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asinner

posted on Aug 27, 2008 - 01:19 AM

Hey guys, i was wondering if any of you know about what our church's official stand on Hesychasm is. Im not sure but i have been reading the way of the pilgrim and it deals with Hesychasm alot so, i dont know whats going on.

Ray

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asinner


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Peter

posted on Sep 21, 2008 - 04:05 AM

There is no real stand, that I am aware of. That said, what are your referring to when you say hesychasm. If you mean the practice of silent meditative prayer oy withdrawing inward ignoring outside stimulus to meditate on Christ; it seems to be one of the cornerstones of monastic practice.

If you are referring to the practice of controlled breathing while reciting the Jesus prayer, it is if not unique to the Eastern Orthodox Church, not commonly found else where in Christianity. Depending on which Coptic monks you speak to you get opinions ranging from indifference to it, to it is an unnecessary distraction or complication, to considering it nonsense.

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geomekhaiel

posted on Sep 22, 2008 - 09:16 PM

Ray,

I recall hearing a monk's contemplation on this subject, in reference to the Jesus Prayer and him telling me that when you breath in you can say "My Lord Jesus Christ" bringing Christ into your heart and when you breath out you can say, "Have mercy on me a sinner" thereby as you are taking the air out of your system you are also taking out any sin that is there.

But that is only one aspect of the general subject of Hesychasm. To find out more you need to read more into the subject of what the fathers said about praying silently and in stillness. If memory serves me, I believe there were some writings from Saint Isaac the Syrian on this subject....or possibly saint John Chrysostom. I am not sure if the term, "Hesychasm" is used but I know that the general subject is discussed. If my understanding is correct, then this subject deals with intense concentration in prayer to the point that nothing else becomes your focus except for the dialouge between oneself and God.

I wonder if this is what is meant by Christ when he said to go into our rooms/closets and pray.

I also want to mention that I think we have all experienced this at point point or another in your spiritual lives. Perhaps not to the same high degree which the fathers did or like Saint Paul who was lifted up to the second heaven but I would like to believe that we have all gotten caught up in our prayers to the point we lose track of time and where we are. It maybe also happen to us during a liturgy. I know that when I pray during a liturgy....really really pray....the time of the liturgy seems to go by much faster.

Am I speaking nonsense or am I contributing to the general discussion at hand?

George Mekhaiel

Joined: Aug 05, 2003 | Posts: 1724
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