Lent Guide: In the Shadow of GethsemaneUzorak

Repetition prayer

Jesus repeated His request three times and used the same words (Matt 26:44). He is not against repetition but against empty repetition (Matt 7). It looks like in the West, particularly, prayer is thought of as something intellectual that must happen in a very thoughtful way according to the example of the ‘Our Father.’ The church in the East, on the other hand, emphasises the use of the heart. The head must settle in the heart, and we have to learn to pray without ceasing. Even when our hands are busy, our hearts can still pray. We achieve this through a repetitive prayer, like a mantra. The most well-known of these is the Jesus prayer:Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me.The shortest variation is praying by just repeating His name, Jesus.

It is also sometimes done with your breath. Jesus Christ – (breath out) have mercy on me (in). It’s prayed softly and tenderly. There is an age-old tradition around this prayer, and millions of Christians have benefited from praying in this way.

Exercise

• If you feel drawn to praying this way, you can experiment by praying the prayer for 10 minutes.
• Notice what happens to you in the 10 minutes of praying this way
• Start reading about it and ask someone who prays this prayer to teach you more about it. A lot of people outside of the Eastern tradition describe it as a way of meditation

Prayer: I ask for a deep consciousness of Your love and work in my life.