Illumination: a Meditation on Advent

Advent Candles

In a brief departure from my series on prayer, I would like to focus on exploring the season of Advent which is now drawing toward its fourth week this Sunday. For those who grew up in the West, the Advent Wreath is one of the many visible Christian symbols of the Christmas season, right up there with the Christmas tree and Crèche. Until recently, when I attended a service at a local Protestant church, I was under the impression that most churches had some established tradition of lighting the Advent candles on each of the four Sundays leading up to Christmas – apparently I was wrong – which gave me pause to think even more intently on the beauty of this simple ritual which my friend, Brother Pier-Giorgio Winsor O.S.E. has explored extensively on his blog, Gnostic Devotions.

Advent, from the Latin word adventus meaning “[the] coming”, is a season observed in many Western Christian Churches, encompassing the four Sundays leading up to the feast of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas. It is a period of expectant waiting and introspection and mirrors in many ways the similar forty days of fasting and contemplation experienced during Lent leading up to the Feast of the Resurrection, or Easter. Even though the season of Advent is one of expectant waiting and preparation, it is interesting to note that this period of expectant waiting is not without its degree of sorrow in that although we await the symbolic birth and coming of Christ, we also know that his incarnation must inevitably end in his tragic sacrifice. Similarly during Lent, which is a season oftentimes morosely associated with gloom and sorrow of a world without God, there is the ting of joyful expectancy of the Resurrection.

During both seasons we find ourselves in a period of darkness culminating in moments of light. In Advent, we turn inward and seek to find that light within. This light, though difficult to discern at times, is none-other than the light of the indwelling Christ drawing us toward God. As written in the Gospel of John 1:4-5, “In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men. The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.” The secret flame, which burns in the heart of every woman and every man, is the light of the Christ even though at times we may not comprehend it in the darkness of our limited perspectives being made incarnate in the world of matter. For this reason, we light physical candles to help guide us as the star which the three magi followed in the weeks leading up to the nativity.

There is a particular irony that Advent occurs during the darkest part of the year, a season during which many people must struggle with seasonal affective disorder and other forms of depression brought about by the lack of light provided by the sun. In a consumerist culture, as such we find ourselves in the United States and Europe, one might note a particular seasonal effective disorder as well during which we expend much energy and thought and stress trying to procure personal effects to give to other people or effectively plaster ourselves with alcohol and other destructive substances to handle our depressions and anxieties. Likewise, there is a similar irony that occurs in Lent which is symbolically the darkest spiritual season in the liturgical calendar leading up to Easter, which always occurs on the first Sunday following the full moon after the vernal equinox – a time leading to the greatest physical light.

In the Book of Sophia we are encouraged: “Seek…after the Light, so that the power of your Soul that is in you may live. Do not desist from seeking by day and by night, until you find the purifying mysteries of the Light which refine the body of matter and make it a pure Light very refined.” Advent, being a time of preparation for the coming of the Christ who is the Light of the World, is an ideal time to refine our search for the light since it is in total darkness that light is most visible. Whether one subscribes to the belief in transmigration of souls or not, there is the belief held by some followers of Buddhism that even in spite of the less-than-ideal circumstances that lead to physical incarnation in a human body, the very fact of being human is the most ideal forms of incarnation for one to have in order to achieve Buddhahood – a similar parallel may be drawn in our own personal process of theosis.

As we prepare this weekend to light the final Advent lamp, let us meditate upon that light which is the light of the gnosis, contained within the vessels which represent the fullness (pleroma) and are fueled by sacred chrism representing the holy wisdom (sophia), that maintains the flame of faith (pistis). These are the four principal characteristics that have define Gnosticism from the beginning and are the four characteristics which principally define the totality that is the Word (logos) who became flesh, incarnating in the body of the eternal child whose birth we commemorate on Christmas.

The Way of Prayer, Part II: Engaging the Body

In an essay I recently wrote outlining the five types of prayer, I also shared an example of my personal practice using the Pater Noster as a form of contemplative prayer in the vein blending elements of lectio divina and hesychasm of the Eastern traditions. The practice of prayer is much more than the simple recitation of words and should aim to raise one’s conscious connection with one’s concept of the divine – whether that means God as conceived as in most forms of theistic belief systems or connection to one’s inner conception of God or transpersonal consciousness.

This conscious connection doesn’t simply mean a connection of consciousness which will inevitably happen, but also relies upon the support of one’s five natural senses: hearing, sight, touch, smell, and taste. Engaging these five senses fits in well with the sacramental pentad described previously in that, consciously engaged, the singular or multiple engagements of the senses helps to ground the spiritual experience of the into a very physical eucharist or “sacramental presence” which, to varying degrees, can be said to represent the aims of hesychastic practice in the Orthodox tradition, but can also be found in nearly all mystical systems under different names.

There is an oft-cited truism that I’ve seen on more than a few bumper-stickers that states something to the effect, “we are spiritual beings having a physical experience” which has a very strong appeal to me as a Gnostic who believes that each and every individual contains within him or herself a spark of that divine fire that created the kosmos and to which we are striving to return. Part of our experience, however, is to engage the body that is our temporary residence in this incarnation and to make it into a tool that can be used to direct our consciousness back to that henadic point. In India and much of the South Asian subcontinent, this developed into the very complex science of yoga in its different forms, but elements can also be found in the West, an example of which being the Nine Ways of Prayer of  Saint Dominic de Guzeman.

