it a little push if you like. But of course there have been many, many saints who had the stigmata invisibily ,so how could these be a Sing to others? The turth, like so much else in Mysticism is that it is a complete Mystery. The only thing I can say is that, over time I have become very comfortable with admitting that some Mysteries are loked in the Heart of the Good God.
I think the second part of your post concerns the Night of the Senses. I wil lwrite a little about this tomorrow. This Night reminds me of a little bird who is trying to fly from her nest for the first time. Interesting to think about such matters of Sacred Science.
Robert, In his, Jesus and the Jewish roots of the Eucharist, Brant Pitre highlights some amazing facts. First, we know that only the Jewish priests were allowed into the Holy Place of the Jewish Temple, which contained the Menorah, the Altar of Incense, and the golden Table of the Bread of the Presence. On the Table of the Bread of the Presence were twelve loaves of consecrated bread and also flagons of wine which were offered to the Lord every Sabbath as an unbloody sacrifice. They were then left on the Table for the week until the following Sabbath. At the end of the week the loaves were eaten by the priests. In addition, the consecrated wine was drunk by the priests. This was unusual because wine libations were normally poured out and not drunk. And in Leviticus 24:8 the bread is seen as an sign of the everlasting covenant. All this time, the lit Menorah lamp stand served as the only light in the sanctuary! Sounds familiar, doesn't it? Now, the sad thing was that only the priests saw the holy objects in the Holy Place. However, there were three exceptions to this restriction which we learn of not from the Scriptures, but from the Jewish Tulmad. In the time of Jesus, it was common for Jews to make pilgrimage to Jerusalem on the three major feasts: Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. On those three occasions during the year, the Table of the Bread of the Presence would be processed outside the Temple for all to see: They [the priests] used to lift it [the Golden Table] up and exhibit the Bread of the Presence on it to those who came up for the festivals, saying to them, "Behold, God's love for you!" (Babylonian Talmud, menahoth 29A) During their pilgrimages as a family, Joseph, Mary, and Jesus would have witnessed this display. O how great a foreshadowing! O how marvelous to see its fulfillment in the Holy Mass. And how great a reminder to treat one another with great humility and dignity for are we not ourselves tabernacles of the Lord (especially after reception of Holy Communion)? Dear Jesus, I am so blind at times! Let me ever ponder and treasure the depths of this profound mystery. Thank you for this unspeakable gift! Who is like unto God? "Behold, God's love for you!" Safe in the Flames of the Sacred Heart!
All this is interesting but the thread is How do you pray? You guys are telling us about prayers and devotions. The question was how do you pray? There is no right or wrong.
Good point FS I start the day with, "thank you Jesus" and end the day the same. I listen to the Mass on EWTN radio on the way to my office. When the homily is over, I change over to the Rosary CD with Dana and Fr Scanlon. As I finish the Rosary, I am pulling into my office parking lot. Throughout the day, I pray the Orthodox Rosary (chotki) that is on my wrist. It is 33 knots (but it could be any number) made by the monks and the prayer is, "Lord Jesus Christ only Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner". I don't count the knots really, I just keep praying. (St. Paul of Thebes in the 2nd century used to pray all 150 Psalms moving a pebble from one pile to another - that was later the seeds for the Rosary in the West). I eat my sandwich for lunch in my car under a tree so that I can do some spiritual reading, yesterday was the Philokalia. On the way home from work I often listen to christian music and sing to the Lord. That is great joy. In the evening it is family time. I have been happily married for over 20 years and have two wonderful girls. That time is dedicated to them but the thought of our Lord and our Lady is always in my mind like background music as I love them dearly. We do go to Mass Sundays about once during the week and go to adoration about one or twice a week, depending on my work and travel. I haven't been on MOG that long but I also see this time as a prayer. There are many good christians here and I have learned from them. "Where two or more are gathered . . ."
