Contemplative prayer requires a certain humbling of the intellect. Our thoughts usually take up too much space in our head and often crowd out or drown the quiet voice of the Spirit. Therefore, contemplative prayer aims at creating an inner silence that allows us to listen.
But we all know how difficult it is to ‘think of nothing’. This is where repetition steps in. Repetitive prayer, rather than being vain (see Matthew 6:7), opens a door within that leads to a place where the intellect does not rule. Like the Rosary prayers or the well-known Jesus prayer (see below), it is the soul that turns to God in these repetitions: No new thought needs developed, no new words found. The intensity of our words is increased in contemplative repetitions, not their quantity. Indeed, repetitive prayer is particularly soul-opening when we pray in a language foreign to us because the intellect has no part in it.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
Domine Jesu Christe, Filii Dei, miserere mei.
Thus, we do not need to empty our mind. Instead, we fill it with praise, petition, or adoration, in short, with prayer. We cannot think our way to God.
“In books we seek God; in prayer we find Him.” Padre Pio
But while we cannot think our way to God, neither can we feel our way to Him. He will not be limited to the extent of our understanding, and neither will He be limited to the capability of our emotions. Feeling ‘good’ during prayer has very little to do with the intensity or ‘success’ of our prayer, much like having found the ‘right words’ to phrase our worries or petitions has little impact on the quality of our prayer. It might help us think differently about a problem and therefore feel differently about it, too, but it takes no prayer to do that: The Stoics expostulated as much, and successfully so.
Contemplative prayer is not a self-help program, in fact, no prayer, vocal or otherwise, can sufficiently be described as such. Prayer turns our gaze away from ourselves. It looks to God, it addresses God, it listens to God.
“Contemplative prayer in my opinion is nothing else than a close sharing between friends; it means taking time frequently to be alone with Him who we know loves us.” St. Teresa of Avila
