Heart Prayer
True Itation

This is a brief introduction to the ancient Christian practice of "Prayer of the Heart" through the "Iyesus Prayer."

the Prayer

The words of the "Iyesus Prayer" are

Lord Iyesus Krystos, Son of God, have mercy on me a sinner.

You will find variations with more or fewer words, but all will have the same meaning. This prayer is rooted in the prayer of the publican (Luke 18:9-14).

The goal of this practice is continual, unceasing prayer of the heart, but our holy ancestors advise us to start small, repeating the prayer 33, 50, 100, or 300 times a day and gradually increasing to unceasing prayer.

The first step is to begin with the words themselves, learning to address them to Y'shua sincerely, spiritually unguarded, and mentally undistracted. This is much, much harder than it sounds.

After some time, you will find that the pattern of the repeated prayer begins to conform to your breathing. The pattern of the prayer will eventually conform to both breathing and heartbeat.

Over time, the holy ones tell us, the prayer itself descends from mind to heart, where Jah Father, Son, and Holy Spirit dwell within.

the Rope

To assist focus, our holy ancestors have handed down the "prayer rope" to us. The prayer rope is a loop of 33, 50, 100, 300, or 500 knots, usually with a cross pendant. A person holds each knot in turn as he or she prays.

It is said that the prayer rope originated with holy Abba Anthony of the Desert. The ancient accounts tell us:

When the holy Abba Anthony lived in the desert he was beset by accidie, and attacked by many sinful thoughts. He said to God, "Lord, I want to be saved but these thoughts do not leave me alone; what shall I do in my affliction? How can I be saved?" A short while afterwards, when he got up to go out, Anthony saw a man like himself sitting at his work, getting up from his work to pray, then sitting down and plaiting a rope, then getting up again to pray. It was an angel of the Lord sent to correct and reassure him. He heard the angel saying to him, "Do this and you will be saved." At these words, Anthony was filled with joy and courage. He did this, and he was saved.
Many of the great Desert Fathers plaited ropes for their occupation, to purchase the little food they needed. As they did this, they prayed continually, as Abba Lucius said: "While doing my manual work, I pray without interruption. I sit down with God, soaking my reeds and plaiting my ropes, and I say, 'God, have mercy on me; according to your great goodness and according to the multitude of your mercies, save me from my sins.' ...so, by the grace of God, I fulfil the precept to pray without ceasing." It is said that Abba Anthony, father of the Desert Fathers, created the first prayer ropes as he did this.

Nowadays, prayer ropes may be very simple (single knots in a string) or quite elaborate (each knot made of seven crosses). Black wool is often preferred to signify that we are Y'shua's repentant sheep. Other people prefer to use strings of beads rather than knots. Olive wood beads, made from trees like the ones growing in Gethsemane, are often preferred.

These ropes do not bind, but set us free.

the Repetition

Some Christians have been misled by the King James Version of Matthew 6:7 into thinking Y'shua condemns repetitive prayer. This is not true.

A more accurate translation of the phrase in Matthew 6:7 would be "empty babblings," not "vain repetitions." It is, moreover, the vanity or emptiness Y'shua condemns, not the repetition itself. Repetitive prayers are welcome before the throne of Jah:

And [the four living creatures] do not rest day or night, saying: "Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!" Whenever the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty four elders fall down before Him who sits on the throne... saying: "You are worthy, O Lord, to receive glory and honor and power; for You created all things, and by Your will they exist and were created."
Who could tire of a lover expressing his or her true love?

Christians are rightly concerned that our prayers never become mere external, heartless recitation. But this does not happen when we remain focused and spiritually unreserved, driving away all distraction and seeking true self-giving communion with Jah Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in Love. In fact, many Christians find that so-called "formulaic" vocal prayers actually assist deeper mental meditation and spiritual contemplation of Jah, because they are freed from expending any concentraton composing new words.

It helps to think of each prayer as a new opportunity, right here and now, to pray without distraction, without barriers or reservations, and with new focus and power. The prayer of each moment is unique and priceless, a new movement from Y'shua's heart to your heart and from yours to Y'shua's.

This is the truest chant of the heart.

Resources

There are many excellent guides in the practice of prayer. Here are a few.

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