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The Exercise of the Arrow-Like Prayer
The Concept Behind this Exercise
It consists of repeating many times this short prayer: "My Lord Jesus
Christ, have mercy upon me, a sinner." This is all the practice consists
of. Although it seems simple, it needs some effort of concentration and a
lifting of the heart to God.
These prayers are called "arrow-like prayers" by the Church for they
are, in a manner of speaking, spiritual arrows that penetrate the thick veil
that can exist between man and God, rises to the pinnacle of heaven and
enters the sanctuary of the Lord and is most effective.
When you repeat this prayer with concentration, you will experience the following:
1.You will feel that the Lord is opening you eyes while you talk to Him.
2.You will realize your sins and weaknesses, and lay them in His Hands.
3.You will humble your heart as you ask for mercy and the forgiveness of the many sins you commit against
the Lord, against others, and against yourself.
4.Your heart rejoices when you feel the consolations of God's Spirit who comes near you and comforts you. You then feel that the Lord Jesus Christ enters into your feelings and
emotions.
Practical Application
1.You should choose an appropriate time to carry out this exercise. You can, for
example, repeat this prayer several tens of times in a few minutes before the
morning prayers (Prime), before the evening prayers (Vespers), when you lie down
for a nap at noon, or when you go to bed at night. On all these occasions, you either
get ready for prayer or you protect your heart and mind from being immersed in
thoughts or images of evil.
2.You will initially feel somewhat bored and that it is a monotonous routine. This
feeling, however, will disappear if you concentrate on what you are saying and if you
visualize the Lord Jesus Christ before you.
3.At the beginning, the words will be uttered by your mouth; then your mind will pay
attention to them and you will feel that you are engaged in a humble dialogue with
the Lord because of your sins. Next, your feelings are stirred and the prayer is
entrenched in your heart in joy and the awareness of the presence of the Lord
Jesus Christ. What is joyful is that this "storing up" in your heart will be very
important for your daily life. You will discover that this prayer will leap from your
heart to your lips unawares and you will find yourself saying: "My Lord Jesus Christ,
have mercy upon me.....". This will alert you to the presence of the Lord and to the
possibility of repeating it several times. If you are in a sinful situation, you will
correct it quickly, and if you are upset for any reason, you will quickly be comforted by the Lord.
The Purpose of the Exercise
The significance of any spiritual exercise resides its purpose. Is the aim of the exercise to become a spiritual hero who does exercises that other young people do not do, or is the aim
simply to unite with
the Lord Jesus Christ because of your pressing need for Him, to forgive your sins, sanctify your life, comfort your spirit as you travel in the vale of tears? This is the objective, the need of a weak
man for a loving God, for a spiritual breath of fresh air or a dose that energizes your feelings for the Lord Jesus Christ who did not begrudge you His divine blood.
The validity of the objective, therefore, is basic and the guidance of your spiritual father
guarantees the clarity of the purpose and the soundness of the way.
A Gospel Exercise
This
exercise has its roots in the gospel because it is taken from the prayer of the tax collector who stood afar off and would not so much as lift his eyes to heaven, but smote his breast saying: "God be merciful to me a
sinner" (Lk. 18: 13), and who went down to his house justified. Its roots are also in
the Old Testament, for David, the prophet, said: "O, how I love Your Name; it is my meditation all the day" (Ps.119:97), and
"I remember Your Name in the night, O Lord" (Ps. 119: 55).
Has not St. Peter said: "In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk.......
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among
men by which we must be saved." (Acts 3: 6, 4: 12)?
Did not Isaiah the prophet say: "The desire of our soul is for Your Name" (Isa. 26: 8)? It
is the name of salvation: "and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His
people from their sins" (Mt. 1: 21).
A Coptic Patristic Exercise
It was an exercise which St. Augustine advised his disciples to do asking them to repeat always: "
My Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me; my Lord Jesus Christ, help me; I praise You, My Lord
Jesus Christ." The Psalmody gives us the same feeling when we repeat continuously: "My Lord
Jesus Christ, my good Savior."
What is important is that thecall to the Lord Jesus Christ be repeated, if only in various short
requests as the need arises, and any number of times in a flexibility that aims at bringing us into the
presenceof God. The idea is not to follow fixed way or repeat it an exact number of times, but to
say it in spiritual freedom. When we feel we want to speak differently with the Lord, we leave this
prayer and talk to Him about what we want. It is only a "key" that enables us to enter to the Lord.
A State of Tranquility
The fathers say that this exercise puts
you in a state of "tranquility of the heart", or spiritual,intellectual, psychological, and nervous peace which we need urgently in our era which is full of causes for worry.
What is most wonderful about this exercise is that it goes with you everywhere: when you are among
people, on the bus or waiting for the bus, before going to bed and on getting up. It is an exercise forevery time
and every place.
Let us repeat together, my dear brother:
"My Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me; my Lord Jesus Christ, help me; I praise you my Lord Jesus Christ."
May the Lord be with you.
THE EXERCISE OF THE ARROW-LIKE PRAYER
(Number 2)
by HG Abba Moussa
Bishop of the youth
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