The Nine Ways of Prayer outlines a series of postures associated with prayer in the context of Christian devotion and was written by an anonymous Bolognese author, sometime between A.D. 1260 and A.D. 1288, whose source of information was, among other followers of St. Dominic, Sister Cecilia of Bologna’s Monastery of St. Agnes. Sister Cecilia had been given the habit by St. Dominic himself. In the Christian liturgical tradition, there are no shortage of various gestures used to supplement one’s prayer practice such as making the signum crucis (Sign of the Cross), folding of one’s hands, genuflection, among others. The Nine Ways of Prayer describes nine different postures along with scriptural references to help focus one’s mind on God. Below is a great summary as gleaned from the traditionalist Catholic website, Fish Eaters:

First Way of Prayer

Saint Dominic’s first way of prayer was to humble himself before the altar as if Christ, signified by the altar, were truly and personally present and not in symbol alone. He would say with Judith: “O Lord, God, the prayer of the humble and the meek hath always pleased Thee [Judith 9:16]. “It was through humility that the Canaanite woman and the prodigal son obtained what they desired; as for me, “I am not worthy that Thou shouldst come under my roof” [Matthew 8:8] for “I have been humbled before you exceedingly, O Lord [Psalm 118:107].”

In this way our holy father, standing erect, bowed his head and humbly considering Christ, his Head, compared his lowliness with the excellence of Christ. He then gave himself completely in showing his veneration. The brethren were taught to do this whenever they passed before the humiliation of the Crucified One in order that Christ, so greatly humbled for us, might see us humbled before his majesty. And he commanded the friars to humble themselves in this way before the entire Trinity whenever they chanted solemnly: “Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit.” In this manner of profoundly inclining his head, as shown in the drawing, Saint Dominic began his prayer.

Second Way of Prayer

Saint Dominic used to pray by throwing himself outstretched upon the ground, lying on his face. He would feel great remorse in his heart and call to mind those words of the Gospel, saying sometimes in a voice loud enough to be heard: “O God, be merciful to me, a sinner.” [Luke 18:13] With devotion and reverence he repeated that verse of David: “I am he that has sinned, I have done wickedly.” [II Kings 24:17]. Then he would weep and groan vehemently and say: “I am not worthy to see the heights of heaven because of the greatness of my iniquity, for I have aroused thy anger and done what is evil in thy sight.” From the psalm: “Deus auribus nostris audivimus” he said fervently and devoutly: “For our soul is cast down to the dust, our belly is flat on the earth!” [Psalm 43:25]. To this he would add: “My soul is prostrate in the dust; quicken Thou me according to Thy word” [Psalm 118:25].

Wishing to teach the brethren to pray reverently, he would sometimes say to them: When those devout Magi entered the dwelling they found the child with Mary, his mother, and falling down they worshipped him. There is no doubt that we too have found the God-Man with Mary, his handmaid. “Come, let us adore and fall down in prostration before God, and let us weep before God, and let us weep before the Lord that made us” [Psalm 94:61]. He would also exhort the young men, and say to them: If you cannot weep for your own sins because you have none, remember that there are many sinners who can be disposed for mercy and charity. It was for these that the prophets lamented; and when Jesus saw them, he wept bitterly. The holy David also wept as he said: “I beheld the transgressors and began to grieve” [Psalm 118:158].

Third Way of Prayer

At the end of the prayer which has just been described, Saint Dominic would rise from the ground and give himself the discipline with an iron chain, saying, “Thy discipline has corrected me unto the end” [Psalm 17:36]. This is why the Order decreed, in memory of his example, that all the brethren should receive the discipline with wooden switches upon their shoulders as they were bowing down in worship and reciting the psalm “Miserere“  [Psalm 50] or “De Profundis” [Psalm 129] after Compline on ferial days. This is performed for their own faults or for those of others whose alms they receive and rely upon. No matter how sinless he may be, no one is to desist from this holy example which is shown in the drawing.

Fourth Way of Prayer

After this, Saint Dominic would remain before the altar or in the chapter room with his gaze fixed on the Crucified One, looking upon Him with perfect attention. He genuflected frequently, again and again. He would continue sometimes from after Compline until midnight, now rising, now kneeling again, like the apostle Saint James, or the leper of the gospel who said on bended knee: “Lord, if Thou wilt, thou canst make me clean” [Matthew. 8:2]. He was like Saint Stephen who knelt and called out with a loud cry: “Lord, do not lay this sin against them” [Acts 7:60]. Thus there was formed in our holy father, Saint Dominic, a great confidence in God’s mercy towards himself, all sinners, and for the perseverance of the younger brethren whom he sent forth to preach to souls. Sometimes he could not even restrain his voice, and the friars would hear him murmuring: “Unto Thee will I cry, O Lord: O my God, be not Thou silent to me: lest if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit” [Psalm 27:1] and comparable phrases from the Sacred Scripture.

At other times, however, he spoke within himself and his voice could not be heard. He would remain in genuflection for a long while, rapt in spirit; on occasion, while in this position, it appeared from his face that his mind had penetrated heaven and soon he reflected an intense joy as he wiped away the flowing tears. He was in a stage of longing and anticipation like a thirsty man who has reached a spring, and like a traveler who is at last approaching his homeland. Then he would become more absorbed and ardent as he moved in an agile manner but with great grace, now arising, now genuflecting. He was so accustomed to bend his knees to God in this way that when he traveled, in the inns after a weary journey, or along the wayside while his companions rested or slept, he would return to these genuflections, his own intimate and personal form of worship. This way of prayer he taught his brethren more by example than by words.

