primer on mental prayer
Link to methods of mental prayer. Link for mental prayer Scriptures and meditation topics. Link to great books on prayer.
What is Mental Prayer?
Prayer in general is an elevation of our soul (mind and will) and our heart toward God to render Him our loving worship. We elevate ourselves toward God by thinking of Him, loving Him, and conversing with Him. Mental prayer is a pious communication of the soul with God by means of considerations, conversation, and resolutions. Its object is to make us know, love, and serve God better and to promote the knowledge of ourselves and the faithful living out of our vocation and duties. In practice, mental prayer is the art of becoming who God is calling us to be.
Why should we practice mental prayer?
Mental prayer is also called Conversation with Christ. Jesus has called us friends (see Jn 15:15). Friends spend time with one another. Friends have conversations about their hopes, joys, aspirations, as well as, their sufferings, struggles, and failures. Jesus wants to have a daily conversation with us wherein we reveal to Him whatever is on our minds and hearts. Good conversation is two-sided. We must allow our friend, in this instance Jesus, to speak to us in the silence of our hearts.
This conversation with Christ, according to the Saints (and I mean all of them) is necessary not only for growth in holiness, but for salvation. “All the Christian faithful, of whatever state or rank are called to the fullness of the Christian life and to the perfection of charity” as Lumen Gentium, paragraph 40 states. St. John Paul II said at the turn of the millennium that the “training in holiness calls for a Christian life distinguished above all in the art of prayer.” He goes on to say in makes us intimate friends with Jesus and that conversation is the very substance and soul of the Christian life and the condition of all good works. In other words, without conversation with Christ we will not reach intimate friendship with God and our good works will not merit reward in Heaven. Mental prayer is essential to the Christian life, good works, and most importantly growing in holiness.
Advantages of Mental Prayer
By the light and strength it imparts, mental prayer:
This quote from a eulogy by St. Peter of Alcantara sums up the benefits of mental prayer: “In mental prayer, the soul is purified from its sins, nourished with charity, confirmed in faith, and strengthened in hope; the mind expands, the affections dilate, the heart is purified, truth becomes evident; temptation is conquered, sadness dispelled; the senses are renovated; drooping powers revive; tepidity ceases; the rust of vices disappear. Out of mental prayer issues forth, like living sparks, those desires of heaven which the soul conceives when inflamed with the fire of divine love. Sublime is the excellence of mental prayer, great are its privileges; to mental prayer heaven is opened; to mental prayer heavenly secrets are manifested and the ear of God [is] ever attentive.”
Sources of difficulties in mental prayer
Difficulties arise:
Additional points
We need a sincere will (desire) to make mental prayer well. We must earnestly apply ourselves to mental prayer and ask God for the grace to pray well and for it to bear fruit.
We will know that prayer is being done well by the fruits of prayer. That does not mean that we have consolation or that prayer always feels good. It means our lives begin to change and we become more devout in our faith, faithful to our state in life, more humble, and more loving in our relationships.
Preparation for Mental Prayer
Remote preparation: removing obstacles to mental prayer from our lives such as constant noise and distractions against silence, attachment to sin, slavery to our passions.
In order to remove these we need to practice recollection, silence, purity of heart (avoid freely committing sin), and exterior and interior penance.
Remote preparation benefits from practicing the presence of God, practicing purity of intention, and frequent short prayers throughout the day.
Proximate preparation: principally it consists in being recollected, and in seeing the subject of the mental prayer, the principal considerations, and the fruit that we wish to derive from it.
This preparation prepares us for our most important daily conversation. It helps us to be more focused during the time of prayer.
Proximate preparation includes choosing the subject matter on which we will pray. We should choose the subject of our mental prayer taking into account our spiritual needs, the attractions of grace, and the advice of our spiritual director. If we are going to pray in the morning we should choose the subject matter the night before, and if we will pray in the evening then choose the subject matter in the morning — along with the time and place of prayer.
It is useful to meditate upon the great truths of our salvation, the last things (heaven, hell, death, and judgment), on the life and Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, and on the virtues and glories of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary.
We can meditate repeatedly on these subjects. As we make progress in mental prayer we can be drawn to go deeper with the Lord in some previous meditation. The Lord always has more for us.
