A short instruction for the better understanding and performing of mental prayer

A SHORT INSTRUCTION FOR THE BETTER UNDERSTANDING AND PERFORMING OF MENTAL PRAYER.

FIRST SECTION. Generall Maxims concerning the better understanding of Mental Prayer.

I. THE Gift of prayer is à present from heaven that de∣pends more vpon the grace of God then our labour or industrie; the holy Ghost vvho is the

source and fountaine of all supernaturall gifts, is the only master able to teach us this important lesson: its he that calls us to this heavenly exercise and its from him vve must expect all the success vve can hope for in it. Vve may neverthelesse dispose our selvs to it by a great purity of heart, recollection mind, and a constant practice of vertue by vvhich a soul is inabled and Rendered capa∣ble of conversing with God almighty, use and expe∣rience, contribute also very much to make easy this holy exercise and the con∣duct of a vvise and prudent Director, is neeldfull to

avoid all illusions of the deuil, vvhich are so ordi∣nary and dangerous in this Matter.

II. The end and aim of prayer Being to unite us vvith God by the applica∣tion of our understanding and Vvill; the more and Perfecter it is, the more it vnits us vvith him and gives us more strength to practice vvhat is Good, by communicating to us the Spirit of god.

III. Amongst all the Kinds of prayer vve under∣take to make use of; that is the best and most to our purpose, to vvhich vve find our selues interiourly dra∣vvne and inclined, vvhich

succeeds better vvith us, and out of vvhich vve reap more profit, vvhat ever Kind of prayer it be.

IV. All that defiles the heart, as sin, passion, di∣sorder in our senses, or vvhat may cause any trou∣ble or anxiety, in our mind; as too much Business, scru∣ples, unquietness of mind; hinders all success in prayer.

V. Goe to prayer vvith à pure and vpright inten∣tion, to seek nothing, but god and vvith an humble resignation to his vvill, to doe and suffer in it vvhat ever shall be his pleasure.

VI. At the Beginning of your meditation, before

you apply your mind to the subject you have pre∣pared; keep for à little time in suspense the facultys of your soul, and let your thoughts for a moment be at a stand, vvithout produ∣ceing any sort of act; this vvill contribut very much to allay the agitation of your senses, passions & imagination; to bring your mind into a quiet and even temper, and to settle you in a profounde interiour peace; vvhich composition of mind is absolutly neces∣sary to dispose a soul to receave the operations of the holy ghost.

VII. This don, put your self in the presence of god

by an act of faith vvhich vvill be fitting you re∣nevv novv and then, even during the time of your prayer.

VIII. Keep your self in that posture of body, vvhich may marke your respect to god, in vvho's presence you are, but vvhich may also be as little subject as you can to any agitation or motion, for even the tran∣quility of the Body con∣tributs to a certainequality, and peace of mind.

IX. Let your application be serious, but moderate; both in regard of the sub∣ject of your prayer, and of the acts you are to produce by the faculty of your

understanding, and your vvill; not permitting your self to be so caried vvith that application of mind, and attention of spirit vvhich may prejudice the Breast, or distemper the head.

X. Take as little notice as you can, and be not the least disquieted at the ex∣travagant representations of a restlesse imagination, let only your application be to hinder your mind from folovving it, vvhilst it is thus runing astray, and as soon as you remark it has bin à Wandring out of its subject be-cause of the connexion it has vvith the imaginative faculty;

Bring it to it again vvith all svveêtness and evennesse vvithout so much as making reflection on the distraction you have had.

XI. Be persvvaded, and doubt not in the least, that althô you did no other thing all the time of your meditation but fight and Wrestle against these im∣portune thoughts & distrac∣tions, never admitting them voluntary, nor consenting to them, but suffering all the pain, Disgust, Tedious∣ness, they make you feel, vvithout being cast dovvne or dijected; your prayer has had very Good success, and may prove more ben∣ficiall, and meritorious then

if you had prayed vvith more svveetnesse & fer∣vour.