Fifth Way of Prayer

When he was in the convent, our holy father Dominic would sometimes remain before the altar, standing erect without supporting himself or leaning upon anything. Often his hands would be extended before his breast in the manner of an open book; he would stand with great reverence and devotion as if reading in the very presence of God. Deep in prayer, he appeared to be meditating upon the words of God, and he seemed to repeat them to himself in a sweet voice. He regularly prayed in this way for it was Our Lord’s manner as Saint Luke tells us: “. . . according to his custom he entered the synagogue on the Sabbath and began to read” [Luke 4:16]. The psalmist also tells us that “Phinees stood up and prayed, and the slaughter ceased” [Psalm 105:30].

He would sometimes join his hands, clasping them firmly together before eyes filled with tears and restrain himself. At other times he would raise his hands to his shoulders as the priest does at Mass. He appeared then to be listening carefully as if to hear something spoken from the altar. If one had seen his great devotion as he stood erect and prayed, he would certainly have thought that he was observing a prophet, first speaking with an angel or with God himself, then listening, then silently thinking of those things which had been revealed to him.

On a journey he would secretly steal away at the time for prayer and, standing, would immediately raise his mind to heaven. One would then have heard him speaking sweetly and with supreme delight some loving words from his heart and from the riches of Holy Scripture which he seemed to draw from the fountains of the Savior. The friars were very much moved by the sight of their father and master praying in this manner. Thus, having become more fervent, they were instructed in the way of reverent and constant prayer: “Behold as the eyes of servants are on the hands of their masters, as the eyes of the handmaid are on the hands of her mistress . . .” [Psalm 122:2].

Sixth Way of Prayer

Our holy father, Saint Dominic, was also seen to pray standing erect with his hands and arms outstretched forcefully in the form of a cross. He prayed in this way when God, through his supplications, raised to life the boy Napoleon in the sacristy of the Church of Saint Sixtus in Rome, and when he was raised from the ground at the celebration of Mass, as the good and holy Sister Cecilia, who was present with many other people and saw him, narrates. He was like Elias who stretched himself out and lay upon the widow’s son when he raised him to life…

This example of our father’s prayer would help devout souls to appreciate more easily his great zeal and wisdom in praying thus. This is true whether, in doing so, he wished to move God in some wonderful manner through his prayer or whether he felt through some interior inspiration that God was to move him to seek some singular grace for himself or his neighbor. He then shone with the spiritual insight of David, the ardor of Elias, the charity of Christ, and with a profound devotion, as the drawing serves to indicate.

Seventh Way of Prayer

While praying, he was often seen to reach towards heaven like an arrow which has been shot from a taut bow straight upwards into the sky. He would stand with hands outstretched above his head and joined together, or at times slightly separated as if about to receive something from heaven. One would believe that he was receiving an increase of grace and in this rapture of spirit was asking God for the gifts of the Holy Spirit for the Order he had founded…

Through his words and holy example he constantly taught the friars to pray in this way, often repeating those phrases from the psalms: “Behold, now bless ye the Lord, all ye servants of the Lord … in the nights lift up your hands to the holy places, and bless ye the Lord” [Psalm 133:1-3], “I have cried to Thee, O Lord, hear me; hearken to my voice when I cry to Thee. Let my prayer be directed as incense in Thy sight; the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice” [Psalm 140:1-2]. The drawing shows us this mode of prayer so that we may better understand it.

Eighth Way of Prayer

Our Father, Saint Dominic, had yet another manner of praying at once beautiful, devout, and pleasing, which he practiced after the canonical hours and the thanksgiving following meals. He was then zealous and filled with the spirit of devotion which he drew from the divine words which had been sung in the choir or refectory. Our father quickly withdrew to some solitary place, to his cell or elsewhere, and recollected himself in the presence of God. He would sit quietly, and after the sign of the cross, begin to read from a book opened before him. His spirit would then be sweetly aroused as if he heard Our Lord speaking, as we are told in the psalms: “I will hear what the Lord God will speak to me. [Psalm 84:9]. As if disputing with a companion he would first appear somewhat impatient in his thought and words. At the next moment he would become a quiet listener, then again seem to discuss and contend. He seemed almost to laugh and weep at the same time, and then, attentively and submissively, would murmur to himself and strike his breast…

When he read alone in this solitary fashion, Dominic used to venerate the book, bow to it, and kiss it. This was especially true if he was reading the Gospels and when he had been reading the very words which had come from the mouth of Christ. At other times he would hide his face and cover it with his cappa, or bury his face in his hands and veil it slightly with the capuce. Then he would weep, all fervent and filled with holy desires. Following this, as if to render thanks to some person of great excellence for benefits received, he would reverently rise and incline his head for a short time. Wholly refreshed and, in great interior peace, he then returned to his book.

Ninth Way of Prayer

Our Father, Saint Dominic, observed this mode of prayer while traveling from one country to another, especially when he passed through some deserted region. He then delighted in giving himself completely to meditation, disposing for contemplation, and he would say to his companion on the journey: It is written in Osee “I will lead her (my spouse) into the wilderness and I will speak to her ear” [Osee 2:14]. Parting from his companion, he would go on ahead or, more frequently, follow at some distance. Thus withdrawn, he would walk and pray; in his meditation he was inflamed and the fire of charity was enkindled. While he prayed it appeared as if he were brushing dust or bothersome flies from his face when he repeatedly fortified himself with the Sign of the Cross.

The brethren thought that it was while praying in this way that the saint obtained his extensive penetration of Sacred Scripture and profound understanding of the divine words, the power to preach so fervently and courageously, and that intimate acquaintance with the Holy Spirit by which he came to know the hidden things of God.