Immediate preparation: The immediate preparation is the beginning of prayer. We should invoke the Holy Spirit, the Blessed Mother, and our Guardian Angel to help us enter into prayer.
An act of faith in the presence of God and of union with Our Lord - along with acts of humility, confidence, contrition, and gratitude.
Making an act of faith in that God is present to you is of utmost importance. Simply call to mind that God is present to you in this moment (as in all others). This is especially easy in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.
The other acts we can make are an act of humility as we adore God as our Creator; an act of filial confidence in Him as Father; an act of contrition asking pardon and mercy from Him as Savior and Judge; an act of gratitude to Him as our Benefactor.
We can use memorized acts for these or spontaneously produce them from the depths of our heart. These only need to last a minute or so, unless the Lord draws you into deep prayer by one of them and then feel free to speak with Him there.
MENTAL PRAYER METHODS (First two weeks 10 min/day, Second two weeks 20/day, and after a month 30 min/day which is the goal)
Lectio Divina: There are five simple steps (a very easy way to do this is by signing up for carpeverbum.org):
Pregame: Ask the Holy Spirit to fill your heart and mind with His Presence and grace. Ex. “Holy Spirit, I know you are present to me in this moment, please help me to be more aware of your presence. Draw me into your presence.”
1. Lectio / Read: “What does the biblical text say in itself?”
Find a Gospel passage that you want to pray with. The easiest way to do this is to pray with the Gospel of the day, usccb.org/bible/readings. You can also spend a few of the days each week praying through the Sunday readings, especially the Gospel.
2. Meditatio / Meditate: “What does this biblical text say to me in the context of the faith?”
We must let ourselves be moved or challenged by the “living and active” Word of God (Heb 4:12). God will move our hearts and inform our intellects through this pondering. A deeper prayer will lead us to an encounter with God as He speaks to us where we are and draws us closer to Himself.
3. Oratio / Prayer: “What do I want to say to the Lord in my response to His Word?” Have a conversation.
St. Augustine says: “Your prayer is the word you speak to God. When you read the Bible, God speaks to you; when you pray, you speak to God.” Now speak to God what has arisen in your heart. What are the fears or doubts that arose? What are the insights and joys that arose? What was challenging for you about the text?
4. Contemplatio / Contemplate: “What conversion of mind, heart, and life is the Lord asking of me?” In this conversation what is the Lord speaking to you in the silence of your heart?
St. Francis of Assisi was inspired to begin his mendicant lifestyle, and eventually the Franciscan Order, after hearing a homily on Matthew 10:7-19. Likewise, St. Augustine recounted the radical conversion he underwent after reading Romans 13:13-14, while St. Anthony was converted after reading Matthew 19:21. When we encounter the Lord, He never leaves us unchanged. He calls us to live out a deeper faith, hope, and charity in our lives.
5. Actio / Act: “Living out the Lectio Divina.”
We do well also to remember that the process of lectio divina is not concluded until it arrives at action (actio), which moves the believer to make his or her life a gift for others in charity. Once we have encountered God in prayer and recognize His specific call for us it is a matter of doing it.
Postgame: Reviewing how our prayer time went will help growth in prayer. It can be done briefly as the prayer is concluding or after the prayer. It helps deepen our awareness of the gift of prayer.
Questions that may assist: As I prayed with Scripture, what was I thinking? What drew my attention, what struck me? What was I feeling as I prayed? What stirred in my heart? Did I feel joy? Did I experience peace? Was I anxious? Did I struggle in any way?
Another Way of Mental Prayer:
Preparation: place oneself in the presence of Christ. Make some of the acts of faith, confidence, etc. from above.
Selection of material: read or study a spiritual book reflection on a particular aspect of the life of Christ. Or some perfection of Christ - humility, mercy, etc. Or on the Passion of Christ, His suffering for our sins. Or on the life of the Blessed Virgin or one of her virtues. Or the life of a Saint. Or gaze upon the Crucifix or some devout picture of Christ, Our Lady, or a Saint.