XII. If you hapen to find your self, in that hard∣nesse of heart and stupidity of mind, that you neither can meditate nor produce any Good affections, suffer vvith patience that dry∣ness and aridity, and be satisfied; vvith standing thus humbled in the sight of god. Ther is no dispo∣sition fitter to mollifie even the hardest of hearts and more capable of changing that invvard insipidity into the tenderest sentiments of devotion.

XIII. It is fitting you insist longer on that part of

your subject, vvhich moves and touches you most, stirring you up to a great tendernesse and feeling of Devotion; but let your indeavours be alvvays to employ your vvill more then your understanding; for oft entims vve need not much discours to discouer vvhat is our duty and to be persvvaded of it; but vve have very much need of strong purposes, and solid resolutions to come to prac∣tise it.

XIV. Remember in fine since that meditation or prayer is not to be accoun∣ted the best in vvhich vve have had most facility, consolation, and sensible

devotion, but that in which vve have been more faith∣full, constant, submisive to the dispositions of gods holy vvill: the surest means vve can find to have good success in our prayer, is to shevv that fidelity, cons∣tancy, and resignation to gods divine vvill, in bea∣ring the vvhole vveight of our Miserys and naturall vveakness vvithout ever being in the least dejected or discouraged. On our side let us do vvhat lyes in our povver, and vve may hold for most certain that in vvhat ever disposition vve find our selues at prayer, if vve are faithfull to god and suffer it as vve ought, he

vvill never faile to make it serve for his greater glo∣ry, and our greater good.

SECOND SECTION. Practice of Meditation or mental prayer Made by vvay of Discours.

IN this kind of Prayer of Discours and reaso∣ning commonly caled me∣ditation, each faculty of our soul has its proper office and Imployment. The memory proposes the sub∣ject, and ostentimes to fix the agility and livelyness of our imagination vve give it its ovvn task, obliging it to make us à lively re∣presentation

of the subject vvhen it can beare it. Our understanding considers, meditats and reasons vpon it, strives to fram so clear notions and distinct con∣ceptions uppon the matter, from vvhich may naturally flovv so strong and practi∣eall conclusions, that by them the vvill is inabled, and set to vvork, to dravv out of these conclusions, affections and resolutions conform to the subject proposed to it by the un∣derstanding.

The ordinary subject of mentall prayer is either some mystery, à Sentance out of scripture or some truth proposed to us by faith.

Before the time comes that you are to imploy in this manner of praying, you must read vvith atten∣tion, the matter and pre∣pare the different points you are to meditate uppon.

The first thing you doe beginning your meditation is, after you have put your self in the presence of god, to make à profound act of humility and adoration, after vvhich only in gene∣rall and confusedly you represent to your self the subject you pretend to meditate on; and to the end your endeavours may pro∣ve successfull, begg of the holy ghost the assistance of his grace, imploring also

to the same effect the intercession of our blessed Lady.

This don you make on every point of your medi∣tation particular conside∣rations. Many solid refle∣ctions able to make your vvill produce affections and resolutions conforme to your subject.

1. If you have for the subject of your meditation any mystery, you must con∣sider attentively all the particulars and circom∣stances of it, that you may the better be instructed & vvith more force be con∣vinced of vvhat you ought to avoid, doe, or suffer. If you meditate upon à sen∣tance

of scripture or any article of faith, you must doe your endeavour to di∣ve into the sense of it, out of vvhich you must dravv morall conclusions for your ovvn conduct; and in all the discoursing and reaso∣ning you have upon the matter, you must cheefly and perticularly rely upon faith, vvhich must serve for the bassis or ground∣vvork on vvhich must be setled all the acts of both vvill and understanding that you produce in your Prayer.