Many of the elements of prayer mentioned in The Nine Ways of Prayer should be familiar to one degree or another by anyone who has attended liturgy at any Roman Catholic Church. Genuflection, prostration, penitential “thumping of the breast”, standing dieu garde, holding the hands open, standing cruciform, kneeling in adoration, sitting in a position of reflection, and circumambulation are all well-attested postures used in Catholic liturgy and other Christian liturgical traditions and can be powerful physical aids to establishing a conscious connection during prayer. If one of course has some physical disability, it might not be possible to engage in all of them, but the frame of mind can be adopted and the gestures can be adjusted to the comfort and physical needs of those who should need to do so.

In my personal practice, which is deeply influenced by the Hesychastic practices of Eastern Christian contemplative traditions, the two most common postures I adopt during prayer are those of standing, kneeling and sitting with my knees pulled up to my breast with my head lightly resting between my knees. I have personally found these postures and gestures to be sufficient to putting myself in a contemplative mind-set whereby I can focus on my connection with the primordial nous, or God. Hesychastic practice has a varied history and set of rules, but the overall aim is to align the body, mind and heart in single-pointed concentration on God (very similar, in some respects, to the goals of establishing dhyana in yoga). These basic, inward focusing, postures has led some to refer to hesychasts as “navel-gazers” which, despite being more than slighty pejorative in intent, is actually pretty accurate.

In traditional Hesychastic practice, the singular prayer most often used is the famous Prayer of the Heart, commonly known as the Jesus Prayer: “Κύριε Ἰησοῦ Χριστέ, Υἱὲ τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἐλέησόν με τὸν ἁμαρτωλόν.” (Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.); or, simply, “Jesus. Mercy.” Other variations of this exist and can also include the Trisagion: “Ἅγιος ὁ Θεός, Ἅγιος ἰσχυρός, Ἅγιος ἀθάνατος, ἐλέησον ἡμᾶς” (Holy God, Holy Strong, Holy Immortal, have mercy on us.), or, as an option for Gnostics and esoteric Christians, the Adoration of the Lord of the Universe: “Holy art Thou, Lord of the Universe. Holy art Thou, whom nature hath not formed. Holy art Thou, vast and mighty. Lord of the light and the darkness.” While some may assert that these prayers are to be recited in a manner consistent with japa or mantrayoga, I cannot over-emphasize that while there are superficial similarities, this is not the case. Instead, one should focus on using stilling the body and experiencing God “heart to heart”.

Amongst some Sufi sects as well as in other ecstatic paths (Voudon and Santeria being great examples) another way of physically engaging in prayer can be through ecstatic dance. Although I am not personally one for dancing at the clubs that I go to, when I am attending sevis at a fête, I can barely resist letting the music of the drums move my feet as I dance with others in honor of the various saints, lwa and spirits present. While some may express some shock at the context, sacred dance even has its role in the expression of the earliest Christian communities which appear at surface level to appear no different in ecstatic expression than many contemporary Pentecostal services. Paul himself, in response to one community “getting a little out of hand”, was forced to write about it in Corinthians. Interestingly enough, there is scriptural evidence in the Gnostic Gospels which indicate that liturgical dance was practiced by more than one community in the 1^st and 2^nd centuries:

“Glory to Thee, Father! (And we going round in a ring answered to Him:) ‘Amen!’ Glory to Thee, Word! ‘Amen!’ Glory to Thee, Grace! ‘Amen!’ Glory to Thee, Spirit! Glory to Thee, Holy One! Glory to Thy Glory! ‘Amen!’ We praise Thee, O Father; We give Thanks to Thee, O light; In Whom Darkness dwells not! ‘Amen!’(For what we give thanks to the Logos). I would be saved; and I would save. ‘Amen!’ I would be loosed; and I would loose. ‘Amen!’ I would be wounded; and I would wound. ‘Amen!’ I would be begotten; and I would beget. ‘Amen!’ I would eat; and I would be eaten. ‘Amen!’ I would hear; and I would be heard. ‘Amen!’ I would be washed; and I would wash. ‘Amen!’(Grace leadeth the dance.) ..dance ye all.” – The Hymn of Jesus

While we may never know what form the dance actually took, if it was performed at all, contextually we can probably assume that it took a similar form as what it practiced in contemporary Jewish festivals as a roundel, or perhaps something very similar to what neo-Pagans would recognize as their so-called “spiral dance”. Regardless of the form that it took, it is a great example of engaging the physical being in prayer. For many dance as an act of prayer may seem like a revolutionary concept in spiritual engagement, but in the words of “saint” Emma Goldman, “If I can’t dance I don’t want to be in your revolution.”

Naturally, there are many directions one could go in exploring different ways to engage the body in prayer. It is my hope that by providing some examples one may be moved to find a way that works for themselves as a spring-board toward enriching their prayer life. Not every method will be as appealing for some as for others, but the important thing is to find something that works to help oneself meaningfully engage and become physically connected to their experience of the divine as they know it.

Icon of Jesus as "Lord of the Dance"

The Way of Prayer: Five Types of Prayer

In my previous entry on revisiting the Lyon Ritual of the Cathars, I mentioned one of the things that drew me to the ritual itself beyond being a historical example of a gnostic method rite of initiation is the direct method of transmitting the knowledge of prayer. Many may question why the transmission or instruction in prayer is necessary – shouldn’t it come naturally? Well, despite the fact that we live in a culture in which prayer is often taught at a young age and demonstrated in public and private spheres, now as in the past, very few people actually know how to pray.

