Given the critiques of centering prayer that I have shared here and here, it could easily be construed that I am trying to discourage people from practicing this form of prayer. I am not. As I have stated a number of times, my issue is not CP practice per se, but the elaboration on it that CP teachers, writers and practitioners share. The critiques mentioned above address some of those issues.

I have a number of spiritual directees who practice CP and I do not try to discourage them from doing so. They find benefit and evidence good fruit from the practice, so what's not to like?

I myself do not do CP, though I have attended workshops and retreats on this topic, including some at Snowmass, CO. I've given it a try, but I found it too structured and unsuitable for my prayer. I tend more to direct my focus to God using a variety of prayer methods and never know which I'll be drawn to in any given prayer period. Mostly I wait on God to draw me this way or that. Sometimes contemplation comes very soon, sometimes not at all. There is still benefit to prayer even if contemplation does not come. Many of our Saints were not contemplatives, and that's still true today.

So here is a quick list of why I think CP practice can be a good thing. If CP teachers and writers emphasized these kinds of values and avoided making excessive claims, they'd be on much more firm ground.

1. It is a way of surrendering oneself to God and strengthening one's will-to-God.
2. It helps one become disentangled from useless thinking, and become more responsible for the lines of thinking one chooses to become involved in.
3. Like many other forms of prayer, it enables an openness to God.
4. It can help sustain one in the state of acquired or active recollection, or deepen such a state. Same goes for people who are habitually recollected.
5. It fosters an openness to receive contemplative graces (as do other forms of prayer, though maybe not so explicitly so).
6. It weakens the defenses between the Ego and unconscious, allowing repressed material to arise. It also teaches one how to let repressed feelings and energies evacuate, or pass on through.
7. It teaches one to become more attentive to what is happening in the present moment.
8. It deepens one's sense of being alive.
9. It is a simple form of prayer, easy to teach and to learn.

Feel free to add others.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Phil,

Feel free to add others......

As mentioned in Frenette's book, Centering Prayer appeals to 3 learning styles. (p. 62) For the auditory learner, there is the sacred word. For the visual learner, there is the sacred glance. For the kinesthetic learner, there is the sacred breath.

CP is easily adapted to fit various situations.
For the day when there is limited time, it can be
done on the bus, plane, or train.

CP does require any special equipment. A timer bell is nice but not necessary. Any wristwatch will do.

CP helps one to become more receptive to the aspect of God that is 'mercy within mercy within mercy.' This is the Abba that Jesus talks about.
The one who bends down for us, takes us on his lap, and whispers his Love.

CP experiences happen not only in the designated CP time period but throughout daily life. Thus, the sense of God's Presence may occur at any time not just during the prayer period. CP affects all aspects of life.

CP is a formal declaration of our willingness and openness to such experiences, if and/or when they occur.

CP makes God accessible in ways unique to itself.
Over time, it provides a forum for a loving
relationship with God to develop in ways not previously imagined.

bj

I think everyone agrees that prayer has an "active" phase and (for want of a better word) a "passive" phase. It was Guigo in the twelfth century who divided the active phase into lectio-meditatio-oratio. Guigo's theory has become traditional, but there's no need to raise it to the status of divine revelation. St. Teresa herself says, multiple times, that the traditional meditatio did not suit her tendencies, and so she substituted a variety of other practices.

CP does NOT require any special equipment. A timer bell is nice but not necessary. Any wristwatch will do.

Also, CP is a private prayer. It requires an interior change of attention and focus. Thus, one can be in public doing CP, while to a casual observer, it might look as though one is napping. This prevents one from appearing to be very set- apart from and holier than others nearby who may not be engaged in prayer during the same time period.

bj