Justin Appel
Dear Friends,
Today’s appointed segments of Psalm 119 point to regularity and consistency of prayer. The psalmist calls on God with his “whole heart” with the refrain: “answer me” and “save me!”Various phrases stand out in the passages that follow:
Various phrases stand out in the passages that follow:
“Early in the morning I cry out to you.”
“My eyes are open in the night watches.”
“My heart stands in awe of your word.”
“Seven times a day to I praise you.”
“I have hoped in your salvation.”
“Let my cry come before you.”
“My lips shall pour forth your praise.”
“I long for your salvation, O LORD.”
—Psalm 119, Qoph-Taw sections
Biblical prayers like this form the foundation of Christian practice, and indeed, the early monastic communities developed systems of daily prayers, or offices, that took the psalmist’s injunction seriously. A day in some communities might well include seven offices, including night vigil.
In the Eastern Church, St Paul’s injunction to “rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances” (I Thessalonians 5:16-18) would lead to the practice of the “Prayer of the Heart,” the repetition of the Jesus Prayer.
The Rosary is a Western manifestation of this impulse to pray regularly, insistently, and with intention, focusing on Christ and his mother.
I have had occasion to participate in monastic expressions of daily prayer, both Western and Eastern, and have noticed some surprising things about it, like the sense that the prayer taps into a deeper heavenly worship that is ongoing, or a feeling of dispassionate peace that can sometimes accompany prayers—even when experienced in a foreign language.
These experiences have taught me that my own feeble attempts at daily prayer, whether at home or at church, are of the utmost importance, and a part of who I am supposed to be. I need to find more ways to “stand in awe” before God and to say with the psalmist:
“O Lord open thou my lips,
And my mouth shall show forth thy praise.”
—Psalm 51:15
Yours in Christ,
—Justin