As I was composing my previous entry last night, by an act of synchronicity I received a Facebook message from one of my sisters in my fraternity asking about my feelings and observations of various religious systems relating to the topic of prayer. She writes:

“For example, as a Thelemite, I personally have complete respect for other religious practices (prayer included) and on occasion participate in. My best friend has been a Christian for many years, and now more recently, a Mormon. When we would have meals, depending on who is present, we either do Will, or I ask that her and her Husband lead us in prayer (as this is their custom). I definitely have the intention present in mind of blessing the food as well the well wishes and intent of the particular prayer they speak.”

To this I responded in all sincerity, that this is a topic very dear to my heart and that it is something I’ve struggled with and am still very much exploring myself. As we exchanged correspondence via Facebook and text messaging, I was moved to write this essay to outline an enchiridion on the way of prayer from a Western perspective, although exploring other examples when appropriate.

Simply defined, using the Wikipedia entry on the topic:

“Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of a hymn, incantation, formal creed, or a spontaneous utterance in the praying person. There are different forms of prayer such as petitionary prayer, prayers of supplication, thanksgiving, and worship/praise. Prayer may be directed towards a deity, spirit, deceased person, or lofty idea, for the purpose of worshipping, requesting guidance, requesting assistance, confessing sins or to express one’s thoughts and emotions. Thus, people pray for many reasons such as personal benefit or for the sake of others.”

In the West, but also in other cultures, prayer is primarily a conscious effort to make contact with intelligence beyond that of the person performing the prayer and can be performed either singularly by an individual or as an expression of corporate religiosity. Broken down, according to traditional Roman Catholic teaching there are five essential types of prayer:

• Prayer of Praise and Adoration

“Praise to a higher power or powers as an act of devotion. In Vedic practice, this could also encompass the most basic type of bhakti.”

• Prayer of Penitence

“Prayer aimed to a higher power or powers in recognition of personal fault or misdeed. In Jewish, Christian and Muslim practice, it typically manifests as a form of individual confession aimed at removing or absolving sin. In Buddhist and Vedic practice, this form of prayer may also conditionally encompass expatiatory prayer aimed at removing the harmful effect of misdeeds.”

• Prayer of Petition

“Prayer aimed at petitioning a higher power or powers to bring about some kind of spiritual, emotional, or physical assistance. By far the most common type of prayer across different cultures. “

• Prayer of Thanksgiving

“Prayer aimed at thanking a higher power or powers for bringing about some kind of fortune or provision.”

• Prayer of Intercession

“Prayer aimed at a higher power or powers on behalf of a third party or parties for the purpose of bringing about some kind of spiritual, emotional or physical effect.”

The five types of prayer exemplify the most common aims individuals have during the act of prayer. In practice, many prayers involve one or more of these elements. In ritual or liturgy, it is often common to use all of these types of prayer at varying intervals to help connect the individual or group consciousness with their agreed upon or recognized definition of a higher power or power.

From the perspective of applying a magical theory to these types of prayer we can create the following table of correspondence:

	Type of Prayer	Element	Power of the Sphinx	Evangelist
1.	Prayer of Praise and Adoration	Air	To Know	Matthew
2.	Prayer of Penitence	Earth	To Will	Luke
3.	Prayer of Petition	Fire	To Dare	Mark
4.	Prayer of Intercession	Water	To Keep Silence	John
5.	Prayer of Thanksgiving	Æthyr	To Go	Holy Paraclete[1]

The above list is largely speculative, but I feel represents from a certain Gnostic perspective the elements of prayer in an esoteric perspective. In the course of my discussion with my sister, we came upon the interesting point which would have made penitential prayer seemingly useless from a Thelemic perspective unless we considered, alchemically, that penance as a correspondence to elemental earth is also connected to the alchemical element of Salt which, in chapter four of Book 4, Crowley considers the following attribution:

                “The Christian idea that sin was worth while because salvation was so much more worth while, that redemption is so splendid that innocence was well lost, is more satisfactory. St. Paul says: “Where sin abounded, there did grace much more abound. Then shall we do evil that good may come? God forbid.” But (clearly!) it is exactly what God Himself did, or why did He create Satan with the germ of his “fall” in him?

Instead of condemning the three qualities outright, we should consider them as parts of a sacrament. This particular aspect of the Scourge, the Dagger, and the Chain, suggests the sacrament of penance.

The Chain is Salt: it serves to bind the wandering thoughts; and for this reason is placed about the neck of the Magician, where Daath is situated…

The Scourge keeps the aspiration keen: the Dagger expresses the determination to sacrifice all; and the Chain restricts any wandering.”

Even though Thelema (and presumably some schools of Gnosticism) outright decry the ontological nature of “sin” as commonly understood by exoteric Christianity, it functionally exists and could be understood to represent the point from which we wander away from our connection with our understanding of the Divine.

It is also worth considering that these five methods of prayer may also have a correspondence to the “orthodox” sacramental system mentioned in the gnostic Gospel of Philip:

“The Lord did everything in a mystery, a baptism and a chrism and a eucharist and a redemption and a bridal chamber. [...] he said, “I came to make the things below like the things above, and the things outside like those inside. I came to unite them in the place.” [...] here through types [...]and images.”

The sacramental pentad of presented in the Gospel of Philip could be considered in the following way:

	Type of Prayer	Sacrament	Element
1.	Praise and Adoration	Bridal Chamber	Air
2.	Petition	Chrism	Fire
3.	Intercession	Baptism	Water
4.	Penitential	Redemption	Earth
5.	Thanksgiving	Eucharist	Æthyr

How this all ties into the Lyon Ritual is my profound interest in the Pater Noster, or Lord’s Prayer which was the central mystery (if it could be called such) of the Cathar sacramental system. Unique among the some of the various Gnostic schools the Cathars, in general, formed an anti-sacerdotal party in opposition to the Catholic Church, protesting against what they perceived to be the moral, spiritual and political corruption of the Church.

