Prayer & Spiritual Life
73 writings in Prayer & Spiritual Life. Clear
Prayer & Spiritual Life
What is the prayer rope (chotki)?
A prayer rope is a loop of knotted cord or beads that Orthodox Christians use to count prayers, especially the Jesus Prayer. It’s a tool.…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
How do I use a prayer rope?
A prayer rope is a tool for counting prayers. That’s the simple answer. You hold it in your left hand, say a prayer on each…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
What do the knots on a prayer rope mean?
The knots don’t mean something. They are something. Each knot is a prayer made physical, a small woven cross you can hold between your fingers.…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
Is the Jesus Prayer like a mantra?
No. The Jesus Prayer isn’t a mantra, though people often ask because both involve repetition. But repetition alone doesn’t make something a mantra any more…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
What is hesychasm?
Hesychasm is a way of prayer that seeks inner stillness and union with God through the continual invocation of Jesus’ name. It’s not a technique…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
What is contemplative prayer in Orthodoxy?
Contemplative prayer in Orthodoxy isn’t a technique you learn from a book. It’s a gift of the Holy Spirit that comes after years of struggle,…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
Can I practice centering prayer or meditation as an Orthodox Christian?
Centering prayer, the movement popularized by Fr. Thomas Keating and others, is not Orthodox prayer. The Orthodox Church has its own ancient tradition of contemplative…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
What is the difference between Orthodox prayer and meditation?
Orthodox prayer is talking with God. Meditation is thinking about God. That’s the simplest way to put it, but there’s more going on here that…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
What is the Psalter?
The Psalter is the Book of Psalms arranged for prayer. It’s the 150 psalms traditionally attributed to King David, organized into twenty sections called kathismata…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
How do Orthodox read the Psalms?
We pray them. The Psalms aren’t a book we study, they’re the Church’s prayerbook, and we use them that way every single day. If you…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
What is a Kathisma?
A kathisma is one-twentieth of the Book of Psalms. The Orthodox Church divides the 150 Psalms into twenty sections called kathismata, and we read through…
Prayer & Spiritual Life
Can I pray the Psalms at home?
Yes, absolutely. The Psalms are for you. Not just for priests or monastics, not just for church services. The Psalter has been the prayer book…
