Guide for Catholic Meditation

Meditation is a form of contemplative prayer, when you focus your attention on a particular event, virtue, or teaching, and weigh it in your mind and heart, to grow in love and appreciation and therefore draw nearer to oneness with God. The goal is to discover your own position relative to the thing you are meditating on - how close are you to this event, how firmly to you grasp this virtue, how perfectly do you live this teaching, etc. It differs from a self-examination though because you do this with the goal of inviting grace and draw out of the meditation an improved practice.

"2 But his will is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he shall meditate day and night.  3 And he shall be like a tree which is planted near the running waters, which shall bring  forth its fruit, in due season.  And his leaf shall not fall off: and all whatsoever he shall do shall prosper."  Psalm 1:2-3 

Unlike Buddhist meditation, which seeks emptiness as a means of self-annihilation, the Catholic meditates to prepare your Soul for God to fill it. Your goal in meditation is not the elimination of yourself, but perfection by the destruction of vice, the acquisition of virtue, and a spiritual practice which enhances these things.

"Meditation consists not so much in thinking a great deal, but in loving a great deal" St. Teresa of Avila.

Necessity of Meditation

The practice of meditation is a great spiritual help, it is necessary in order to advance in your spiritual life. This is the entrance to all higher levels of prayer. St. Alphonsus Ligouri goes even further: he wrote no one becomes a great saint without mastering this form of prayer. 

Why would this Doctor of Prayer say this? Many persons live habitually in sin solely because they never reflect seriously upon the state of their souls: neglectful of their spiritual life, they are absorbed in the world and its attachments, and so cannot receive the grace which would open them to repentance and nearness to God. 

With good reason, therefore, St. Theresa maintains that the practice of mental prayer is connected with love and the growth of virtue. There are many who Commune every day, but whose spiritual life is mediocre and whose faith is lukewarm. This is for no other reason than the lack of mental prayer! Omitting it, they practice all prayer mechanically, devoted more to the routine than to the spirit of the prayers they routinely recite. Without prayer, it is impossible to attain Perfection; for this reason it has been said that if one meditates daily, he will either stop sinning or stop meditating

Methods of Meditation

If you don’t know how to do it well, there are different meditations and methods. Here we will explain a general outline with practical tips on each section.

In selecting a method of meditation, there are two deep pitfalls that lurk in excessive rigidity, which can make meditation too much the ritual, and inconstancy, which dilutes the practice and deprives it of effect.

A soul "young" in the practice will not know how to proceed in a life of prayer; like a toddler must learn to walk, so too we, when we awake to the reality of our spiritual life, must learn from our elders rather than attempt great acrobatic feats in ignorance. 

Such writers as Louis of Granada, St. Ignatius Loyola, St. Francis de Sales, St. Alphonsus Liguori, St. John Baptist de la Salle, and Cardinal Bérulle has compiled or adopted methods of prayer. These methods prepare us to receive Christ - like St. John the Baptist. As the soul progresses and Christ grows within her, the methods will fade. They must decrease, and He must increase. The method of meditation, therefore, must accompany us in growth; when we outgrow it, we cannot allow it to hinder us.

General Structure

Regardless of the method, there are 3 essential parts of meditation: the consideration of some supernatural truth, application of that truth to one's life, and the resolution to do something about it. As a whole the prayer has three steps with different importance and duration:

1. Preparation
2. The body of Meditation.

            a) Considerations

b) Affections

c) Petitions

d) Resolutions

3. Conclusion 

In short, placing ourselves in the Divine presence, we then reflect upon a pious subject, examine ourselves, form (with the aid of Grace and the Holy Ghost) suitable affections and petitions, make a resolution, and, having given thanks to God, retire. 

1. Preparation

Preparation is essential. This requires a few minutes at most, as the human mind raises itself to God only with difficulty, we are bound to our passions, attachments, and pre-occupations, and must corral these things for our meditation to be efficacious.

23 Before prayer prepare thy soul: and be not as a man that tempteth God. Sirach 18:23

Preparation comprises three conditions:

I. Placing oneself in the presence of God: This is to consider that God is everywhere, in your soul, to consider how our Saviour looks down from heaven upon all the people, especially upon those who are in prayer. Nothing accomplishes this so well as to be in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament in adoration.

5 Not that we are sufficient to think anything of ourselves, as of ourselves: but our sufficiency is from God. 2 Corinthians 3:5

II. Confessing interiorly that we are unworthy of being in the presence of God, by repenting sincerely. Recall your misery as a sinner, perhaps say a Confiteor or Act of Contrition, or like David after his sin with Bathsheba:

“O my God, turn me not away from before thy face, and take not thy holy Spirit from me. Let thy face shine upon thine handmaid, and I will meditate on thy wondrous works. Give me understanding, and I will consider your law and keep it in my heart. I am your handmaid; give me the Spirit”.