The organization of Cathar religious hierarchy bears a very strong resemblance to later evangelical and Anabaptist schools and seemed, primarily, to be focused on prayer and evangelism in addition to the administration of two primary sacraments: the traditio, or transmission of prayer in which the postulant to the Cathar faith would be instructed in prayer and become a credent (believer), and the consolamentum which functioned both sacramentally and sacerdotally whereby the credent would become a parfait (perfect, or elder) who could function as a minister among Cathar communities and would often preach and administer the sacraments to others. Among the perfects, were also regional bishops; but their role varied from Catholic bishops, not relying on apostolic succession but instead was relegated to being functional overseers of other perfecti.

The rite of traditio mirrors in many ways the origins of Christianity as a dually exoteric and esoteric religious tradition. Exoteric in that Christians, as early as the apostolic age, were recognized distinctly in many ways from mainstream Judaism of the first and second centuries, and esoteric in that certain rites would only have been engaged in by members of the early Christian community. This is already apparent in the time of the earthly ministry of Jesus in the synoptic gospels when Jesus is asked by his apostles about the method of Prayer:

“Now Jesus was praying in a certain place, and when he finished, one of his disciples said to him, “Lord, teach us to pray, as John taught his disciples.” And he said to them, “When you pray, say:

‘Father, hallowed be your name. Your kingdom come. Give us each day our daily bread and forgive us our sins, for we ourselves forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And lead us not into temptation.’”

Immediately, he continues with further instructions:

“And he said to them, “Which of you who has a friend will go to him at midnight and say to him, ‘Friend, lend me three loaves, for a friend of mine has arrived on a journey, and I have nothing to set before him’; and he will answer from within, ‘Do not bother me; the door is now shut, and my children are with me in bed. I cannot get up and give you anything’? I tell you, though he will not get up and give him anything because he is his friend, yet because of his impudence he will rise and give him whatever he needs. And I tell you, ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and the one who seeks finds, and to the one who knocks it will be opened.”

The Lord’s Prayer, as I have previously noted, is perhaps the best known Christian prayer and is frequently the first prayer that children raised in Christian cultures are taught. It is unique on many levels, not the least of which is that in fifty two words (in English, not including the doxology which raises the word count to 66) it fulfills all five types of prayer and encompasses so much of the Christian experience that it has inspired theologians for centuries to the present day.

For me personally, it is one of the primary prayers that I personally pray throughout the day after I had been taught to pray it without knowing that when I received it as the only act of penance one day, I was being taught how to pray in a way that, I imagine, would have been similarly meaningful to Cathar postulants. All that was required of me was that I, “pray the Lord’s Prayer slowly”; effectually turning the Lord’s Prayer into an act of lectio divina. For this, I would take each line and contemplate it individually, slowly adding on the other verses up until I would reach the doxology – the “eucharist” of the prayer – and have inflamed myself in prayer. It is a cathartic, and purifying experience and has brought me much pleasure and inspiration and it is for this simple fact I am a proponent and student of prayer.

 

A Cathar coin

 

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[1] As the inspirer of scripture.

The Lyon Ritual Revisited

Lately, as I’ve been spending a lot of time researching the enigmatic sect known as the Cathars. While there is much that we do know based on the historical accounts and by what little literature remains from their liturgies, there is still much that we don’t know. What makes this research even more difficult is that it is difficult to make a sweeping generalization of what was once such a popular movement spread over a relative large geographic region which, in turn, makes it difficult to ascertain the degree of agreement in various beliefs between one community and another as well as how their liturgies were practiced.

For the purposes of this entry, I have attempted to reconstruct the Cathar Rite known as Traditio, which was a rite for the transmission of prayer during which the postulant or person approaching the Cathars would be instructed in directed prayer using the Pater Noster (Lord’s Prayer) as its basis. This rite is of particular interest to me for many reasons, but primary above all is that I imagine it would have more meaning to the believer and people would actually learn efficacious prayer instead of learning it by rote.

The reconstruction below  is based off the Lyon Ritual, (ms. Lyon, Bibliothèque municipale, PA 36, 235v-241) as found in the Cathar Texts and Rituals portion of the Gnostic Society Library. Where there were textual omissions, I have attempted to fill in the blanks and notate as such wherever possible. In order to provide an idea of what the ritual could look like when performed, I have included ritual directions in italics based off instructions provided in the Lyon Ritual itself or off precedents of similar Christian and initiatory ritual.

A Reconstruction of the Cathar Rite commonly called, Traditio

The Postulant, dressed in plain clothes, is brought before the Elder dressed in a black robe who is standing next to a table upon which there is a Bible opened to the Gospel of John.

The Witness, or sponsor, of the Postulant stands behind them on their right.

The Assembly, if any, are seated behind the Postulant in a semi-circle wearing their robes.

Elder               O child of God, [Name of Postulant][1], you must realize that when you are before the Church of God you are before the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost, as the Scriptures teach. For Christ said in the Gospel according to Saint Matthew: “Wheresoever two or three are gathered together in my name there I am in the midst of them.”[2]

And in the Holy Gospel according to Saint John he said, “Wheresoever two or three are gathered together in my name there I am in the midst of them.”, and we will come unto him and make our abode with him.”[3]

And Saint Paul says in the Second Epistle to the Corinthians, “Ye are the Temple of the Living God, as God hath said by Isaiah, his prophet; I dwell in them and walk in them; and I will be their God and they shall be My people. Wherefore come out from among them and be ye separate, saith the Lord; and touch not the unclean thing; and I will receive you, and will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be My sons and daughters, saith the Lord Almighty.”[4]

And in another place he says, “Seek ye the proof of Christ Who speaketh in me.”[5]

And in the First Epistle to Timothy he says, “These things write I unto thee, hoping to come unto thee shortly; but if I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the House of God, which is the Church of the Living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.”[6]

And he said also to the Hebrews, “But Christ is a Son over His own house, Whose house we are[7].”