2. The affections take their rise from the consi∣derations and that accor∣ding to the nature of the

subject you meditate upon. The principal affections are of admiration thanks∣giveing, confidence, of abondoning perfectly our selues into the hands of god, of loue, desire, joy complacency, of compas∣sion, fear, hatred, horrour confusion, &c.

3. When one makes a se∣rious reflection, and casts an eye back on vvhat he hath already past of his life vvith relation to the pre∣sent subject in hand dis∣couering the disorders of his former life and beha∣viour, he cannot but find his soul couered vvith a holy confusion, vvhich povverfully disposes it to

an humble contrition and to the sincerest senti∣ments of loue and chari∣ty tovvards god vvho has all this vvhile so patiently expected the Returne of this prodigal child.

4. searching in prayer and examining the senti∣ments of ones ovvn heart in its present situation; vve must doe our endea∣vours to put and settle our selues in the best disposi∣tion possible according to the subject of our medita∣tion and the light vve re∣ceive from god,

5. If you cast your Eyes upon the future, and what is te come; vve ought to make strong resolutions

both for the practizing of Good or auoiding Evil and forseing the occasions we are to be in, to incourage our selues; so offering up to god our good, pious and fervent desires, make him a thovvsand protestations of an inviolable fidelity. Its after this manner vve finish our prayer by a hear∣ty and most affectionate adresse to god vvhich from the latin vve term collo∣quium, in vvhich our soul Directs its prayer novv to god, novv to some of the three persons of the Ble∣sed Trinity novv to the Blessed Virgin, to the An∣gels or the Saints vvho's help assistance and inter∣cession

vve goe about to implore.

THIRD SECTION. Different sorts and Vvayes of Praying, to make this holy Exercise more Easy for Beginners.

THe first manner I here set dovvn of praying is that of holy saint Teresa, of vvhich by her ovvn testimony she first made use of vvhen she began by This holy Exercise to converse vvith god. Its very Easy and litle diffe∣rent from a simple lecture or reading; one takes a spirituall book, as the

nevv testament, or folo∣vving of Christ, or any such; you read à chapter or some fevv lines by in∣tervalls, then you consider and meditate for some time vpon vvhat you have read, striving to penetrate into the sense of it and to imprint it deeply in your mind; then dravv from it some holy affection, as of loüe of god, of pennance, contrìtion or of some other virtue vvhich you must make à good purpose to put in practice vvhen occasion shall occur.

You have only tvvo extremities to avoid, the one of reading too much, the other of meditating too

much, so that your mind begins to vvander, and its attention and vigour rather to decay then to be incou∣raged and stirred vp to practice the good you have proposed to be don. But you must keep vvithin the bounds of à just moderation stopping as long at every paragraph as your under∣standing shall find in it vvhere upon to give it self à gratfull and profitable en∣tertainment.

The second manner is almost the same vvith the precedent. You take for subject à text of Scripture or some vocal prayer as the Pater noster, the Ave or the Creed, you pronounce

the vvords outvvardly or invvardly in your heart, you make à stop at every vvord out of vvhich you dravv severall pious senti∣mens, vvhich make as long the application of your soul as you can find you can relish them; at the end you make an humble addresse to god, begging of his bounty some grace, or some virtue according to the subject of your meditation. In the practice of this prayer three things are to be observed; not to insist too long vvith teadiousness, and disgust upon one word, but vvhen nothing more occurrs capable of keeping your mind employed, passe

softly and gently to an other. 2. When you find your heart moued by some good sentiment, there, be sure to fix as long as it lasts, vvithout puting your self in pain to proceed further. 3. It is not needfull al∣vvaïes to make nevv acts, yea its often sufficient to keep your self there in the presence of god; rumina∣ting in silence upon the vvords of your meditation, and endeavouring to relish the sentiments they have already produced in your heart.

The third manner may be used vvhen the subject you have prepared does not furnish you vvith

thoughts enough, then you may take as a very profitable employment that of pro∣duceing acts of faith, ado∣ration, thanksgiving, hope, loue, &c. For example I beleiue o my god! that I am here in your sight and that you are incessantly applied to gouerne and conduct me, &c.

