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Prayer
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To cry out to God with adept longing is known to most Christians as the act of prayer: to bring before Him all one's sorrows, all one's joys, all one's thankfulness and all one's needs. We come to God in Christ, with the aid of His saints, with petitions both of joy and of supplication, of abundance and of want. Prayer is a divine dialogue between humanity and its Creator, in which the Maker of All hears the voice of that which His hands have formed, and responds in loving compassion to that voice.
Such is indeed a worthy and valid form of prayer. We would all do well to increase the fervour with which we offer such prayers to Christ.
Yet such is not the only form of prayer. There is another manner in which the work of creation comes before its God, by which each human person is able to behold God face to face, to draw closer unto Him in perfect union and communion. It is a prayer beyond mere adoration, beyond supplication, beyond words themselves. It is truly worldess prayer, wrought from the heart itself, wherein the whole person communes with God directly, in purity, and realizes his salvation. Such prayer is that which the early church fathers call the prayer of the heart, known so often in practice as the Jesus Prayer.
It was Paul, Apostle of Christ, who had instructed the faithful at Thessaloniki and throughout the world to 'pray without ceasing' (1 Thessalonians 5.17). Over a millennium later, a poor pilgrim on the Russian steppe wandered into a Sunday Liturgy and heard these words proclaimed. The command pierced him to the core. How does one pray without ceasing? If prayer is solely conversation or dialogue, as he had long understood it to be, how could it be possible to engage in such an activity at all times, through all the events of daily life and social interaction?
The pilgrim's story is told in the classic work of Russian folk lore, The Way of the Pilgrim. His engagement in finding an answer to this question brought him to the discovery of the Philokalia, a key compendium of Christian spirituality and prayer. With the Scriptures and this collected text in hand, he placed himself under the guidance of an experienced elder and engaged in a struggle to develop inner prayer that would occupy the whole of his life.
Engaging in inner prayer is a task to which every Christian is called. Paul's command to pray without ceasing applies to each Christian today, as much as it did to those in the Church at Thessaloniki. We are called to intimate communion with the Creator of Life, such that there be no moment when our souls and bodies are not enlightened by Him. It was St Evagrius of Pontus who wrote that 'prayer is the communion of the intellect with God', and it becomes our task to transform our prayer from mere words, mere petitions, to the direct communion of the depths of our hearts and beings with God Himself.
One of the greatest tools by which the Church has encouraged this transformation in the individual prayers of its faithful has been through use of the Jesus Prayer. Its formula is simple: 'Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner', yet this short phrase is not meant to be an end in itself, but rather a tool for a changed life of prayer. Its repetition, frequent and regular, causes the mind and heart to become accustomed to the continual outcry to God, until, in God's good time, one's whole being begins to realize its intimate proximity to God at every moment.
The Jesus Prayer is a tool for all, meant for use by all.
Another prayer tool is the Prayer Rope. A prayer rope is a loop made up of knots, usually made of wool, that is used by Eastern Orthodox Christians and Eastern-Rite Catholics to count the number of times they have prayed the Jesus Prayer: "Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." Historically it typically had 100 knots, although prayer ropes with 50 or 33 knots can also be found in use today. There is typically a knotted cross at one end, and a few beads at certain intervals between the knots.
Its invention is attributed to Saint Pachomius in the fourth century as an aid for illiterate monks to accomplish a consistent number of prayers and prostrations. Monks were often expected to carry a prayer rope almost constantly, to remind them to pray constantly in accordance with Saint Paul's injunction in I Thessalonians 5:17, "Pray without ceasing."
The use of a prayer rope is a very practical tool, simply for keeping count of the prayers said.
It is said that the prayer Rope has its origins from the father of Eastern Orthodox Monasticism, St. Anthony. He started by tying a leather rope for every time he prayed his Kyrie Eleisons, or Lord have Mercies, and the Devil came and would untie it to throw his count off. He then devised a way, inspired from a vision by the Theotokos (Mother of God), of tying the knots so that the knots would constantly make the shape of the cross. That is why Prayer Ropes today are still tied by little crosses being tied over and over. The Devil could then not untie it because the Devil is vanquished by the sign of the Cross.
The Mark of an Intercessor
Definition: Intercession is holy, believing, persevering prayer whereby someone pleads with God on behalf of another or others who desperately need God's intervention.
1) An Intercessor prays unselfishly. 1 Timothy 2:1-4 Intercession is prayer motivated by love, which is a fruit of the Spirit-filled life, and a Christ like characteristic.
2) An Intercessor reflects God's highest desire. Ephesians 3:16-10 It is God's desire that the Holy Spirit work in the believer in greater measure! Jesus Christ is Lord of your life.
3) An intercessor prays according to God's revealed will. Romans 8:26-27 The motivation to pray comes from the Holy Spirit; His will is also revealed by the Spirit through His Word.
4) An intercessor prays continually. Ephesians 1:16-17 & Daniel 9:3-19 Daniel prays earnestly for Jerusalem's restoration and for the entire nation of Israel.
5) An intercessor confesses, praises, and is thankful. Daniel 9:3-19. Daniel's pray begins with confession of God's attributes, which is praise and continues during his prayer. Also, Mark 6:41 exemplify our Lord's usage of thanksgiving in His prayers.
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