Contemplative Prayer

Entering into contemplative prayer is like entering into the Eucharistic liturgy:
we 'gather up' the heart,
recollect our whole being under the prompting of the Holy Spirit,
abide in the dwelling place of the Lord which we are,
awaken our faith in order to enter into the presence of Him who waits for us.
We let our masks fall and turn our hearts back to the Lord who loves us,
so as to hand ourselves over to Him as an offering
to be purified and transformed...

Contemplative prayer is silence,
the 'symbol of the world to come'
or 'silent love'.
Words in this kind of prayer are not speeches;
they are like kindlling that fire that feeds the fire of love.
In this silence,
unbearable to the 'outer man'
the Father speaks His incarnate Word,
who suffered,
died,
and rose;
in this silence the Spirit of adoption enables us
to share in the prayer of Jesus.
- Thomas a Kempis