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Session outline
1- 1- Meditation engages thought, imagination, emotion and desire… Christian prayer tries above all to meditate on the mysteries Christ, as in lectio divina or the rosary. This form of prayerful reflection is of great value, but Christian prayer should go further: to the knowledge of the love of the Lord Jesus, to union with him CCC2708
2- Meditation is a prayerful quest engaging thought, imagination, emotion and desire. Its goal is to make our own in faith the subject considered, by confronting it with the reality of our own life—CCC2723
3-Imaginative prayer requires the use of our spiritual senses. Our spiritual senses, used in imaginative prayer , are: *Interior sight *interior listening *interior smell *Interior feeling *interior tasting
4-In this manner of praying, St Ignatius tells us, we imaginatively see the persons in the Bible passage, we hear the words they speak, and we observe the actions they accomplish in the event. Fr Tim Gallagher, O.M.V. |
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Oremus week Five Day 1 For your prayer John 20: 19-29 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. Be in the scene. You are Thomas… touch Jesus’ wounds. Let Jesus touch your heart… and listen Day 2 For your prayer John 3:22-30 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. Be in the scene. Listen to verse 30. What is John saying to you? Talk to God about what is on your heart…. And listen Day 3 For your prayer Luke 17: 11- 19 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. Be in the scene. Listen to verse17-18… Where have you been ungrateful? Talk to God about what is on your heart…. And listen Day 4 For your prayer Matthew 14:22-33. Practice the art of imaginative prayer. Be in the scene.You are Peter….Why do you take your eyes off Jesus? Talk to God about what is on your heart…. And listen Day 5 For your prayer Matthew 19:16-26 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. Be in the scene.You are the rich young man…. Why do you walk away? Talk to God about what is on your heart…. And listen Day 6 For your prayer John 13: 31- 38 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. Be in the scene.You are Peter….What stirs your heart as Jesus makes his prediction? Day 7 For your prayer John18:15-18,25-27 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. Be in the scene.You are Peter….What stirs your heart as you deny Jesus? Talk to God about what is on your heart…. And listen Journal Questions The strongest thought or feeling during my prayer was…… My heart: rested when… I sense the Lord was telling me….. I ended the prayer wanting…… |
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SESSION OUTLINE
1- How do I know it is God who is speaking to me 2- “In persons who are going from mortal sin to mortal sin, the enemy is ordinarily accustomed to propose apparent pleasures to them, leading them to imagine sensual delights and pleasures in order to hold them more and make them grow in their vices and sins. In these persons the good spirit uses a contrary method, stinging and biting their consciences through their rational power of moral judgement…” St. Ignatius of Loyola 3- Going from mortal sin to mortal sin: *Temptation: propose apparent pleasures *Temptation: imagine sensual delights and pleasures * Temptation: hold them more, make them grow in vices and sins * God stinging and biting the conscience |
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4- In persons who are going on intensely purifying their sins and rising from Good to better in the service of God our Lord, the method is contrary to that in the first rule. For then it is proper to the evil spirit to bite, sadden and place obstacles, disquieting with false reasons , so that the person may not go forward. And it is proper of the good spirit to give courage and strength , consolations, tears, inspirations and quiet , easing and taking away all obstacles, so that the person may go forward in doing good”. St Ignatius of Loyola
5- Going on intensely purifying their sins and rising from good to better *Temptation: - bite - sadden - place obstacles - disquieting with false reasons - so that the person may not go forward
* God - give courage and strength - consolations - tears - inspirations - quiet - easing and taking away all obstacles - so that the person may go forward in doing good |
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6- We should give much attention to the course of the thoughts; and if the beginning, middle and end is all good, inclined to all good, it is a sign of the good angel; but if in the course of the thoughts that he brings,it ends in something bad, or distractive, or less good than the soul had proposed to do before, or if it weakens it, or disquiets or troubles the soul, taking away the peace, tranquility and quiet, which it had before, it is a clear sign that it proceeds from the bad spirit, the enemy of our profit and eternal salvation” - St Ignatius of Loyola 7-“ In those who proceed from good to better, the good angel touches such a soul sweetly lightly and gently as a drop of water that enter a sponge; and the bad touches it sharply and with noise and disquiet, as when the drop of water falls on the stone; and in those who proceed from bad to worse the above-said spirits touch in a contrary way; the cause of which is that the disposition of the soul is contrary or similar to the said angels; for when it is contrary, they enter with clamor and sensible disturbances,perceptibly; and when it is similar, they enter with silence,as in their own house through an open door-- St Ignatius of Loyola Oremus week six Day 1 For your prayer Psalms 51 Practice the art of lectio divina. Be specific. How have you sinned specifically? Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. After you are finished with your prayer, rewrite Psalm 51 in your own words in your journal. Day 2 For your prayer Psalm 6 Practice the art of lectio divina. Ask God to reveal your sins to you. Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. Day 3 For your prayer Luke 15:11-16 Practice the art of imaginative prayer.In the scene, you are the son who leaves. Why do you leave? What’s your pattern of sin? Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. Day 4 For your prayer Romans 7: 11-19 Practice the art of lectio divina. Ask God to reveal the root of your sin. Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. After you are finished with your prayer, rewrite Romans 7: 11-19 in your own words in your journal Day 5 For your prayer John 8:1-11 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. In the scene, you are the woman/ man caught in adultery. What is it like for you to raise your head and look at Jesus, eye to eye Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. Day 6 For your prayer Psalms 51 Again pray with this psalm. Practice the art of lectio divina. Ask God to reveal your sins to you. Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. Day 7 For your prayer Psalms 51 Again pray with this psalm. Practice the art of lectio divina. Ask God to reveal your sins to you. Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen Journal Questions The strongest thought or feeling during my prayer was…… My heart: rested when… I sense the Lord was telling me….. I ended the prayer wanting…… |
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Session out line
1. In the battle of prayer, we must face in ourselves and around us erroneous notions of prayer. Some people view prayer as a simple psychological activity, others as an effort of concentration to reach a mental void. Still others reduce prayer to ritual words and postures…Those who seek God by prayer are quickly discouraged because they do not know that prayer comes also from the Holy Spirit and not from themselves alone.--- CCC 27 26
2. We must also face the fact that certain attitudes deriving from the mentality of this present world can penetrate our lives if we are not vigilant… Ohers overly prize production and profit; thus prayer, being unproductive, is useless… Finally, some seek prayer as flight from the world in reaction against activism; but in fact, Christian prayer is neither an escape from reality nor a divorce from life -CCC 2727 3. Prayer is both a gift of grace and a determined response on our part. It always presupposes effort.The great figures of prayer of the Old covenant before Christ, as well as the Mother of God, the saints, and he himself, all teach us this : prayer is a battle. Against whom? A gainst ourselves , against the wiles of the temper who does all he can to turn man from prayer, away from union with God..- CCC 2725 |
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4.-Finally, our battle has to confront what we experience as failure in prayer: discouragement during periods of dryness… disappointment over not being heard according to our own will; wounded pride, stiffened by the indignity that is ours as sinners; our resistance to the idea that prayer is a free and unmerited gift; and so forth. The conclusion is always the same: what good does it do to prayer? To overcome these obstacles, we must battle to gain humility, trust and perseverance.- CCC 2728 5. The enemy acts like a spoiled child in being weak when faced wih strength and strong when faced with weakness. For, as it is proper to a child when he is fighting with a firm adult to lose heart and to flee when the adult confronts him firmly, and, on the contrary, if the adult begins to flee, losing heart, the anger, vengeance and ferocity of the child grow greatly and know no bounds, in the same way, it is proper to the enemy to weaken and lose heart, fleeing and ceasing his temptations when the person who is exercising himself in spiritual things confronts the temptations of the enemy firmly, doing what is diametrically opposed to them; and, on the contrary, if the person who is exercising himself begins to be afraid and lose heart in suffering the temptations, there is no beast so fiercely on the face of the earth as the enemy of human nature in following out his damnable intention with such growing maklice.- St Ignatius of Loyola |
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Oremus week Seven Day 1 For your prayer Luke 15: 11-24 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. In the scene,you are the prodigal son… Focus on the Father’s eyes in verse 20. Note the Father’s compassion What is the Father saying to you in his eyes ? Day 2 For your prayer Luke 7: 36-50 Practice the art of imaginative prayer.. In the scene you are at Jesus’s feet Focus on verse 48 Look at Jesus What is Jesus saying to you in his eyes ? Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. Day 3 For your prayer Ezekiel 36: 23-29 Practice the art of lectio divina. Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen Make a commitment this week to go to a Catholic priest to receive rhe sacrament of reconciliation this week. Day 4 For your prayer 1 Peter 2:21-25 Pray with1 Peter 2:21-25. Thank Jesus for his sacrifice, for the church he dounded, and for the sacrament of reconcviliation Day 5 For your prayer Psalms 118 Practice the art of lectio divina. Considering the past few days… the past few weeks, what are you most thankful for? Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. After you are finished with your prayer, rewrite Psalm 118 in your own words in yournal Day 6 For your prayer John 21: 15-19 Practice the art of imaginative prayer .. In the scene you are Peter. Do you love Jesus? Would you do anything for him? Would you follow the Lord anywhere? Talk to God about what is on heart… and listen. Day 7 For your prayer Psalms 51 Reread your journal from weeks 5&6 Considering the past few days… the past few weeks, what are you most thankful for? What has God done to you? Celebrate with Jesus and Talk with him Journal Questions The strongest thought or feeling during my prayer was…… My heart: rested when… I sense the Lord was telling me….. I ended the prayer wanting…… |