That the Spirit of God is with the followers of Jesus Christ, Christ has shown thus in the Gospel according to Saint John, “If ye love me, keep my commandments. And I will pray the Father, and He shall give you another Comforter, that He may abide with you forever; even the Spirit of Truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth Him not, neither knoweth Him; but ye know Him, for He dwelleth with you, and shall be in you. I will not leave you comfortless, I will come to you[8].”

And in the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew He said, “Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.[9]“

And Saint Paul said in the First Epistle to the Corinthians, “Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you? If any man man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the Temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.[10]“

Christ shows it thus in the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew, “For it is not ye that speak but the Spirit of your Father that speaketh in you.[11]“

And Saint John says in his epistle, “By this we know that we abide in Him and He in us, for He has given us His Spirit.[12]“

And Saint Paul said to the Galatians, “Because ye are sons God hath sent forth the spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying “Father! Father![13]“

Wherefore be it understood that your presentation made before the sons of Jesus Christ confirms the faith and teaching of the Church of God as the Holy Scriptures tell us. For in former times the people of God separated themselves from the Lord their God. And they abandoned the will and guidance of their Heavenly Father through the deceptions of the wicked spirits and by submission to their will.

And for these reasons, and many others, we are certain that the Heavenly Father would have pity on His people and receive them again in peace and concord by the coming of His Son, Jesus Christ, and now is the time.

For you are here before the disciples of Jesus Christ in the place where Father, Son and Holy Ghost have their spiritual abode as is shown above, to receive that Holy Prayer which the Lord Jesus gave to His disciples, so that your prayers might be granted by our Heavenly Father.

Therefore must you learn that if you would receive this Holy Prayer you must repent your sins and forgive all men. For Our Lord Jesus Christ says, “If ye forgive not men their trespasses, neither will your Heavenly Father, forgive your trespasses.[14]“

Hence it is meet and right that you be resolved in your heart to keep this Holy Prayer all your life according to the custom of the Church of God, in purity and truth, and in all other virtues which God would bestow upon you.

Wherefore we pray the good Lord who bestowed upon the disciples of Jesus Christ the virtue to receive this Holy Prayer steadfastly that He may grant to you also the grace to receive it steadfastly, in His honour and for your salvation.

The Elder then says the Lord’s Prayer and the postulant follow him phrase by phrase.

Our father, which art in Heaven,

Hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come,

Thy will be done on Earth as it is in Heaven.

Give us this day our supplementary bread,

And remit our debts as we forgive our debtors.

And keep us from temptation and free us from evil.

Thine is the kingdom, the power and glory for ever and ever.

Amen.

 

Pater noster qui es in celis,

sanctificetur nomen tuum;

adveniat regnum tuum.

Fiat voluntas tua sicut in celo et in terra.

Panem nostrum supersubstancialem da nobis hodie.

Et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris.

Et ne nos inducas in temptationem sed libera nos a malo.

Quoniam tuum est regnum et virtus et gloria in secula.

Amen.

After which the Elder will say:

Elder               “We deliver you this Holy Prayer that you may receive it of us and of God and of the Church, that you may have the power to say it all your life, day and night, alone or in company, and that you must never eat or drink without first saying it. If you omit to do so you must do penance.”

Postulant         “I receive it of you and of the Church.”

Then he turns and give thanks and make his melioramentum [15](bowing at the feet of the Elder).

Then the Elder asks the postulant:

Elder               “My brother, do you desire to give yourself to our faith?”

The postulant being asked three times, and answering “Yes” on all, makes a bow and advances one step between each, saying “Bless me,” to which the Elder replies, “God bless and keep you.”

At the third time bowing thus the postulant adds:

Postulant         “Lord, pray to God for me, a sinner[16], that He will lead me to the good end,”

The Elder replies:

Elder               “God bless you and make you a good Christian and bring you to the good end.”

The Elder then inquires of the Postulant.

Elder               “Do you give yourself to God and the Gospel?

Postulant         “Yes”

Elder               “Do you promise that henceforth you will eat neither meat nor eggs, nor cheese, nor fat, and that you live only from water and wood (i.e. vegetables and fish), that you will not lie, that you will not swear, that you will not kill, that you will not abandon your body to any form of luxury, that you will never go alone when it is possible to have a companion, that you will never sleep without breeches and shirt and that you will never abandon your faith for fear of water, fire or any other manner of death?”

Postulant         “Yes”

Elder               [Do] you wish to receive the spiritual baptism whereby the Holy Spirit is given in the Church of God with the Holy Prayer by the laying on of hands of the Good Men. Of this Baptism Our Lord Jesus Christ said in the Holy Gospel according to Saint Matthew:

“Go ye and teach all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” And in the Gospel of Saint Mark he said,”Go ye into all the world and preach the Gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved, but he that believeth not shall be damned”.[17]

And in the Gospel of Saint John He said to Nicodemus, “Verily, verily I say unto thee, except a man be born of water and the spirit he cannot enter into the Kingdom of God[18].”

