Chaplaincy series: a new kind of praying

A.Hanson, Boulder, CO 2010

A long time ago, probably when I was a teenager or something. I read a magazine article that stated that it was cruel to say that you were going to pray for someone and then not actually do that. At the time, prayer to me was a very specific practice.  It was undoubtedly shaped by the Bible, and probably a few zealous sunday school teachers, and my own family that insisted that if your eyes were not closed during the prayer said before a meal, it didn't count.  In my mind, prayer was kneeling down, folding your hands, closing your eyes and bowing your head.  You could pray your prayer silently, but it was better if you prayed out loud.  I also had a particularly formative experience regarding prayer at Bible camp.  There as a well-meaning (if probably wrong) pastor who did a sermon illustration.  He held the end of a long rope and the other end was being held by someone on top of a tall rock at the side of the outdoor chapel. He would wave the rope up and down, and the person playing God, on top of the rock, would wave the rope back.  He implied that prayer was a transactional communication process and you had to put something in to get something out.  And that is how most of us think of prayer.  We put in some intercessory effort and God gives us an answer.

I am the witness to thousands of unanswered prayers. Fervent, pained, hoping against hope kind of prayers for something, anything, to be different. Prayer as a transaction just doesn't stand up to the rigor of a trauma center.  I need a different understanding.

About seven or eight years ago, when I was in the midst of one of the myriad faith crises of my twenties, I told a friend that I would "keep her in the forefront of my consciousness."  This was the closest that I could get to saying that I would pray for her. I didn't think that my humble words to some far off deity would change anything, but somehow I instinctively knew that I could hold her and her pain together with something greater than myself. As I got more involved in the church in recent years, this kind of hippy-trippy sort of prayer was shoved to the back burner in favor of liturgical prayers and ancient words that felt more meaningful to me. Many of the prayers that I heard being offered and even spoke myself in church were offered in earnest, but were without any real teeth.  Prayers like "courage", "wisdom", "understanding", and "acceptance."  These sort of blasé prayers happen without really putting God's feet to the fire.  They are general enough that it is possible to interpret any variety of outcomes as God's answering prayer.

The trauma ICU doesn't have time for well-intentioned prayers for understanding. Part of what I adore (and simultaneously abhor) about my work in the ICU is that all extraneous stuff is stripped away. There is literally no time for small talk or euphemism.  Life and death are so real that you can smell them. The prayers that are offered in the ICU are for life in the midst of death, relief in the midst of unimaginable suffering, and merciful and quick deaths.

I can no longer see prayer as a transactional form of communication with God.  Because most of the time, medical conditions in the ICU are more comparable to a runaway train than they are to a polite conversational exchange. Everything chaotic seems to happen at once, and time seems to stop and pile up on itself.  I, along with my patients, need a more comprehensive understanding of prayer.

I will continue to speak the intercessory words, because that alone is an act of pastoral care.  But I will hold them, and you, with a spirit of consciousness, along with the God of the universe. My tears are a prayer. That I carry you home with me and think about you when I am not at the hospital is a prayer.  When I hold your hand, careful not to disrupt your IV, that is a prayer. Prayer doesn't require wearing out the knees of your jeans, but it does require getting your hands dirty.

Prayer Series Part IV: Kinesthetic Prayer

When I was a camp counselor up in Montana, one of the things that we introduced to our campers was the idea of moving prayer.  Some people struggle with prayer because of needing to sit still or kneel or keep your eyes closed.  Sometimes you fall asleep (this is my problem) or your mind wanders.  I think that somewhere along the line we were taught that it is wrong to be anything less than little pious statues while praying.

One of my favorite ways to pray is by walking.  It clears my brain and opens it to hearing God. But you can pray in different positions, like laying on your back in the grass or facedown in a pile of pillows or on your side on the beach.

You can get up and pray and move around at the same time.  Or you can be silent while moving.  But getting deeper into your body while moving and praying is a different way to encounter the divine.

Prayer Series Part III: The Labyrinth

A.Hanson 2012
Denver, CO

Prayer labyrinths are one of my very favorite things.  They are often works of art.  The picture to the left is of a prayer labyrinth at Montview Presbyterian church in Denver, CO, which is still one of my favorite labyrinths.  In the summer, I like to take off my shoes and walk the warm stones at dusk.  I have walked labyrinths all over the world and in many different places.  I have walked them in massive French cathedrals, in pastures in rural Minnesota, in church basements, on mountaintops in Colorado.  There are so many places in which to experience this prayer practice.

There is a fair amount of controversy surrounding prayer labyrinths, because they are an ancient pagan symbol that was adopted by the Catholic church.  Only in the last two decade or so have they seen a resurgence in emerging and neo-orthodox churches.