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Session outline
1- Another difficulty, especially for those who sincerely want to pray, is dryness. Dryness belongs to contemplative prayer when the heart is separated from God, with no taste for thoughts, memories, and feelings, even spiritual ones…If dryness is due to the lack of roots, because the word has fallen on rocky soil, the battle requires conversion…CCC2731 2-Finally,our battle has to confront what we experience as failure in prayer: discouragement over not being heard according to our own will;wounded pride,stiffened by thes indignity that is ours as sinners; our resistance to the idea that prayer is a free and unmerited gift; and so forth.The conclusion is always the same:what good does it do to pray? To overcome these obstacles, we must battle to gain humility,tust and perseverance.- CCC 2728 |
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3- I call desolation… darkness of soul, disturbance in it, movement to low and earthly things, disquiet from various agitations and temptations, moving to lack of confidence, without hope, without love, finding oneself totally slothful, tepid, sad, and as if separated from own’s Creator and Lord. For just as consolation is contrary to desolation, in the same way the thoughts that come from consolation are contrary to the thoughts that come from desolation.- St Ignatius of Loyola
There are
principal causes for which we find ourselves desolate. The first is
because we are tepid, slothful or negligent in our spiritual
exercises, and so through our faults, spiritual consolation
withdraws from us. The second, to try us and see how much we are,
and how much we extend ourselves in his service and praise without
so much payment of consolations and increased graces. The third, to
give us true recognition and understanding so that we may interiorly
feel that it is not ours to attain or maintain increased devotion,
intense love, tears or any other spiritual consolation, but that
all is the gift and grace of |
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.-Let one who is in desolation work to be in patience, which is contrary to the vexations which come to him and let him think that he will soon be consoled, diligently using the means against such desolation, as is said in the sixth rule. St Ignatius of Loyola 5.-We can find fresh courage for accepting with patience and faith every situation of difficulty, affliction and trial in the knowledge that from the darkness the Lord will cause a new day to dawn. Pope Benedict XVI 6.-Dear brothers and sisters, God’s way of acting--- very different from ours--- gives us comfort, strength and hope because God does not withdraw his yes. In the face of stressful human relations, even in the family, we often fail to persevere in freely given love which demands commitment and sacrifice. Instead, God does not grow tired of us; he never wearies of being patient with us and, with his immense mercy, always leads the way and reaches out to us first: his yes is absolutely reliable. Pope Benedict XVI Oremus week Eight Day 1 For your prayer Luke 2: 1-14 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. In the scene,you are near the manger with Mary asd she gives birth to Jesus… Talk to God about what is on your heart… and listen. Day 2 For your prayer Luke 2: 21-38 Practice the art of imaginative prayer.. In the scene you are with Mary and Joseph in the Temple . Talk to God about what is on your heart… and listen. Day 3 For your prayer Luke 2: 41-50 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. In the scene you are with Mary and Joseph as the search for Jsus Talk to God about what is on your heart… and listen Day 4 For your prayer Luke 2::51-52 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. In the scene you are with Mary and Joseph in Nazareth. Be with Jesus as he grows in age .Ask them to show you the hi đ en years of Jesus.’ Talk to God about what is on your heart… and listen |
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Day 5 For your prayer Matthew 3:13-17 Practice the art of imaginative prayer. . In the scene you are in line in the river. Listen as the Father pronounces Jesus as his beloved Son. Ask the Father to speak those same words to you . Talk to God about what is on your heart… and listen. Day 6 For your prayer John 1: 35-39 Practice the art of imaginative prayer .. In the scene you are with John Baptist . Go to Jesus in verse 37. Where does he take you in verse 39? Talk to God about what is on your heart… and listen. Day 7 For your prayer Matthew 4: 18-21 Practice the art of imaginative prayer .. In the scene you are Peter. Jesus l o oks you un the eyes and asks you to follow him. What do you say? Talk to God about what is on your heart… and listen. Journal Questions The strongest thought or feeling during my prayer was…… My heart: rested when… I sense the Lord was telling me….. I ended the prayer wanting…… |