Consideration: reflect upon the material in the light of faith. This type of reflection on the faith is able to instruct us infallibly in the things which are important and necessary for our salvation. The light of faith acts on our mind, will, and heart alike. In making the consideration, one may ask oneself the questions: who, what, where, for what reason, how, when? Applying some or all of the questions to the material considered can help us ponder it and enter more deeply into the truths it holds. We should also have in mind how this meditation helps us to know ourselves in its light and to draw from it practical conclusions for my life. We can ask ourselves how we have failed to live up to the truth considered and ask the Lord to enter into that place with us. He will show us why we went astray and begin to heal the wounds caused by these sins. A few dangers to avoid in the consideration: do not make it a study but a prayer; enter into the practical not just the theological or sublime; watch out for idleness due to discouragement, disgust, fatigue, etc.
Conversation (core of the meditation): converse with Our Lord about the material. Employ the affections of love, adoration, thanksgiving, sorrow, petition. This is the core of the meditation because the whole of reflecting and pondering a truth of the faith or a mystery of Christ is to enter into dialogue with the One who loves us. To ask Him to meet us here. We should pay attention to the movements of our heart — where do I find joy, sorrow, gratitude? where do I feel shame or fear? where am I moved to contrition? Whatever arises speak to the Lord like a friend about it. He wants you to tell Him what you are thinking, feeling, and desiring. Then allow some attentive silence to listen to Him speak to your heart (not normally audible). Continue this conversation for as long as you can.
Resolutions: Gratitude to Christ for the gifts received — self-knowledge, consolation, even dryness, love, joy, sorrow for our sins, sorrow for His suffering, etc. Resolution to put into practice what we have meditated upon. Examination of faults during meditation — willed distractions (some distractions are unavoidable due to our weak human nature), lack of effort, acedia, and resolution of further effort in succeeding meditations — promise the Lord greater attentiveness and effort with the help of His grace, the intercession of the Blessed Virgin and our Guardian Angel.
Advice from a Saint:
“First of all, imagine the scene or mystery you have chosen to help you recollect your thoughts and meditate. Next apply your mind, concentrating on the particular aspect of the Master's life you are considering—his merciful Heart, his humility, his purity, the way he fulfills his Father's Will. Then tell him what happens to you in these matters, how things are with you, what is going on in your soul. Be attentive, because he may want to point something out to you, and you will experience suggestions deep in your soul, realizing certain things and feeling his gentle reprimands” (St. Josemaria Escriva: Friends of God, 253).
Subjects for Meditation:
Prayer is a battle against the flesh, the world, and the devil. Enter in and never give up. The Lord is fighting for us and through prayer He will prepare us for eternal life. Remember two things: “apart from me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:5) and “with God all things are possible” (Mt 19:26). Prayer keeps us grafted onto and into Christ and with Him all things are possible.
Prayer in general is an elevation of our soul (mind and will) and our heart toward God to render Him our loving worship. We elevate ourselves toward God by thinking of Him, loving Him, and conversing with Him. Mental prayer is a pious communication of the soul with God by means of considerations, conversation, and resolutions. Its object is to make us know, love, and serve God better and to promote the knowledge of ourselves and the faithful living out of our vocation and duties. In practice, mental prayer is the art of becoming who God is calling us to be.
Why should we practice mental prayer?
Mental prayer is also called Conversation with Christ. Jesus has called us friends (see Jn 15:15). Friends spend time with one another. Friends have conversations about their hopes, joys, aspirations, as well as, their sufferings, struggles, and failures. Jesus wants to have a daily conversation with us wherein we reveal to Him whatever is on our minds and hearts. Good conversation is two-sided. We must allow our friend, in this instance Jesus, to speak to us in the silence of our hearts.
This conversation with Christ, according to the Saints (and I mean all of them) is necessary not only for growth in holiness, but for salvation. “All the Christian faithful, of whatever state or rank are called to the fullness of the Christian life and to the perfection of charity” as Lumen Gentium, paragraph 40 states. St. John Paul II said at the turn of the millennium that the “training in holiness calls for a Christian life distinguished above all in the art of prayer.” He goes on to say in makes us intimate friends with Jesus and that conversation is the very substance and soul of the Christian life and the condition of all good works. In other words, without conversation with Christ we will not reach intimate friendship with God and our good works will not merit reward in Heaven. Mental prayer is essential to the Christian life, good works, and most importantly growing in holiness.