III Asking for grace, without which we cannot pray well. This can be done in many ways, but a very effective way is to invoke the aid, particularly those saints and holy people who relate to the mystery that is the subject of our meditation. For example, to meditate upon the death of the Lord, invite the grace of God and the aid of the martyrs; reflecting on your own death, invite your Guardian Angel to accompany you. We cannot concentrate our thoughts if God does not direct them, neither raise our hearts to God if he does not attract them, nor love God if He does not inflame us, nor form a good resolution if He does not inspire us. 

 “Come O Divine Spirit, have compassion on my indigence, I abandon myself to Thee, so that, illuminated, moved and guided by Thee, I may make my meditation well; come, enlighten my intelligence, inflame my heart and convert my will, that my prayer may contribute to Thy glory and my spiritual good“

In another previous exercise of piety has gathered and focused your spirit, this alone is sufficient, and one can enter fully into the body of prayer.

Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Thy faithful and enkindle in them the fire of Thy love.Send forth Thy Spirit and they shall be created. And Thou shalt renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray. O God, Who midst instruct the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Spirit, grant us in the same Spirit to be truly wise, and ever to rejoice in His consolation, through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Other ways of preparation - Composition of the place

Put yourself briefly in the presence of God and ask the grace to pray well. Then make the composition of place, according to the method of St. Ignatius Loyola and St. Francis de Sales. This consists in proposing to the imagination the mystery to meditate upon, as if it were happening in our presence, so that we may concentrate on the mysteries and keep our mind from wandering here and there.

I will meditate on thy commandments and I will consider thy ways. Psalm 118:15 

First, when you begin the habit of meditation, consider concrete - that is, visible and sensible - things, such as Our Lord on the Cross, the Four Last Things, the Mysteries of the Rosary or Sorrows of Our Lady. More transcendant mysteries, like the greatness of God, articles of the Creed, excellence of virtue, all of these invisible or spiritual things can eventually be called to mind, but only by a spirit disciplined and attuned to them. They are too subtle for the inexperienced imaginaton. 

If these representations do not occur to us, and without effort, it is better to recall our subject to mind because the composition of place cannot fatigue the mind.

2. The Body of the Meditation 

The body of prayer is the principal point of this exercise and encompasses almost everything else. It is composed of four acts, these are: considerations, affections, petitions and resolutions.

a) Considerations

Reflect on your subject, turn and insist on it within yourself in every way possible; then you can draw your conclusions and make practical application. By this means, you may attain virtue, fortify your convictions, and excite your affections towards God and divine things, and make productive petition that better unites your will with the Will of God. We then look at ourselves in relation to the matter we are meditating on, in order to see how our conduct accords with it, whether we are lacking and how we might remedy it. 

If the object is sensible, question it directly. For example, of the Passion we ask "Who is?" Christ is! "What is?" the Sacrifice, "Where is?" the places of the Passion, and the unique sufferings accompanying them "By what means?" Everything that leads to and encompasses the Passion. "Why is?" For our reclamation and Salvation. "How is?" By the Death on the Cross. "When is?" At the Pasch. Each question then leads to its own meditation, and as one can see at a glance, the questions often "fold over" on each other, leading us to reflect and meditate on the same question from a different experience, as participant and as spectator alike. 

If the object is not sensible, we consider all its various aspects in order to grasp its whole import; if we are meditating upon some virtue, we consider its nature, properties, beauty, utility, necessity, the means of acquiring it, and the occasions of practising it, and some good example of it. If it is a vice, we should realise to ourselves its malice, its adverse effects, and find out the remedies to cure it, examples of those who won over them.

I remember the days of old; I meditate on all that you have done; I ponder the work of your hands. Psalm 143:5

Louis of Granada and St. Francis de Sales counsel those who have a difficulty in reasoning to make use of a book, especially in the beginning; to read the first point, and, if no good thought occurs to occupy their mind, to recommence and read over again some lines, and then to apply themselves to reflect a little, to produce affections of gratitude, grief, humility. When they find something which touches them, they should dwell upon it in order to draw from it all the fruit they can.

.you will find practical examples in the meditations that Saint Francis of Sales have proposed (at the end of this guide). If you are considering a scene from Scripture, consider a biblical commentary (like Fr. Haydock's) or another approved source that considers the various perspectives of the Fathers of the Church. In this work, move slowly and with simplicity, avoiding haste and impatience, and resting on the sources which inspire in you the most engaging reflections.