I have found Sally Welch's Walking the Labyrinth:A Spiritual and Practical Guide to be a useful tool in explaining the history, function, and discipline of the prayer labyrinth.

There is only one way into the labyrinth, and only one way out.  It is not a maze, rather, it is a gentle path that doubles back on itself.  It is possible to relax while in the labyrinth.  There are many ways to engage this prayer practice, my favorite is very simple.  I pick an intention for my time in the labyrinth.  Whether that is a certain word, phrase or idea I am pondering, or something that I want to let go of, I only focus on that intention as I walk to the center of the labyrinth.  Once I reach the center, I pause and pray.  Sometimes I am in the center for awhile.  Then on my way back out of the labyrinth I feel the freedom of that intention or listening to what God is saying to me.  Just before leaving the labyrinth, I give thanks for my time there.

Prayer Series Part II: Centering Prayer

A. Hanson 2012

My first experience with centering prayer as a discipline was with HFASS at the Contemplative retreat in 2010 at St Malo's retreat center outside Lyons, CO.  It was an incredible, beautiful, life-giving time.  It was then that I fell in love with centering prayer.

I led an adult forum on centering prayer this past Sunday, so I decided to make this topic the next part of my series on prayer practices.

The Christian church has long had a contemplative tradition.  This has included the monastic practice of Lectio Divina, and the writings of such mystics as Teresa of Avila, John of the Cross, and Thomas Merton, among others.  The method of Centering Prayer, which is what we will be practicing today, has its roots in the Post Vatican II era, when three Trappist monks, Fathers William Meninger, Basil Pennington, and Thomas Keating, sought to develop a simple method of silent prayer for contemporary people.[1] 

Centering Prayer has its scriptural roots in the wisdom sayings of Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount, from Matthew 6:6, “But when you pray, go to your inner room, close the door and pray to your father in secret.  And your father, who sees in secret, will reward you.” 

The theological grounding for centering prayer is in the Pentecost:  We affirm that the spirit of God dwells within us and bears witness to the resurrection by empowering us to experience and manifest the fruits of the Spirit and the Beatitudes. Centering Prayer is a time of fostering a connection with the Living God, and a discipline to foster that relationship.

How to engage Centering Prayer:

1.     We select a sacred word or phrase.  This is the symbol of our intention to consent to God’s presence and action within us. 

a.     Some examples are: Lord, Jesus, Father, Love, Peace, Stillness, Trust

b.     Some phrases that I use are: Come Holy Spirit/Veni Sancti Spiritus, or my favorite, “Lord Jesus Christ…Have mercy on me”

c.     After choosing a word, do not change it for this particular time of prayer.  You can change it the next time you choose to pray

d.     It is also possible to do centering prayer without a sacred word, but in my opinion, it is better to have the word or phrase to return to if your mind wanders than attempting to keep your mind empty. 

2.     We sit comfortably

a.     Have your back straight and against the chair

b.     Keep your feet comfortably on the floor or whatever position is most comfortable for you

c.     Rest your hands in your lap

d.     The key is to be comfortable enough that you are not distracted by any sort of discomfort, but not so comfortable that you fall asleep.

e.     If you do fall asleep, which does happen, just begin praying your sacred word again.

3.     We pray

a.     Gently introduce the sacred word by coordinating it with your breath.  Perhaps you pray the word on the inhale or the exhale. 

b.     Thoughts are a normal part of centering prayer.  When they arise, simply thank yourself for noticing, and let them float away. Return to your sacred word.

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[1] http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/history-centering-prayer

Prayer Series Part 1: The Collect

Amy Hanson, 2009
Ameugny, France.

The Collect is a form of prayer unique to the Western church (descended from the Roman Catholic tradition, as opposed to the Eastern Orthodox tradition).  

The collect is composed of five parts:

1. An address to God

2. A statement that refers to some attribute of God or to one of God's saving acts

3. The prayer petition

4. The reason for which we ask

5. The conclusion (a restating of the name of God and 'Amen')

There are many possible names and attributes of God, and even more in scripture.  We were discussing the Collect in our adult Bible study at church this week, and some people felt constrained by the collect.  For me, the structure is actually a blessing. I find that in my prayers my mind can wander and drift and my prayers drift off, so the collect provides a way to focus my intentions.  

Example of the Collect:

Gracious God, source of all goodness and peace, we ask that you care for our brothers and sisters in lands ravaged by warfare and strife.  We know that you would have us live in peace.  We ask this in the name of your most precious son, Jesus Christ, our Savior and Lord. Amen.