Advantages of Mental Prayer
By the light and strength it imparts, mental prayer:
- keeps sin far from us and saves us from choosing Hell (here and hereafter). It is especially powerful in helping us overcome impurity of thought, word, or action. Mental prayer purifies our mind and heart of these impurities.
- prevents and cures lukewarmness.
- is the common source of virtue.
- is the most potent means for persevering in our vocation.
This quote from a eulogy by St. Peter of Alcantara sums up the benefits of mental prayer: “In mental prayer, the soul is purified from its sins, nourished with charity, confirmed in faith, and strengthened in hope; the mind expands, the affections dilate, the heart is purified, truth becomes evident; temptation is conquered, sadness dispelled; the senses are renovated; drooping powers revive; tepidity ceases; the rust of vices disappear. Out of mental prayer issues forth, like living sparks, those desires of heaven which the soul conceives when inflamed with the fire of divine love. Sublime is the excellence of mental prayer, great are its privileges; to mental prayer heaven is opened; to mental prayer heavenly secrets are manifested and the ear of God [is] ever attentive.”
Sources of difficulties in mental prayer
Difficulties arise:
- From the devil, who would keep us from this holy spiritual exercise.
- From spiritual sloth (acedia), which springs from our fallen nature and makes spiritual things distasteful. The fruits of prayer and overcoming acedia are achieved by faithfulness to prayer and perseverance.
- From discouragement, which comes from combating various faults and difficulties in ourselves. Discouragement is never from God so reject it and battle on.
- From our sins, which pull our mind, heart, and will away from God and from prayer. It is not possible to persevere in mental prayer and at the same time in sin, especially mortal sin. Recognize the pattern of sin in your life and I bet you will see that prayer had began to waiver and become less frequent before the sin was committed. Perseverance and fidelity - keep striving for your prayer life. Never give up.
- From distractions, which are a normal part of prayer. Normal because of our fallen nature and sins. When we recognize we are distracted we quickly turn our focus back to the meditation. Continue to do this the whole time of prayer, if required. God will see our determination and effort, and reward us for it. Sometimes prayer that was a difficult is more meritorious than prayer that was easy. Keep trying. In entering prayer ask your Guardian Angel to help you be attentive in prayer.
Additional points
We need a sincere will (desire) to make mental prayer well. We must earnestly apply ourselves to mental prayer and ask God for the grace to pray well and for it to bear fruit.
We will know that prayer is being done well by the fruits of prayer. That does not mean that we have consolation or that prayer always feels good. It means our lives begin to change and we become more devout in our faith, faithful to our state in life, more humble, and more loving in our relationships.
Preparation for Mental Prayer
Remote preparation: removing obstacles to mental prayer from our lives such as constant noise and distractions against silence, attachment to sin, slavery to our passions.
In order to remove these we need to practice recollection, silence, purity of heart (avoid freely committing sin), and exterior and interior penance.
Remote preparation benefits from practicing the presence of God, practicing purity of intention, and frequent short prayers throughout the day.
Proximate preparation: principally it consists in being recollected, and in seeing the subject of the mental prayer, the principal considerations, and the fruit that we wish to derive from it.
This preparation prepares us for our most important daily conversation. It helps us to be more focused during the time of prayer.
Proximate preparation includes choosing the subject matter on which we will pray. We should choose the subject of our mental prayer taking into account our spiritual needs, the attractions of grace, and the advice of our spiritual director. If we are going to pray in the morning we should choose the subject matter the night before, and if we will pray in the evening then choose the subject matter in the morning — along with the time and place of prayer.
It is useful to meditate upon the great truths of our salvation, the last things (heaven, hell, death, and judgment), on the life and Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ, and on the virtues and glories of the Most Blessed Virgin Mary.
We can meditate repeatedly on these subjects. As we make progress in mental prayer we can be drawn to go deeper with the Lord in some previous meditation. The Lord always has more for us.