I adore your souvrain povver and doe heartily make you homage for my being, and for all the power I have as a good belonging to you and vvhich I hold of you, &c.

I render you à milion of thankes for having loued me from all eternity, &c.

I hope your divine Pro∣vidence

vvill never Abon∣don me in my necessity and want, and that it will con∣duct me happyly to the accomplishment of your designs by that vvay, it vvill point out to me, &c.

I loue you ô Eternall beauty! ô infinit goodness! I loue you aboue all things and vvith all my soul, &c.

I am heartily sorry for having served you so ill hitherto, and for having offended you so often, &c.

I Wish from my heart that you might receive in∣deed and in effect, all the honour your creaturs are capable to render you, &c.

These acts are only by vvay of example, and as

it vvere a mould of such as you may produce, you may give them as much extent as you think fitting, make à stop at every one, giveing your self the time to feel at leasure, to relish and savour, the good sen∣timents that have made the most impresion upon your soul.

The forth manner of prayer may be made use of vvhen on is in such à dis∣position that he neither can meditate nor produce any affections upon the points of the prayer you have prepared. In that in∣capacity and sterility of mind, it's very good to make in the presence of

god; à sincere protestation that your intention and desire is to make as many acts of virtue, as for exam∣ple, of contrition as you shall by times dravv your breath or as you shall run over your beads or pro∣nounce exteriourly some short prayer: you must renevv from time to time the same protestation; & if god of his bounty gives you any other good senti∣ments, receive it vvith humility & make it your interiour occupation.

Te fift manner is for souls in trouble and tormented vvith à certain stupidity of minde and insensibility of heart, Provided thay have

courage enough to perse∣vere and so much of fidelity as not to let themselves be overcome, by distractions, & that they be vvilling to suffer somthing for the loue of god. The best prayer that such souls can make vvhilst they are stupid and insensible, surrounded with darkness and born dovvne by the vveight of their ovvn miseries, is to abon∣don themselues generously to suffring, vvithout being in the least disheartned or disquieted, yea vvithout endeavouring to get out of so sad à condition or pro∣duceing any other acts but those of abandoning them∣selues intirely into the

hands of god to undergo that tryal or any other it shall please his mercy or justice to put them to. They may also unite their suf∣frings, and present pain vvith the Agony of our saviour in his prayer in the garden, or vvith that uns∣peakable resignation he felt upon the cross striuing to persvvade ourselues by his example, there to remain and to suffer constantly even till death.

The sixt manner of pra∣ying consists in a revievv of our ovvn interiour. You must by a serious con∣sideration enter into your ovvn heart, and endeavour to make a perfect discouery

of the present state and condition of your soul; set before your eyes your defects, your passions, your infirmities, your weaknesses, your evil inclinations, for none but has more or less somthing of corupt nature in them, examin your heart hovv ever inscrutable it be; dive into the bottome, lay open your ovvn mi∣series and your nothing. Adore the judgments of god in regard to the present state you are in, bovv and submit to his holy vvill and blisse him equaly for the punishment and chastise∣ment of his justice, and for the favours you have re∣ceived from his infinit

Mercy; humble your foul in presence of his souvrai∣gne majesty, make a sincere Confession of your sins and infidelitys, beg a thovvsand pardons, there retract your fals and erronious judg∣ments, vvhen blinded by passion you so often prefe∣red temporall to eternall honnour, richess, pleasurs, to contempt, pauverty, and suffring. Abhorre and detest all the evil you have ever committed by thought, word deed, or omission; and make a sted fast purpose of amend∣ment for the future.

This manner of prayer is vvithout constraint, and all kind of affections may find place in it, you may

make it at all times but chiefly after some suddan and unexpected accident for to dispose ons soul to the mercifull chastisement of gods justice; or after having bin in any exteriour dissipating concerne for to recouer again your vvon∣ted interiour peace and recolection of mind.

