An Essential Guide to Catholic Meditation
What Is Meditation and How Does It Benefit Catholics? At its most basic definition, meditation is a method that helps people relax. When you meditate, you intentionally breathe deeper and relax your muscles. Your racing thoughts will calm down, and for a moment, the busyness of life comes to a halt. It’s just you and the peace of the moment. Let’s face it — life can be pretty hectic at times. Some people are unaware of how stressed they are until they finally have a moment of peace and quiet. But the truth is that you’re only human. It’s only through engaging in a healthy dose of self-care that you can care for others. Meditation is a way that people around the world care for themselves. Meditation deactivates the sympathetic nervous system, one of the two divisions of the autonomic nervous system. The sympathetic nervous system is the part of you that controls unconscious operations like sweating and other functions that prepare your body for physical activity. Of these functions, the most noticeable when it kicks in is what’s called the “fight or flight” response. Your body can enter fight or flight mode for various reasons. It can result from perceived dangers, which are dangers that only exist in your mind. These can stem from past traumas or self-made worries. Your body can also enter a state of fight or flight from actual, present circumstances that happen unexpectedly. The purpose of meditation is to help you exit from this state of fight or flight. Your body and mind will calm down, and you’ll be able to think more clearly again. But it doesn’t stop there. You’ll see in the next section how Catholic meditation differs from traditional meditation. For now, know that meditation is a means of calming down and finding peace during life’s stressful moments. Catholics are susceptible to the stresses of life like everyone else. Meditation has many benefits for Catholics, including the following: Reduced anxiety: Whether your anxiety stems from a real or perceived threat, Catholic meditation can help you regain your confidence. Remember that God’s will for you is good, as He promises in Jeremiah 29:11. He is with you every step of the way. Greater awareness of the present moment: Meditation can help recenter you. Life is busy and can have you going from one thing to the next without a moment’s pause. Eventually, you could feel like your life is out of control. Carving out time to meditate can help ground you so you’re more invested in your current moment. Trust that God has control over your circumstances, according to Proverbs 19:21. Increased sense of peace and wellbeing: When you meditate in a way that draws you closer to God, you can feel greater peace knowing that you’re spending time with Him. Be thankful for your relationship with God and let the peace of Christ found in Colossians 3:15 guide your heart. But are there different types of Catholic meditation? What is Catholic meditation like compared to other forms of meditation? To reap the benefits listed above, you need to be sure you’re meditating properly and understand how it differs from traditional meditation. How Does Catholic Meditation Differ From Traditional Meditation? When talking about religion in a broad sense, the topic of meditation will likely come up. Even non-church-goers will sometimes mention meditation in passing, but it could leave you wondering what they are talking about. Couple this with your priest mentioning meditation during mass, and you could be left wondering if he’s talking about the same thing. Can anyone meditate, and does everyone who practices meditation do it the same way? The act of meditation may even carry some negative connotations in specific contexts. Perhaps you’ve heard that meditation is a bad thing, that it empties your mind and moves you further from God. Maybe you’ve heard that only new-age religions allow meditation and that Catholics avoid meditation. This is traditional meditation — meditation that causes the meditator to look inward and close themselves off from other forces, including God. Catholic meditation is different. When you hear your priest talk about meditation, he’s talking about a form of prayer meditation that fills the mind with thoughts of God and your relationship with Him. Catholic meditative prayer brings you closer to God. It fills your mind with thoughts of Christ and His work in your life instead of emptying your mind from all thoughts. Catholic meditation encourages engagement. It demands concentration and intention. It fosters divine inspiration and prayers that you can offer up to your Heavenly Father. And the Bible even talks about it, so you know the practice is rooted in scripture. Psalm 1:2 says blessed is the person who meditates on the law of the Lord instead of walking in the counsel of the wicked. When you meditate, you’re shielding yourself from evil thoughts and instead focusing on God and what He wants to say to you at that moment. Catholic meditation helps you grow as a believer and spend time with God, investing in your relationship with Him. 6 Steps to Meditating as a Catholic Now that you know what Catholic meditation is, you may be wondering how to practice it yourself. Like other disciplines, it will take practice and time to become experienced. Catholic meditation may feel challenging at first, but you can become more comfortable with it the more you practice it. Here are six steps to help get you started meditating as a Catholic. 1. Prepare and Open in Prayer It’s essential to prepare for your time of meditation. If you can, give yourself plenty of time to prepare before beginning. Try to leave the worries and cares of life behind as you approach this sacred time between you and God. And be sure to bring your Bible, as your time in meditation should be rooted in the Word of God. Pick the passage you intend to read before meditating to limit time spent leafing through the pages looking for something to read. Approach the experience…