CHRISTIAN MEDITATION

Contemplative Prayer

Christian Meditation is a very old form of prayer with its origins in early monasticism although it is inspired by the example of Jesus who retired to lonely places to pray and by St Paul's injunction to "pray always". It takes the form of the gentle repetition of a mantra or prayer word for a fixed period of time - twenty minutes, half an hour, or longer depending on the individual.

In Orthodox Christianity this kind of meditative prayer exists in the form of the Jesus Prayer (Lord Jesus Christ Son of the Living God: be merciful to me a sinner) repeated continuously, which has been practised especially by the monks of Mount Athos but also by lay people. In the Western Churches, it has been practised less although versions of it may be found in the Cloud of Unknowing. It has returned to our Western spirituality through a number of writers such as the Trappist monk Thomas Merton, the Benedictine Bede Griffiths, and the Jesuit William Johnston. These religious rediscovered their own tradition as a result of a journey to the East: Griffiths set up an ashram in India and Johnston became a Professor of Buddhism in Japan. Merton, although a hermit in the United States, entered into dialogue with Zen Buddhists in America and Japan.

Today, there exist two main currents of Christian Meditation. The Centering Prayer, movement originated in the United States and is associated with the Trappist Monks Thomas Keating and Basil Pennington. The World Community of Christian Meditation (WCCM), was founded by John Main, an Irishman who was a member of the English Benedictine Congregation and a monk of Ealing Abbey, London. Both of these movements have succeeded in making Christian Meditation accessible to the average person in the world, of whatever status or condition, through a daily programme and through participation in groups meeting regularly.

John Main suggested that we meditate twice a day for a minimum of twenty minutes per session. The technique of meditation is very simple:

  1. Find a quiet place and use that place every time you meditate.
  2. Sit with the back in an upright position - be comfortable but alert and not so comfortable that you fall asleep!
  3. Breathe regularly and become aware of the movement of the breath in and out of the body.
  4. Gently repeat your mantra or prayer-word silently and within. John Main recommends the word Maranatha said as four distinct syllable Ma - ra - na - tha.
  5. When distractions arise do not try to suppress them but simply return to the mantra.
In Cardiff, an ecumenical Christian Meditation Contemplative Prayer Group meets every Monday at 7.15 p.m. at the Catholic Chaplaincy, 62 Park Place, Cardiff. The twenty minute meditation begins with some music and ends with Compline, the night prayer of the Church. Afterwards, there is tea or coffee and a chat. Everyone is welcome! For further information, please contact:

Sean Loughlin, tel.: (01222) 471813 or on email: (loughlin@cardiff.ac.uk)

You can also contact the WCCM internet archivist, Greg Ryan on giryan@aol.com for more information about the World Community of Christian Meditation literature available on the internet.

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