In prayer it is better to have a heart without words than words without a heart. Mohandas Gandhi
Prayer is a universal way that people communicate with the divine. Since ancient times prayer has been a universal method to interact with the divine. With the blessings of Brother Matthew I am going to begin a series of "Daily Prayer" posts. I am sending this as a way of introduction.
Prayer is an offering of communication or praise to a deity or deities. A variety of body postures may be assumed, often with specific meaning associated with them: Prayers may be recited from memory, read from a book of prayers, or composed spontaneously as they are prayed. Prayer may be done privately and individually, or it may be done in the presence of fellow believers. Some outward acts that sometimes accompany prayer are: ringing a bell; burning incense; lighting a candle or facing a specific direction. http://www.essene.com/rituals_ceremonies/index_definitions.htm
For me personally prayer largely began at school. As child I was brought up in a loose religious environment. My mother was largely a new age hippy. Being a child of the 60's she explored mostly Christian and Sufi practices. She became a Lay priest in the "Holy Order of Mans", which was an early new age/occult attempt at Gnosticism. For me this gave me from an early age the importance of meditation. Sadly I was not really given any spiritual structure from my parents in any form.
Worship or prayer, therefore, is not to be performed with the lips, but with the heart. And the prayers of those whose tongues are nectared but whose hearts are full of poison are never heard. He, therefore, who would pray to God, must cleanse his heart. http://www.gandhi-manibhavan.org/gandhiphilosophy/philosophy_religion_prayerashram.htm
Growing up in rural England, I was educated in "Church of England" schools. We said the Lord's Prayer at least 3 times a week. Schools also had mandatory church service attendances such as "harvest festivals." Again though there was no real structure or teaching in guiding us in our religious or spiritual outlooks. Sunday schools were really devoid of any real content, and also "Religious Education "classes. The comedian Eddie Izzard I think summed up my religious education best. Eddie states in one of his routines that the Church of England is so loose. A typical service often just consists of the Vicar getting an issue of vogue, reading a section and producing a teaching from this. This is good in that it appeals to the common man, but as I have found it is really like eating apple pie without the apples….
So prayer to me became little more than the stereotypical "asking God for stuff." I felt that was what prayer was for years. As I get older I see Prayer is immensely important. There is defiantly a difference between "talking to God" and "talking with God." I no longer feel that prayer is just "to get stuff." Now I see that prayer is a profound way to communicate with the divine. Prayer is a way to open my self to the divine and communicate who I am at this moment, where I am at this moment.
The most powerful form of prayer, and the one which can virtually gain all things and which is the worthiest work of all, is that which flows from a free mind. The freer the mind is, the more powerful and worthy, the more useful, praiseworthy and perfect the prayer and the work become. A free mind can achieve all things. But what is a free mind?
A free mind is one which is untroubled and unfettered by anything, which has not bound its best part to any particular manner of being or devotion and which does not seek its own interest in anything but is always immersed _ in God 's most precious will, having gone out of what is its own. There is no work which men and women can perform, however small, which does not draw from this its power and its strength.
We should pray with such intensity that we want all the members of our body and all its faculties, eyes, ears, mouth, heart and all our senses to turn to this end; and we should not cease in this until we feel that we are close to being united with him who is present to us and to whom we are praying: God.
--Meister Eckhart
I add this simple probably naïve introduction to this series of daily prayers. I would like to invite anyone comment, post their own prayers, or prayers that have inspired them, meditations and other similar things are also welcome. Although I shall mainly but not exclusively be concentrating initially on early Christian and Gnostic prayers, I invite sharing of prayers and devotion etc. from all traditions.
To end, let's end where I began as a child, with the Sermon on the Mount:
Our Father, who art in heaven,hallowed be thy name.Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heavenGive us this day our daily bread.And forgive us our trespasses,as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory. for ever and ever.
Amen
Prayer is a universal way that people communicate with the divine. Since ancient times prayer has been a universal method to interact with the divine. With the blessings of Brother Matthew I am going to begin a series of "Daily Prayer" posts. I am sending this as a way of introduction.
Prayer is an offering of communication or praise to a deity or deities. A variety of body postures may be assumed, often with specific meaning associated with them: Prayers may be recited from memory, read from a book of prayers, or composed spontaneously as they are prayed. Prayer may be done privately and individually, or it may be done in the presence of fellow believers. Some outward acts that sometimes accompany prayer are: ringing a bell; burning incense; lighting a candle or facing a specific direction. http://www.essene.com/rituals_ceremonies/index_definitions.htm
For me personally prayer largely began at school. As child I was brought up in a loose religious environment. My mother was largely a new age hippy. Being a child of the 60's she explored mostly Christian and Sufi practices. She became a Lay priest in the "Holy Order of Mans", which was an early new age/occult attempt at Gnosticism. For me this gave me from an early age the importance of meditation. Sadly I was not really given any spiritual structure from my parents in any form.
Worship or prayer, therefore, is not to be performed with the lips, but with the heart. And the prayers of those whose tongues are nectared but whose hearts are full of poison are never heard. He, therefore, who would pray to God, must cleanse his heart. http://www.gandhi-manibhavan.org/gandhiphilosophy/philosophy_religion_prayerashram.htm
Growing up in rural England, I was educated in "Church of England" schools. We said the Lord's Prayer at least 3 times a week. Schools also had mandatory church service attendances such as "harvest festivals." Again though there was no real structure or teaching in guiding us in our religious or spiritual outlooks. Sunday schools were really devoid of any real content, and also "Religious Education "classes. The comedian Eddie Izzard I think summed up my religious education best. Eddie states in one of his routines that the Church of England is so loose. A typical service often just consists of the Vicar getting an issue of vogue, reading a section and producing a teaching from this. This is good in that it appeals to the common man, but as I have found it is really like eating apple pie without the apples….
So prayer to me became little more than the stereotypical "asking God for stuff." I felt that was what prayer was for years. As I get older I see Prayer is immensely important. There is defiantly a difference between "talking to God" and "talking with God." I no longer feel that prayer is just "to get stuff." Now I see that prayer is a profound way to communicate with the divine. Prayer is a way to open my self to the divine and communicate who I am at this moment, where I am at this moment.
The most powerful form of prayer, and the one which can virtually gain all things and which is the worthiest work of all, is that which flows from a free mind. The freer the mind is, the more powerful and worthy, the more useful, praiseworthy and perfect the prayer and the work become. A free mind can achieve all things. But what is a free mind?
A free mind is one which is untroubled and unfettered by anything, which has not bound its best part to any particular manner of being or devotion and which does not seek its own interest in anything but is always immersed _ in God 's most precious will, having gone out of what is its own. There is no work which men and women can perform, however small, which does not draw from this its power and its strength.
We should pray with such intensity that we want all the members of our body and all its faculties, eyes, ears, mouth, heart and all our senses to turn to this end; and we should not cease in this until we feel that we are close to being united with him who is present to us and to whom we are praying: God.
--Meister Eckhart
I add this simple probably naïve introduction to this series of daily prayers. I would like to invite anyone comment, post their own prayers, or prayers that have inspired them, meditations and other similar things are also welcome. Although I shall mainly but not exclusively be concentrating initially on early Christian and Gnostic prayers, I invite sharing of prayers and devotion etc. from all traditions.
To end, let's end where I began as a child, with the Sermon on the Mount:
Our Father, who art in heaven,hallowed be thy name.Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heavenGive us this day our daily bread.And forgive us our trespasses,as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory. for ever and ever.
Amen
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