1: What is Interior Prayer? INTRODUCTION 1/Our Objectives: -How to prayer alone? -How to pray regularly? -Learn to Practice Interior Prayer! We want to learn to pray. There are a lot of diverse prayer groups. We feel the need to go through a personal training in prayer. John Paul II heartily agrees: Like love, there is nothing that is as natural and that we have as much to learn (…). There are a lot of people than you would think who would ‘do interior prayer’ but simply lack Teachers to introduce them to it. This is why we go to the school of the masters recognized by the Church: the masters of Carmel; in particular Teresa of Avila, declared Doctor of the Church and ‘mother of spiritual people’. 2/Testimonies: We want to personally testify to the joy that comes from ‘doing interior prayer’, the help that it brings to our daily lives. We want to share this happiness. 3/Call of Christ: It is Christ who calls us, who teaches us to pray and gives us advice (see Mt. 6: 6). To learn to pray, is to go to His school.
(Luke: 24:13-35)
prayer as given by Teresa of Avila was used in the Catechism to define interior prayer:
‘Interior prayer is, in my opinion, simply an intimate exchange of friendship where we speak often, one on one, with God who we know loves us’. To really understand, let’s analyse the components of the definition: -‘An exchange of intimate friendship’ Friendship presupposes a sharing, an equality. This is astounding but real. There is equality with God; surprising for creatures, but it is the Mystery of mysteries. In interior prayer, God behaves towards us as with a friend. He gives us His love. He raises us up. The mystery involves this raising up of the human being, to re-establish him in this equality which allows two friends to converse, to exchange, to share their love for one another. God wants to love us, to raise us up. Our spiritual life is based on this act of faith. In addition, there is reciprocity in love: God doesn’t just love us, but we too, love Him. Therese of the Child Jesus expresses this by saying: I want to love you and make you loved (Act of Oblation to Merciful Love).
TEACHING This is a general introduction to interior prayer, the meaning of this word was given to us by St. Teresa of Avila and that the Church used to designate silent prayer in the Catechism of the Catholic Church: It is the simplest expression of the mystery of prayer (…) Interior prayer is the height of prayer (CCC 2713). Let’s take Therese of the Child Jesus as a model: interior prayer is essential in life, Therese as a child, behind her bed, or on vacation in Trouville, practiced interior prayer. Therese prayed in Carmel. She said that she didn’t let more than 3 minutes go by without ‘thinking’ of God. She deepened this discovery through Carmel: Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross; a spirituality that influenced the entire Church. The definition of interior
-‘One on One’ Interior or silent prayer, is an experience of intimacy with the Lord, who draws us into solitude. It is the advice of Jesus Himself. It is simply the reflex of love which has a need for intimacy. This relationship of intimacy is sometimes called a ‘heart to heart’ with God. It is about a personal relationship with God. -‘Souvent’ This love relationship supposes regularly encounters as with all friendships. The Lord expects us daily to meet Him in interior prayer. We find this affirmation in several Bible passages in the New Testament: Pray without ceasing… (1 Thel. 5:17)
-‘With God who we know loves us”
1: What is Interior Prayer? It is the grace of the certainty of faith that will Enable this friendly relationship. 1/ We know that God loves us: God is love (1 Jn. 4:8) 2/ We know that God is present in us. It is important to base our prayer on the words of Christ who affirms the presence of God in us: Don’t you know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit? (1 Cor. 6:19) 3/ Jesus often expresses His desire to come and remain in ‘us’. He waits for us in interior prayer: Here I am, I wait at the door and I knock. If someone hears my voice and opens the door, I will enter and dine with him, me near him and him near me. (Rev 3:20) 4/ We know by the Bible that this contact with God enriches us (Mark 5:25-34- Woman who touched His garment ….her faith healed her) 5/ However, this relationship isn’t based on feelings: ‘who we know loves us’ and NOT ‘who we feel loves us’ Thus, it is important to discover the objective dimension then the subjective one in interior prayer: we have to understand prayer initially as an objective reality in order not to stop as soon as we don’t feel anything… Let’s take the example of St. Therese of Lisieux and Mother Teresa who both lived the trial of the Night of Faith and who persevered in prayer in spite of it. It is vital to remain loyal to the practice of prayer. It is important to note that prayer in its ‘exterior’ forms will be very dependent on who we are. But Father Marie Eugene (I Want to See God) affirms: In all its diverse forms and through all the vicissitudes, interior prayer will remain essentially the same.
Why practice Interior Prayer? -To please God: God is happy being with us. He waits for us to love him to be able to come and remain in us. -To nourish us and delight us: We are made for God. Truth and love are what all men desire. Only God, Love and Truth, can satisfy us. To unite with God is not a dream: this really happens and has real effects on us. In addition, we are nourished by the presence of God Himself more than all the comforts He brings.
(Luke: 24:13-35)
-To transform us: Interior prayer causes us to become more and more children of God, to resemble Him. It doesn’t prevent suffering, but rather transforms our way of experiencing it; putting us in the light of God. Interior prayer puts us in the veritable humility which is the door of the heart. Humility is the truth. Interior prayer purifies us to transform us uniting our whole being, body and soul, to God. -To make us act: Interior prayer makes us flexible to the action of the Holy Spirit. It allows us to become living instruments of the action of God in the world. Others are the first beneficiaries of our interior prayer: we don’t just do interior prayer for ourselves then, but for others.
Interior Prayer and other forms of Prayer: Interior prayer, in light of St. Teresa’s ‘large’ definition of it doesn’t compete with other forms of prayer: -vocal prayer -liturgical prayer (the Mass) -lectio divinia (meditation on Scripture) -meditation -adoration -praise It is something else…..or more exactly it can be present in all the other forms of prayer, as it is the contact itself, the exchange of friendship with God which constitutes interior prayer. Even more, interior prayer will help us to live the other forms of prayer more ‘interiorly’. The opposite is true as well; all other forms of prayer help us to enter into interior prayer.