The seauenth manner of praying consists in a li∣vely representation of the 4. last things that are to befall man. That excelent Master of à spirituall life father Iohn d'Avila, re∣commends it much. I ima∣gin says he in a letter to one of his disciples that you are already buried;

reduced into ashes, forgott by your parents & freinds, and that your soul is al∣ready in its state of sepa∣ration, &c.

You may then to per∣forme this kind of prayer represent to your self that you are effectualy redu∣ced to your last agony and ready to give up your soul; put your self in spirit betvvixt time and eternity, betvvixt your life past and the judgment of god vvhere you are going to appeare, there you must endeavour to conceive and feel before hand the senti∣ments you will have when you come to that extre∣mity! vvhat you vvould

vvish then to have don, hovv you vvould vvish to have lived, &c. You must not only foresee, but e∣ven also strive to haue an anticipated feeling of the pain, trouble and fear you vvill then certainly be in; recall to your mind your sins, the disorders of your life, the frequent abuse you have made of gods grace. hovv at that moment you vvould wish to have beha∣ued your self in such and such occasions, &c. Infine you must make some strong and solid purposes to apply some efficacious remedy to all that you have any ground to feare, at the sight of that state and of its Terri∣ble

consequences. You may allso imagin that you are already before the Tribu∣nal of Christ Jesus, or in Purgatory, or in hell, the more the representation is livly the more profitable vvill be your prayer.

T'is in this state that god often puts in spirit many souls, for to dravv them perfectly out of this world, and devest them of their bodys, causing them to make an intire divorce from flesh and blood and all that has been the dea∣rest to them upon earth. for it is an order, and an indispensable law of divine Providence, that vve must absolutly die by that misti∣cal

death; for to partake of the first resurrection, which consisteth in being delive∣red, and made free from all corruption of sin, and that vve must of necessity pass through this Purgatory before vve can perfectly enioy god almighty, and attain to that possession vvhich is the perfectest Manner we can posess him upon earth.

The eight Manner of praying may be called an application of our mind to Jesus-Christ in the blessed Sacrement, vvhich is per∣formed after this manner. 1. After you have adored our saviour in this mystery vvith all the respect that

his real presence requires. You must unite your self to him and all his divine operations in the Eucha∣rist, where he never ceases from adoring praising, and loueing god his father in the name of all mankind, and that after the perfe∣ctest manner, imaginable; that is to say in the form and state of à victime. You must then meditate and strive to conceive somthing of his retirement & recol∣lection, of his solitude, his hidden life, his obe∣dience, his humility and of all other virtues accor∣ding to the model and example he gives of them in this Sacramentall state.

you must stirr up your soul to the imitation of his ver∣tues, and make good pur∣poses not to faile to put them in practice, as often as you shall have occasion.

2. Offer up to god the fa∣ther his son Christ Jesus, as the only victime worthy of him, and by vvhich alone vve are able to render due hommage to his su∣prême Dominion; acknow∣ledge his benefits, satisfy his justice, and oblige his mercy to help and assist us.

3. Offer up your self to god, make à sacrifice to him of your being, your life, your imployments, and in particular make à good purpose to performe

some act of virtue, some mortification that you re∣lolue to undergoe, to Ouer∣come your self, and that for the same end for which our saviour in the blessed Sacrement offers himself up in sacrifice; and you must make this oblation vvith an earnest desire to increace as farr as lies in your povver the glory he renders to his father in this sacred Mystery.

Finish your prayer by à spirituall Communion, this vvay of prayer is ex∣celent, and your study must be, to make the practice of it, so much the more fami∣liar, that our happiness in this life depends on our

union vvith Christ Jesus in the blessed Sacrement, and I advise you to make use of it as often as you can & particularly towards evening.

