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Origins
of the Jesus Prayer
Adapted from
an address at the recent quiet day at Aylesford Priory
The Jesus prayer is a form of prayer that developed in the
deserts of Egypt, Persia, Arabia and Palestine from the 4th
century onwards, when men and women fled to the deserts to
discover a more simple and direct approach to their spiritual
life. The spirituality they discovered there has been absorbed
into mainstream Christian life from that time onwards, and the
Jesus Prayer is one of those things.
The Jesus Prayer is simply what it says; a prayer invoking
the Name and Presence of Jesus, which is repeated again and
again as a Mantra. The most common form of the prayer as we have
it today is the following:
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, Have mercy on me.
But there are many variations on the theme.
Part of the whole experience of those 4th Century
Christians who fled went the desert, was to peal back the layers
of dogma, churchiness, and complicated structures that already
at that time were beginning to build up around the person of
Jesus and rediscover the original simplicity of their faith. The
Jesus prayer was a simple prayer that developed at that time,
which connected them with the Risen Lord, and allowed his
presence to be revealed in their hearts. Another name for the
Jesus Prayer is the Prayer of the Heart; and it is a prayer
designed to open our hearts to the presence of Christ within us.
The Jesus prayer was developed and took its form in the
deserts but its origins are firmly in the scriptures. Two
particular gospel passages are central to how the prayer
developed. The first of those is the parable of the Pharisee and
the tax collector. (Luke 18). Jesus told the story of two men
who went to the Temple to pray. One, a Pharisee, was full of
himself before God and thanked God for his virtues. He thanked
God that he was not like the tax collector praying beside him.
The Tax collector did not even raise his eyes, he simply prayed:
“God have mercy on me a sinner.” It was the prayer of the tax
collector that was most pleasing to God.
The second passage at the origins of the Jesus Prayer is the
healing of blind Bartimeaus. (also Luke 18).This is perhaps the
passage that most influenced the development of the prayer.
Bartimeaus sat by the road side begging. Jesus came past and
crowds gathered. Bartimeaus asked what all the commotion was
about, and someone told him that Jesus was passing by.
Bartimeaus saw this as his opportunity to talk to the miracle
worker he’d heard about, and he was not about to pass it up
without giving it his best shot. He cried out at the top of his
voice: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” People rebuked
him and told him to be quiet, but he wasn’t about to give in: He
shouted even louder: “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” He
was persistent calling out to Jesus over and over again, and his
persistence was eventually rewarded. Jesus, hearing his heart
felt plea, stopped and asked them to bring Bartimeaus to him.
Bartimeaus was healed and was able to see.
These two scriptural passages were at the heart of the early
development of the Jesus Prayer. >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Both were simple heartfelt prayers that got to the heart of
the matter. The tax collector threw himself at the mercy of God,
trusting in the mercy of God. Bartimeaus persistently called the
name of Jesus over and over again. There was no subtlety with
the prayers; no fancy packaging; Just a simple repetition and
urgency. In the case of the tax collector, a trusting humility;
and in the case of Bartimeaus, a persistency to get Jesus’
attention - a sort of nothing ventured nothing gained approach
to prayer. The desert Christians recognized in these passages a
kind of direct route to God. No frills; no fancy words; no
playing with formulas; just a straight forward plea from the
heart, placing themselves at the mercy of God.
The desert itself must have influenced that. The desert is a
hard place; not an easy place to live; a strange place in many
ways to seek God. Beautiful churches inspire beautiful liturgy
and music and poetry .The desert inspires an urgency to discover
God deep within the heart. In the desert you are not going to
see God reflected “out there” in exquisite stained glass; in
ornate carvings; in beautiful statues and the like. The desert
inspired a more direct approach to God – like that of the tax
collector and Blind Bartimeaus.
Finding no outward vehicle by which to experience God, they
turned within, and simply called upon God and placed themselves
at God’s mercy. The prayer: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the
Living God, Have mercy on me”, began to take shape, and for some
became the central aspect of their spiritual life. Over the
centuries the spiritual traditions inspired by these desert
Christians, began to develop a method of prayer that other
traditions would call a Mantra. That is, a prayer that is
repeated over and over again, simply placing ourselves in to the
presence of God, and opening ourselves to God’s presence.
