PRAYER OF THE HEART

The prayer of the heart is unceasing. The second characteristic of the prayer of the heart is that it is unceasing. The question how to follow Paul’s command ‘pray without ceasing’, has had a central place in hesychasm from the time of the Desert Fathers until 19th century Russia. 

Let me give you an example of this concern from both ends of the hesychatic tradition. During the period of the Desert Fathers there was a pietistic sect called the Messalians who had an over-spiritualized approach to prayer and considered manual work condemnable for a monk. Some of the monks of this sect went to see Abba Lucius. 

The old man asked them “What is your manual work?” They said “We do not touch manual work but as the Apostle says, we pray without ceasing.” The old man asked if they did not eat. 

They replied they did. So he said to them, “When you are eating who prays for you then?” Again he asked if they did not sleep, and they replied they did. He said to them, “When you are asleep who prays for you then?” They could not find an answer to give him. He said: “Forgive me. But you do not act as you speak. I will show you how while doing my manual work I pray without interruption.

 I sit down with God soaking my reeds and plaiting my rope and I say ‘God have mercy on me, according to your great goodness, and according to the multitudes of your mercies save me from my sins.’” So he asked them if this were not prayer and they replied it was. 

Then he said to them: “So when I spent the whole day working and praying, making certain pieces of money, more or less, I put two pieces of money outside the door and I pay for my food with the rest of the money. He who takes the two pieces of money prays for me while I am eating and when I am sleeping. So by the grace of God I fulfill the precept to pray without ceasing.”