Immediate preparation: The immediate preparation is the beginning of prayer. We should invoke the Holy Spirit, the Blessed Mother, and our Guardian Angel to help us enter into prayer.
An act of faith in the presence of God and of union with Our Lord - along with acts of humility, confidence, contrition, and gratitude.
Making an act of faith in that God is present to you is of utmost importance. Simply call to mind that God is present to you in this moment (as in all others). This is especially easy in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament.
The other acts we can make are an act of humility as we adore God as our Creator; an act of filial confidence in Him as Father; an act of contrition asking pardon and mercy from Him as Savior and Judge; an act of gratitude to Him as our Benefactor.
We can use memorized acts for these or spontaneously produce them from the depths of our heart. These only need to last a minute or so, unless the Lord draws you into deep prayer by one of them and then feel free to speak with Him there.
MENTAL PRAYER METHODS (First two weeks 10 min/day, Second two weeks 20/day, and after a month 30 min/day which is the goal)
Lectio Divina: There are five simple steps (a very easy way to do this is by signing up for carpeverbum.org):
Pregame: Ask the Holy Spirit to fill your heart and mind with His Presence and grace. Ex. “Holy Spirit, I know you are present to me in this moment, please help me to be more aware of your presence. Draw me into your presence.”
1. Lectio / Read: “What does the biblical text say in itself?”
Find a Gospel passage that you want to pray with. The easiest way to do this is to pray with the Gospel of the day, usccb.org/bible/readings. You can also spend a few of the days each week praying through the Sunday readings, especially the Gospel.
2. Meditatio / Meditate: “What does this biblical text say to me in the context of the faith?”
We must let ourselves be moved or challenged by the “living and active” Word of God (Heb 4:12). God will move our hearts and inform our intellects through this pondering. A deeper prayer will lead us to an encounter with God as He speaks to us where we are and draws us closer to Himself.
3. Oratio / Prayer: “What do I want to say to the Lord in my response to His Word?” Have a conversation.
St. Augustine says: “Your prayer is the word you speak to God. When you read the Bible, God speaks to you; when you pray, you speak to God.” Now speak to God what has arisen in your heart. What are the fears or doubts that arose? What are the insights and joys that arose? What was challenging for you about the text?
4. Contemplatio / Contemplate: “What conversion of mind, heart, and life is the Lord asking of me?” In this conversation what is the Lord speaking to you in the silence of your heart?
St. Francis of Assisi was inspired to begin his mendicant lifestyle, and eventually the Franciscan Order, after hearing a homily on Matthew 10:7-19. Likewise, St. Augustine recounted the radical conversion he underwent after reading Romans 13:13-14, while St. Anthony was converted after reading Matthew 19:21. When we encounter the Lord, He never leaves us unchanged. He calls us to live out a deeper faith, hope, and charity in our lives.
5. Actio / Act: “Living out the Lectio Divina.”
We do well also to remember that the process of lectio divina is not concluded until it arrives at action (actio), which moves the believer to make his or her life a gift for others in charity. Once we have encountered God in prayer and recognize His specific call for us it is a matter of doing it.
Postgame: Reviewing how our prayer time went will help growth in prayer. It can be done briefly as the prayer is concluding or after the prayer. It helps deepen our awareness of the gift of prayer.
Questions that may assist: As I prayed with Scripture, what was I thinking? What drew my attention, what struck me? What was I feeling as I prayed? What stirred in my heart? Did I feel joy? Did I experience peace? Was I anxious? Did I struggle in any way?
Another Way of Mental Prayer:
Preparation: place oneself in the presence of Christ. Make some of the acts of faith, confidence, etc. from above.
Selection of material: read or study a spiritual book reflection on a particular aspect of the life of Christ. Or some perfection of Christ - humility, mercy, etc. Or on the Passion of Christ, His suffering for our sins. Or on the life of the Blessed Virgin or one of her virtues. Or the life of a Saint. Or gaze upon the Crucifix or some devout picture of Christ, Our Lady, or a Saint.