Depending where and what you read, the Jesus prayer takes on
many forms. While “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God,
Have mercy on me” seems to be the most common form, it would
seem that any short, mantra like prayer, that calls on the name
of Jesus could be called a Jesus Prayer. Some added the words “a
sinner” on the end of the mantra; some shortened it to: Lord
Jesus Christ, have mercy on me. (as by the tax collector) Some
even shortened it right down to the name Jesus, which was
repeated over and over again.
The form of words do not seem to matter, it is whatever
resonates in our heart. The important aspect of the prayer is
not so much the formula of words but the persistent use of them
over and over and over again. It is the faithful, constant use
of the mantra that places our selves into the presence of Christ
and opens our heart to Christ presence.
That is why the story of Bartimeaus is so central to its
development, it was the persistency, the urgency, and faithful
trust of Bartimeaus that led to his encounter with Jesus. And an
encounter with Jesus is what this prayer is all about. The whole
point of the prayer is to place ourselves in to the presence of
Christ; and to open our hearts to the presence of Christ.
Nothing else matters. This is the point of all prayer: To be in
the Presence of Christ; to be open to the Presence of Christ;
then to allow that presence to enter deeper and deeper and
deeper.>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
The method of the prayer is simple: It begins on the lips:
“Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God, Have mercy on me.”
You then allow the prayer to move into the mind, and say it
quietly within.
And finally you are listening to the prayer repeat itself in
the heart; at the deepest level of our being, drawing us, bit by
bit, into the presence of God.
This is why it is called the Prayer of the Heart; because the
ultimate goal of the prayer is to place ourselves into the very
heart of God, and to be open to God’s presence in the very heart
of our being.
The Jesus Prayer is a prayer in itself. It is a method of
prayer. But more than that, it is a way of life. Ultimately the
Jesus Prayer is not something we do, it is way we live. If it
just remained a prayer it would only be achieving half of what
it is about. The whole idea behind it is that it becomes a way
of life. And that way of life is about recognising and
responding to the presence of Christ in everything we do, in
everyone we meet, in everything we experience in life. The
prayer, by constantly and faithfully repeating it, leads us bit
by bit to absorb and be absorbed by Christ.
So when we speak we speak with the lips of Christ; when we
look, we look though the eyes of Christ; whatever we encounter
during the course of the day,
we encounter with Christ and through Christ. What begins as a
prayer becomes a way of life and begins to have an influence on
the whole of our life. The prayer leads us to encounter the
presence of Christ in the whole of life. And our encountering of
Christ in the whole of life leads us back to the faithful
utterance of the prayer.
John Climacas, a monk form the 6th century greatly
influenced by the Jesus Prayer, said that with repeated practice
we become the prayer; it begins to influence the whole of our
life and affect the whole of our life.
The prayer can take the form of meditation, in that we sit
down for a certain length of time and repeat it over and over
again until that time has elapsed. Or the prayer can become an
arrow prayer that we repeat at different moments of the day;
while waiting for a bus; when we think of someone in need; when
we get stressed out; when we feel the need to experience God’s
presence; when we need guidance or help; or simply to make a
spare moment into a holy moment.
For me there is a strong link between the Jesus Prayer and
the Eucharist. The Jesus prayer for me has become an extension
of the Eucharist. Holy Communion makes Christ present to us in
Bread and Wine; and the Jesus Prayer makes Christ present to us
in a simple mantra. By repeating the Jesus Prayer during the
course of the day, we are carrying the Eucharist within us; we
are making Christ present in our daily lives.
Praying the Jesus Prayer is also the perfect way to prepare
for the Eucharist; and it is a natural prayer to extend the
Eucharist into our daily routines. One quite naturally feeds and
is fed by the other.
The simplicity of this way of praying makes the Jesus Prayer
an attractive method of prayer that is adaptable t the
circumstances we find ourselves in. If you want to explore
further about how you could use this form of prayer for yourself
do not be afraid to ask.
Gavin
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