And John the Baptist spoke of this baptism when he said, “I indeed baptize you with water, but one mightier than I cometh, the latchet of whose shoes I am not worthy to loosen; he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost and with fire.”[19]

This gift of the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands has been instituted by Jesus Christ as Saint Luke tells, and he said that his friends would confer it as Saint Mark says, “They shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.[20]“

And Ananias conferred this Baptism on Saint Paul when he was converted. For Saint Luke says thus in the Acts of the Apostles, “Now when the Apostles which were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God they sent unto them Peter and John, who when they were come down, prayed for them that they might receive of the Holy Spirit, for as yet He was fallen upon none of them[21].”

Then they laid their hands on them and they received the Holy Spirit. This Holy Baptism by which the Holy Spirit is given the Church of God has kept from the Apostles until now, and it has come from the Good Men to the Good Men until now and shall do till the end of the world.

And you must understand that power is given to the Church of God to bind and to loose, to forgive sins and to retain them, as Christ said in the Gospel of Saint John, “As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this he breathed on them and saith unto them “Receive Ye the Holy Ghost”; whatsoever sins ye remit they are remitted unto them, and whatsoever sins ye regain, they are regained.”[22]

And in the Gospel of Saint Matthew he said to Simon Peter, “I say unto thee that thou art Peter and upon this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it. And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven[23].”

And again, “If two of you shall agree on earth as touching anything that they shall ask, it shall be done for them of my Father which is in Heaven. For wheresoever two or three are gathered in my name there am I in the midst of them[24]“

And in another place he said, “Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils[25]“

And in the Gospel of Saint John he said, “He that believeth on me, the works that I do he shall do also.[26]“

And in the Gospel of Saint Mark he said, “These signs shall follow them that believe; in my name shall they cast out devils, they shall speak with new tongues, they shall take up serpents, and if they drink any deadly thing it shall not hurt them, they shall lay hands on the sick and they shall recover.[27]“

And in the Gospel of Saint Luke he said, “Behold I give unto you power to tread on serpents and scorpions and over all the power of the enemy and nothing shall by any means hurt you.[28]“

And if you wish to receive this power you must keep all the commandments of Christ and the New Testament according to your ability. And know that He has commanded that man shall not commit adultery or murder or lie, that he must not swear any oath, that he shall not seize or rob, nor do to others what he would not have done to himself, that man must forgive whoever wrongs him and love his enemies, pray for his detractors and accusers and bless them; and if anyone strike him on one cheek, turn to him the other also, and if anyone takes away his cloak, to leave him his coat also; and that he should neither judge nor condemn, and many other commandments which the Lord made for His Church.

Also you must hate this world and its works and the things of the world, for Saint John says in his epistle: “O my beloved, love not the world, neither the things that are in the world. If any man love the world the love of the Father is not in him. For all that is in the world, the lust of the flesh and the lust of the eyes and the pride of life , is not of the Father but is of the world. And the world passeth away and the lust thereof, but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever.[29]“

And Christ said unto the Gentiles, “The world cannot hate you, but me it hates because I bear witness of it that its works are evil.[30]“

And in the Book of Solomon[31], it is written, “I have seen all the works that are done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and vexation of Spirit[32].”

And Jude the brother of James said for our instruction in his Epistle, “Hate the solid garment of flesh[33].”

And by these witnesses and any others you must keep the commandments of God and hate the world. And if you continue well to the end, we have the hope that your soul shall have life eternal.

And the Credent shall say:

Credent           “I have this will, pray to God for me that He will give me His power”

The Elder directs the Postulant to kneel. Elder and Witness lay their hands on the head of the postulant.

Witness, say:

Witness           “Parcite Nobis[34]. Good Christians we pray you by the love of God that you grant this blessing, which God had given you, to our friend here present.”

The Postulant, now known as the Credent, after making his melioramentum says:

Credent           “Parcite Nobis. For all the sins I have ever done in thought, word and deed. I ask pardon of God, of the Church, and of you all.”

Assembly of Cathars and Witnesses say:

Assembly         “By God and by us and by the Church, may your sins be forgiven and we pray God to forgive you them.”

Adoremus, Patrem, et Filium et Spiritum Sanctam.[35]

Adoremus, Patrem, et Filium et Spiritum Sanctam.

Adoremus, Patrem, et Filium et Spiritum Sanctam.

 

Here may follow a hymn such as Veni Creator Spiritus, this followed by a homily on the Pater Noster and or one of the readings given in the ritual.

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[1] My reconstruction.

[2] Matthew 18:20

[3] John 14:23

[4] 2 Corinthians 6:16-18

[5] 2 Corinthians 13:3

[6] 1 Timothy 3:15

[7] Hebrews 3:6

[8] John 14:15

[9] Matthew 28:20

[10] I Corinthians 13:17

[11] Matthew 10:20

[12] I John 4:13

[13] Galatians 4:6

[14] Matthew 6:15

[15] Literally, “betterment” – penance. In practice, a full prostration on the ground, arms likely spread out in cruciform position.

[16] The Prayer of the Heart: “Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.”

[17] Matthew 28:19

[18] John 3:5

[19] Luke 3:16; Matthew 3:11, Mark 1:7

[20] Mark 16:18

[21] Acts 8:14

[22] John 20:21-23

[23] Matthew 16:13-19

[24] Matthew 18:19-20

[25] Matthew 10:8

[26] John 14:12

[27] Mark 16:17-18

[28] Luke 10:19

[29] I John 2:15-17

[30] John 7:7

[31] Ecclesiastes, commonly attributed to Solomon, “son of David”.

[32] Ecclesiastes 1:14

[33] Jude 1:23

[34] “Spare us, [O, Lord].”

[35] “Let us worship the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.”