Centering Prayer Meditation

According to Christian belief, God is omnipresent and lives inside each one of us. Centering prayer, a form of contemplative prayer, allow us to access that inner dwelling place of Christ and opens our hearts to Him.

Centering prayer is a method of silent contemplation that emphasizes prayer as a relationship with God, a communion rather than a conversation. It isn’t meant to replace other forms of prayer. According to Contemplative Outreach, an organization founded by Father Thomas Keating, it’s a practice that prepares the body to let us directly experience God’s presence within us, “closer than breathing, closer than thinking, closer than consciousness itself.” Once that personal relationship is established, other types of prayer and devotional practices acquire more depth.

Contemplation was one of the earliest devotional practices in Christianity, tracing its roots to the fourth century writings of St. John Cassian. He learned of the importance of inner silence from the holy desert dwellers in Palestine, and advised students to use a “prayer word” to keep the mind focused on the silence “between words.”

In modern times, Trappist monk and influential writer Thomas Merton, who counted the Dalai Lama and Zen monk Thich Nhat Hanh among his friends, resurrected the idea of contemplative prayer. Abbott Thomas Keating, William Meninger, and Basil Pennington are credited with solidifying the practice into a movement: they too were Trappist monks influenced by Eastern thought, and they developed centering prayer as a way for modern Christians to connect with their inner truth.

Unlike lectio divina and other traditional Christian prayer practices that emphasize Scriptural guidance and “talking” to God, centering prayer values internal silence and stillness of mind, a state that encourages direct connection with God. Christians who resonate with the physical benefits of Eastern-style meditation but want to grow in their own faith will appreciate centering prayer.

Centering prayer is a simple way for anyone who wants to be with God to experience His love and presence. The practice builds our personal relationship with a higher power and benefits the physical realm as well: like other stillness-based meditation techniques, centering prayer can reduce stress, boost immunity, and foster a general sense of well being. Regular practitioners also report feeling a greater access to God’s wisdom, an increase in creativity, a decrease in compulsive behaviors, and an ability to love more selflessly.

In a 2015 study led by neuroscientist Andrew Newberg, director of research at Philadelphia's Jefferson Myrna Brind Center of Integrative Medicine, the brains of Franciscan nuns who practiced centering prayer daily were examined. The scans were similar to those of people who used drugs like psilocybin mushrooms, known for invoking strong spiritual experiences. The scans produced a clear visual landscape of what happens in the brain during “oneness with God.” Activity sharply decreases in the area responsible for maintaining the self, shifting a person’s orientation to a sense of unity with the universe. “These experiences tend to result in permanent changes in the way the brain works,” Dr. Newberg says. “People change their entire way of life, change the way they think about things, change the way they look at their jobs and their relationships, and it can carry with them for months, years, and even for a lifetime.”

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The Catholic Church in particular is divided over the practice of centering prayer. Opponents argue that it veers too closely to Eastern and New Age views of “oneness with God,” defying the duality inherent in Christian teaching—that God the creator is a separate and higher being. They also find fault with the use of a spiritual word, labeling it a mantra. Centering prayer isn’t actually a prayer, they object—it’s a form of self-hypnosis that disregards the Catholic concept of sanctifying grace.

There are equally vocal advocates of centering prayer in the Catholic Church, however. The reason Father Keating felt compelled to create a meditation practice in the first place, they note, is because many Catholics were leaving the church, disillusioned by their inability to find inner peace and a spiritual union with God. Centering prayer reinterprets ancient teachings for a modern audience.

A relationship with God starts with the desire to have one. We can start a centering prayer practice whenever we’d like, and there’s no wrong way to communicate with God. A one-day centering prayer workshop, offered in a variety of locations across the country, is a helpful introduction to the practice. Fellowship can be found through centering prayer meditation groups in your local community, and Contemplative Outreach provides an online course and in-home package, available through their website, http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org.

There can be a nominal fee for the centering prayer introduction workshops, and costs for the online course range from $50 to $147.

The instructions are incredibly simple: Psalm 46:10 tells us, “Be still, and know that I am God.” As you sit in silence, know that you’re sitting in the presence of God. “Silence is God's first language,” Father Keating observes. “Everything else is a poor translation.”

To practice this meditation, close your eyes and pray for God to inspire you with a sacred word or symbol. The word could be something like “Jesus” or “Mother,” or a concept like “peace” or “love.” Let go of everything except for the sacred word. If thoughts arise, bring your attention back to it. Sit in the silent presence of God. Our step-by-step guided meditation is available on this page.

Anyone can practice centering prayer. Traditionally, the sacred word chosen to curb wandering thoughts is Christian in nature, but “peace,” “silence,” and “shalom” work just as well.

The best-known teachers and authors in this field include:

Thomas Keating
(www.contemplativeoutreach.org)
Cynthia Bourgeault
(www.contemplative.org/cynthia-bourgeault)
David Frenette
(www.incarnationalcontemplation.com)
Peter Traben Haas
(www.amazon.com/Peter-Traben-Haas)

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