Darts of Prayer
The Key to Praying Always
The Key to Praying Always
As a child, when I needed a brown bag lunch, the bag’s top was crisply folded down, and my name was written inside a graceful, yet whimsically sketched heart. Occasionally there were other surprises too. Drawings sometimes danced on the paper’s exterior, and a little message read “I love you” or “Have a good day.” These small tokens of love always brought a smile to my lips.
As a child, when I needed a brown bag lunch, the bag’s top was crisply folded down, and my name was written inside a graceful, yet whimsically sketched heart. Occasionally there were other surprises too. Drawings sometimes danced on the paper’s exterior, and a little message read “I love you” or “Have a good day.” These small tokens of love always brought a smile to my lips.
We often express love in small ways for those we care about. Think of a time when you have sent an encouraging note or text to a friend, or left love notes around the house or in lunchboxes for your spouse or children to discover.
The desert fathers – ancient Christian monks who lived in the desert – took similar actions with regard to prayer. So great was their desire to ponder God always and to keep him continually in mind, they abandoned all and fled to the desert. Yet they still encountered difficulties. Like us, their minds wandered and grew weary. Instead of desiring God, their thoughts became distracted or preoccupied with their work, the success of their crops or even the day’s heat.
To remedy this, the monks uttered “darts of prayer” – short phrases prayed throughout the day – to raise their hearts and minds to God. This, they realized, was the key to prayer, for what better way to recall God than by frequently talking to him? Over the course of many years, this practice helped the desert fathers grow in continuous awareness of God’s presence, enabling them to “pray without ceasing.” (1 Thes 5:17)
St. Benedict, founder of Western monasticism, later drew from the desert fathers’ wisdom when creating a rule for his monks. Benedict notes that a monk’s prayer should be “pure and short.” It must be punctuated by frequent, heartfelt prayers rather than long periods of meditation. This way, the monk prays no matter the task: he speaks to God when tilling the soil, walking to his cell, copying a manuscript or providing hospitality.
Small darts of love, or “aspirations”
In his Introduction to the Devout Life, St. Francis de Sales dubs these short prayers “small darts of love.” Today we call them “aspirations.” Since prayer, as St. Teresa of Ávila reminds us, is “an intimate sharing between friends,” saying frequent aspirations helps us share our current circumstances with God and invites him into our daily activities, thus growing our friendship with him. It is essentially saying, “I’m thinking of you, God: here’s what I’m doing and experiencing. Please be with me. I want to be with you.” Adopting this practice breathes life into our day (as the name “aspiration” suggests); for prayer, the breath of the soul, is as necessary to the soul as breath to the body.
Like the desert fathers, we, too, have the ability to think of God always. But we need not escape to the desert. No matter our circumstances, we simply can think of God and utter a short prayer. If we practice this daily, we will foster love for God and keep him in mind. In the next column we will explore how to incorporate these short prayers into our day.
Maria Cintorino holds a degree in theology. Her writings have appeared in several publications including Homiletic and Pastoral Review, Our Sunday Visitor and the National Catholic Register.