Consideration: reflect upon the material in the light of faith. This type of reflection on the faith is able to instruct us infallibly in the things which are important and necessary for our salvation. The light of faith acts on our mind, will, and heart alike. In making the consideration, one may ask oneself the questions: who, what, where, for what reason, how, when? Applying some or all of the questions to the material considered can help us ponder it and enter more deeply into the truths it holds. We should also have in mind how this meditation helps us to know ourselves in its light and to draw from it practical conclusions for my life. We can ask ourselves how we have failed to live up to the truth considered and ask the Lord to enter into that place with us. He will show us why we went astray and begin to heal the wounds caused by these sins. A few dangers to avoid in the consideration: do not make it a study but a prayer; enter into the practical not just the theological or sublime; watch out for idleness due to discouragement, disgust, fatigue, etc.
Conversation (core of the meditation): converse with Our Lord about the material. Employ the affections of love, adoration, thanksgiving, sorrow, petition. This is the core of the meditation because the whole of reflecting and pondering a truth of the faith or a mystery of Christ is to enter into dialogue with the One who loves us. To ask Him to meet us here. We should pay attention to the movements of our heart — where do I find joy, sorrow, gratitude? where do I feel shame or fear? where am I moved to contrition? Whatever arises speak to the Lord like a friend about it. He wants you to tell Him what you are thinking, feeling, and desiring. Then allow some attentive silence to listen to Him speak to your heart (not normally audible). Continue this conversation for as long as you can.
Resolutions: Gratitude to Christ for the gifts received — self-knowledge, consolation, even dryness, love, joy, sorrow for our sins, sorrow for His suffering, etc. Resolution to put into practice what we have meditated upon. Examination of faults during meditation — willed distractions (some distractions are unavoidable due to our weak human nature), lack of effort, acedia, and resolution of further effort in succeeding meditations — promise the Lord greater attentiveness and effort with the help of His grace, the intercession of the Blessed Virgin and our Guardian Angel.
Advice from a Saint:
“First of all, imagine the scene or mystery you have chosen to help you recollect your thoughts and meditate. Next apply your mind, concentrating on the particular aspect of the Master's life you are considering—his merciful Heart, his humility, his purity, the way he fulfills his Father's Will. Then tell him what happens to you in these matters, how things are with you, what is going on in your soul. Be attentive, because he may want to point something out to you, and you will experience suggestions deep in your soul, realizing certain things and feeling his gentle reprimands” (St. Josemaria Escriva: Friends of God, 253).
Subjects for Meditation:
- Sacred Scripture (stories from the life of Christ, especially the Passion, the Holy Eucharist, the Sacred Heart, etc.); the Psalms, the Sermon on the Mount (Mt 5:3-12), Our Lord’s discourse at the Last Supper (John 13-17), and the parables of the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32), and the Pharisee and the Publican (Luke 18:9-14).
- The doctrine on mental prayer: Catechism of Mental Prayer, Very Rev. Joseph Simler, TAN Books; Conversation with Christ, Peter Thomas Rohrbach, TAN Books; The Ways of Mental Prayer, Dom Vitalis Lehodey, TAN Books.
- The ordinary prayers: Our Father, Hail Mary, Apostles’ Creed
- The hymn Veni Creator, the prose Veni Sancte Spiritus, and the invocation Come, Holy Spirit!
- The Acts of Faith, Hope, and Charity.
- The prayers of the Mass.
- The mysteries of the Rosary
- The Litany of the Precious Blood, or Litany of the Holy Name of Jesus
- The Litany of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the Ave Maris Stella, the Magnificat, the Salve Regina, the Memorare, the Sub Tuum
- The Imitation of Christ, Thomas a Kempis.
- Any book by Fr. Jacques Philippe.
- Humility of Heart, Fr. Cajetan da Bergamo
- The School of Jesus Crucified, Fr. Ignatius of the Side of Jesus, TAN Books.
- Divine Intimacy, Fr. Gabriel of St Mary Magdalen, O.C.D., Baronius Press
Prayer is a battle against the flesh, the world, and the devil. Enter in and never give up. The Lord is fighting for us and through prayer He will prepare us for eternal life. Remember two things: “apart from me you can do nothing” (Jn 15:5) and “with God all things are possible” (Mt 19:26). Prayer keeps us grafted onto and into Christ and with Him all things are possible.