The ninth manner of prayer vve make in the name of our saviour, and as taking his place in the addresses vve make to god; vvhich may help us vvon∣derfully to breed in our souls à perfect confidence in god almighty and make us enter in Spirit into the sentiments of our saviour. It is grounded on this truth, to vvitt that vve have contracted à true al∣liance with the son of god. We are his brothers, the

members of his mystical body, he has granted, and made over to us all his merits, he leaves us by his testament legatarys of the recompences and rewards due to, all his vvorks for all the pains and troubles he has been at, death it self that he suffered to glorify his father: by this we are enabled to honor & vvor∣ship god as god, that is vvith à vvorship not infe∣riour to what his excellency requires & by the same way vve enter in right to con∣verse vvith god and can in some sort exact his favours by some kind of justice, vve have not that right as creaturs, and as yet much

less as sinners because of that infinite disproportion that is betvvixt god and à creature, and that infinit oposition vvhich is betwixt him and à sinner; but as being allyed to the son of god in mans flesh, as being his brethern and his mem∣bers, vve may apear vvith confidence in the presence of god, converse vvith him familiarly and engage him to hear us favorably to listen to our requests, to grant us graces and favours because of the union vve have vvith his son.

It's in this manner you may apeare at prayer in the presence of god; novv to adore and praise him

through Jesus-Christ, vvor∣king in you as the head in his members, and raising & elevating you by this ope∣ration of his spirit to à state vvholy Divine; novv to begg some favour of him in vertue of the merits of his son; and for that effect you represent unto him the seruices his vvell beloued son has rendred him, his life, his death, his suffe∣rings, the reward of which you may lavvfully clame right to by vertue of à grant and of à true cession by which he has made them over to us. This vvay of prayer is excellently per∣formed in à supernatural state and tis properly in that

spirit that those who are obliged to say the Divine office ought to say it. It's after this manner the church prays and for that reason she concludes all her prayers in these vvords. Per Dominum nostrum, &c.

The tenth manner of praying is à Mixture partly of à simple attention to the presence of god and partly of meditation, it may be practiced after this fashion.

Before you apply your self to meditate vpon the subiect you have prepared, put your self in the pre∣sence of god, vvithout ta∣king any distinct thought or stirring vp in your soul any other sentiment but

that of a dutifull respect and tender loue tovvards him, vvith vvhich gods very presence cannot but inspire you. Be satisfied to stand thus silent in the sight of god and remaine as long in that peace and quietness of mind as you can haue any interiour de∣light or relish in it so that your soul be kept by it in that constant respect. But this coming to fail lay pre∣sently hold on the points of the meditation you haue prepared, upon which you make your conside∣rations as you vvont to do vvith your reflecti∣ons, resolutions, and affections, according to

the ordinary method; it vvould not be amis to begin thus all your medi∣tations keeping your self in silence as long in the presence of god as that interiour respect and affe∣ction of your soul towards him can keep your imagi∣nation free from vvande∣ring and your thoughts so composed that they put no opposition to your in∣ioying his divine presence in peace and quietness, and in the cours of your meditation after every point your mind being wearied by produceing frequent acts it will proue very profitable and advan∣tagious to make à stop and

repose à little in this simple attention to god; by so doing you settle your self in an interiour recollection, and being thus accustomed to fix your mind on god, you may dispose your self by little and little to con∣templation vvhich is no∣thing but à simple vievv of god accompanied vvith respect and loue; but tis à perfect illusion to remain so, out of à meer lasinesse and unvvillingness to take paines to consider and Meditate.

When one has gained so much by the mortifica∣tion of his ovvn passions and a frequent and habi∣tuall communication vvith

god, as to be able to re∣main in that interiour tranquillity of spirit in his Divine presence à good space of time vvithout be∣ing much troubled vvith distractions nor diverted by the inconstancy and instability of the facultys of his soul, tis a certain mark he is not farr from vvhat we call a passive state.