After having considered the truth, we examine it in ourselves. I have meditated on such a mystery: to what degree am I impressed by it? Upon such a virtue: how do I practice it in my thoughts, words and conduct? Upon such a vice: how do I preserve myself from it?

b) Affections

Some affections flow spontaneously from the reflections, They rise from the will the desire to do the will of God like the love of God and neighbor, desire for paradise and glory, zeal for the salvation of souls, etc... Hell produces repentance and horror of sin; the Passion of the Savior excites love, gratitude, trust, contrition, humility, etc. The consideration of our interior raises regret for the past, confusion for the present, and firm resolutions for the future. 

2 And be not conformed to this world; but be reformed in the newness of your mind, that you may prove what is the good, and the acceptable, and the perfect will of God. Romans 12:2

Affections aren’t emotions, we should strive not for any kinds of consolations, genuine emotions will fall from that, they shouldn’t be the standard of your spiritual life. Those consolations are good but St. John of the Cross makes it clear, they are only useful means; you don’t make them the end for which you are praying, because the end is god, not to get good feelings.

Because demons can manipulate them, they can give you good feelings, those can become dangerous attachments, that’s why you can’t judge how you feel to know where are you at in the spiritual life. God gives us at the begging stages, some sensible consolations like you give a candy for a kid but you will eventually grow up when you advance, those consolations will be stripped out entirely to purge your love for God.

c) Petition

Petition is an important point, and we should dwell upon it for a long time with faith and confidence, humility and perseverance, while urging the reasons likely to move Our Lord, and invoking the aid of the Holy Virgin and the saints. We should first ask those graces which the subject of our prayer suggests, and then it is well to add petitions for divine love, final perseverance, the welfare of the Church, our country, our order, our house, our relations, sinners, souls in purgatory, &c.

Amongst other things we may humbly tell Him : 

1. That it is His Will. 
2. That it will be for His glory. 
3. That He should not allow a person to remain so imperfect a member in His Church, which He loves so much. 
4. To consider our frequent communions, and that His Son, the beloved object of all His complacency, will be otherwise so little glorified in us, and so imperfectly received into our heart. 
5. His infinite liberality, the merits of His Son, His promises and pledged word in the Scriptures.

" This desire to belong entirely to God and to advance in His love is a continual prayer," St. Bernard.

d) Resolutions 

Essentially, it's one resolution, precise and thoroughly practical, suffices, provided only that it be kept. When we examine ourselves regarding the subject on which we are meditating, see whether it conforms to our conduct, it's good to make an examination of conscience and compare we can compare on how we've lived up to it and make resolutions.

Any meditation should end in a practical and particular resolution for the future. Love cannot be idle; it urges us to action. For example, the "to forgive one's enemies and to love them", one must add a special purpose in this way: henceforth I will not be angry at the insulting words that he or she, father or mother, says against me, on the contrary, I will say such-and-such a thing, to win them or soften them, and so of the other affections.

Failure to make efficacious resolutions is the reason many souls who practice daily meditation get little benefit from this exercise of prayer. They pass the time in spiritual reading or speculation, but they do not make acts of love, nor do they make any practical resolutions. You must then endeavour to put them in practice.

3. Conclusion 

The meditation has to end with three things, which have to be done with humility:

1. Thanksgiving to God, for the affections and resolutions that he has inspired in us, and for his goodness and mercy, which we have discovered in meditation
2. The act of offering, by which we offer to God his very goodness and mercy, the virtues of his Son, etc.., and our affections and resolutions.
3. The supplication, by which we ask God to communicate to us the graces and virtues of his Son and to give his blessing on our resolutions so that we put them into practice.

Then we should pray for the Church, for our pastors, relatives, and others, having recourse to the intercession of the Mother of God, the angels, and the saints. For meditation, we should choose one, two, or three points to remember them throughout the day. Ending with Our Father and the Hail Mary.

When you come out of meditation do not get distracted immediately, get used to knowing how to pass from prayer to your duties, even if they seem foreign to the affections that we have conceived in prayer. For example, a married woman to the occupations of the home, for both things are according to the will of God and we must think both in a spirit of humility and devotion.

Tips on Meditation

• What time of day is best for meditation?. Regularity in prayer is of extreme importance, for it is easy to alter the schedule, then change the time for any pretext whatever, and ultimately abandon the practice of prayer.

Most writers on the spiritual life state that the best times for meditation are early in the morning, the late afternoon before the evening meal, or late at night when one has finished all the duties and occupations of the day. The best norm to follow is to meditate when one's mind is most alert and one can be recollected.

