Christian Contemplative Prayer: Meditate Like Jesus

OUR FATHER The Inner Sacrament?

 When Jesus taught his disciples to pray the Our Father (the Lords Prayer), did he intend for them to sing the words of the prayer while standing and holding hands? Indeed, did He intend for them ( or us) to say the words out loud? Or instead, could it be that the Church has overlooked a very deep and profound spiritual experience that many Christians have been searching for? As told in the gospel of Luke, Jesus had just finished praying when one of the disciples said to him, "Lord, teach us to pray just as John (the Baptist) taught his disciples." (Luke: 11,1 New American Bible) Jesus responded by teaching them the Our Father. Jesus did not respond by standing, holding hands with them, or singing out loud. In fact, nowhere in scripture are the disciples described as praying the Our Father together in this manner. What I am about to say may shock many of you and may not seem significant to others. After six years of personal study, reflection, and analysis, I have made a discovery that could, if confirmed by fellow Christians, have a major impact on our Church and our world. I submit that with the Our Father, Jesus instituted an inner Sacrament by teaching the disciples a particular type of contemplative prayer. This prayer is practiced by sitting quietly together or alone, and uttering a single word mentally, in a particular fashion, for an extended period of time. I further speculate that the words of the Our Father are a sort of commentary on this particular type of contemplative prayer. To clarify this suggestion, let's examine what is meant by "contemplative prayer." Contemplative prayer can be best characterized as listening to God or resting in God. In contrast, when we think of prayer, we typically think of reciting some sort of prayer or speaking our concerns in thought or aloud. We make some sort of petition, or ask for something, or praise God for this or thank Him for that. Contemplative prayer, on the other hand, is a way we turn our attention inwards. We do not try to coerce or force our awareness, but rather we let go into deeper levels of ourselves until we are totally immersed in the Kingdom within. Our goal is not concentration on a particular thought or group of thoughts.