In the preface of his final book, Contemplative Prayer For Today: Christian Meditation, he offers a summary of Carmelite teachings on contemplation. He shows the compatibility between John Main’s teachings on Christian Meditation and the Carmelite tradition. Fr. Ernest had a forceful statement: “My perspective is the Carmelite tradition of spirituality, which is the tradition I have tried to live and share over a lifetime. This book represents my studied conviction that this method of contemplative prayer (Christian Meditation) can renew the Christian life in the 21st Century.”
That statement also flows from the mature acceptance of contemplative prayer in today’s church. Today contemplative prayer is considered a goal for all
In the 1970s an Irish monk from England, John Main, a Benedictine, initiated a movement for a type of contemplative prayer, Christian Meditation. This prayer is rooted in the prayer of the early centuries of the Church.
The goal of Christian Meditation is a silence that leads to non-discursive prayer. It aims to quiet the mind and imagination. It hopes to create a silence in the individual so God can be active in prayer. The individual is asked simply to repeat the holy word, maranatha, which means the Lord will come. The choice of the word is arbitrary and it is important not to think of its meaning. The repetition connects to one’s breathing. John Main emphasizes that the slow repetition of the word is the individual’s prayer. The repeating of the word symbolizes and encourages the faithful surrender to God. This abandonment of control results in the quieting of the mind and imagination. The simple and slow repetition of the word aims at slowing down the “chattering monkeys” that characterize the unbridled mind and imagination which seem to fear any part of silence. The silence gained through the slow, rhythmic repetition of the word is the language of God.
In John Main’s structure. simplicity is the focus. There is no need to measure where one is on the path. The important thing is to grow in purity of heart and receptivity to divine grace. For John Main, the program is experiential and practical. He wants people to start the journey and let the experience teach the rest. Through the simple repetition of the mantra, maranatha, the mind is cleared enough to make space for the Spirit. This is the movement toward purity of heart and openness to God’s presence.
Fr. Ernest describes Christian Meditation as contemplative prayer working without the intellect or imagination. It is a challenge to the prayer practice for many adult Christians of this time. Many are used to formulas or else chatty conversation with God. Christian Meditation has one goal: the journey inward. The mantra clears the mind, goes beyond thinking, and takes one from the head to the heart. One repeats the mantra with intention but it is not an object of analysis. It is recited attentively, letting it remove the anxieties of the moment. The person stands at the gate, watching and waiting, at attention, listening but hearing nothing. This is the desired silence. This silence is not day-dreaming but focused and intentional. The pray-er is present to everything and to nothing before the mystery of God.
Here is a clear and simple statement from John Main on how to begin Christian Meditation:
Sit down. Sit still and upright. Close your eyes lightly. Sit relaxed but alert. Silently, interiorly, begin to say a single word. We recommend the prayer phrase maranatha. Recite it as four syllables of equal length. Listen to it as you say it, gently but continuously. Do not think or imagine anything –spiritual or otherwise. If thoughts or images come, these are distractions at the time of meditation, so keep returning to simply saying the word. Meditate each morning and evening for between twenty and thirty minutes.