• Think the meditation beforehand. It is better to prepare the morning meditation the evening before during the last free time. Let them choose a subject, which they may divide into several points, each containing sufficient doctrine to enable them to elicit affections and to draw practical conclusions; let them foresee in each point the reflections to be made, the affections and resolutions to be drawn from it. Yet the same one resolution may last them for a considerable time. It is good to fall asleep with these thoughts, and to run over them again on awaking. In this way, when the time of prayer comes, the mind will already be full of them and the will on the alert.
• Spiritual reading. Basically Read the chapter, paragraph, or Psalm containing a verse you would like to reflect on, then re-read the verse alone, the reason spiritual reading is done is in order to provide the person with a certain amount of material upon which they can reflect, this will also help you get away from any distractions once people get that more advanced or they have a lot of theological knowledge it's unnecessary thing but most people actually need to do the spiritual reading. 
• The duration of meditation? It should, so far as possible, be adjusted to the needs of each. Although there are various opinions concerning the time to be spent in meditation, if the time spent in meditation is too brief, it uses most of the period in getting ready to pray and not in actual prayer; but if the time is too long, devotion is stifled, and the period assigned for prayer becomes a period of penance.

"prayer should last as long as the soul is in a state of fervor and devotion, and that it should end when it can no longer be prolonged without tedium and continual distractions." St. Thomas Aquinas.

Whatever we give the time to meditate, its influence should be present throughout the entire day. St. Thomas suggests prayer to be constant. Using fervent ejaculatory prayers will preserve the fire of devotion throughout the day.

Equivalents of Meditation

The equivalents of meditation have all the elements of discursive prayer : considerations, affections, petitions and resolutions.

These equivalents differ from meditation in their way of presenting the considerations, in their freer and less methodical course. They may be of use, and may replace meditation, especially when we cannot make our ordinary mental prayer, and when the soul is in dryness, or has need of variety.

Meditative reading. 

St. Teresa relates that during over fourteen years, she could not pray at all without a book, except after Holy Communion. She used to read more or less according to the grace God gave her. This exercise comprises all the elements of a meditation; it is even mental prayer rather than reading. 

• You take some spiritual work, and read over a few lines or even more of it, as much as is required to furnish matter for reflections and affections. 
• You meditate a little upon what you have read, trying to penetrate its sense, to impress it on your mind, and to apply to yourself whatever is practical in it. 
• You draw from it holy affections, such as of contrition, love, faith, confidence, humility, or of some other virtue; and if you meet with some good counsel which strikes home, you make a good resolution invoking the help of God’s grace. 
• You continue making these acts of the will, as long as the sentiment which has touched you last; then you pursue your reading until it furnishes matter for new reflections and affections.

“After the example of the bee which does not pass on from one flower to another until it has gathered all the honey it finds on the first. It does not matter in such a case that the time for reading is passing and is nearly at an end; for it has been thus employed in a manner more profitable for our spiritual welfare: the reading of a single line some times does us more good than that of an entire page.” St. Liguori.

At other times, especially in time of dryness, it may limit the work of the mind to reading attentively with a short self-examination; it will then be much more a lecture than a prayer, and the affections will be short, the petitions rapidly made. These, however, will season this exercise with prayer and love, and to enlighten the mind, while inflaming the will.

Contemplation

What St. Ignatius calls contemplation (which is not mystical contemplation); This is almost what we described when speaking of the composition of place and of the manner of considering sensible objects and facts, it is reflected upon by looking at it rather than by reasoning about it; hence the name of contemplation. We may begin as usual. After a rapid glance at the mystery or historic fact, taken as a whole, we consider all the details one after another with more care and attention. We contemplate in each point: 

1. The persons, visible or invisible, with all they represent in themselves of good or evil; 
2. The words, interior or exterior; 
3. The actions, praiseworthy or blamable, ascending to the principles from which they spring. 

From all we see, from all we hear and consider, we strive to draw some spiritual fruit by applying it to our own case. We may also consider the end of the mysteries, their causes, their effects, their date, and any other circumstances which may contribute to make the subject of our contemplation more suggestive and its fruit more abundantly.

Dryness in Meditation

If you find no pleasure, there is nothing wrong if you don't get any consolations. it's not a form of God's approbation, consolations are a sign of you are not as advanced as you should be.

Say to Him these words of Jacob: "No, Lord, I will not leave you, unless you first give me your blessing"; Take a book and read it, until your spirit awakens and comes to itself: stimulate your heart by some attitude or movement of devotion, like embracing the crucifix.

And if, after all this, you still do not feel consoled, do not grieve, but continue in a devout attitude, before God, we must go to prayer to do our duty and bear witness to our fidelity without looking something to gain.

If He does not want to give holy inspirations but wants to leave us there, without saying a word to us, like when Jesus went missing in Jerusalem, we shall be like the holy family who remained there with patience, persistence, with their presence. He is certain to accept our patient waiting and give heed to our assiduity and perseverance.

Bibliography and reading list

Summary of p.32 to p.37 of Introduction of devout life Saint Francis of Sales.

Summary of|The ways of mental prayer of Lehodey

Summary of Spiritual Life (part II)- Mental Prayer ~ Fr Ripperger