Volume I, Treatise V, Chapter XXI

Of the Cause of Distractions in Prayer, and the Remedies to be Applied to Them

Distractions being a subject of very general complaint, several saints have taken occasion to treat of them; and Cassian in particular has written at large of them. Distractions, say they, may proceed from three causes; first, from our own negligence; because during the whole day we employ ourselves in a great many unprofitable things; and because we are not sufficiently careful to place a guard over our heart and our senses. He who lives in this manner needs not ask the question, how he comes to be distracted in prayer? Nor why he feels it so painful to apply himself thereunto? For it is certain,that the ideas of different objects, which had made an impression upon his mind, will not fail afterwards to disquiet him, by representing themselves in time of prayer. The Abbot Moyses said, that though it is not in our power to hinder ourselves from being perplexed by divers thoughts, yet it is in our power to put them away when they come, and adds, that it is even partly in our power to reform the evil that our thoughts have in themselves, by procuring good ones; and to effect that only such as these should present themselves to our mind. For if we apply ourselves to spiritual exercises, and works of piety, we shall have holy and pious thoughts; but if during the whole day we employ ourselves in vain and extravagant things, the thoughts we shall have will be of the same nature. Cassian makes the same comparison that St. Bernard and St, Anselm make upon this subject. He says, that though we cannot hinder a millstone in a mill from going always about, whilst the wheel or sails move, yet it is in the miller’s power to make it go upon good or bad corn, and to make,it go only upon that which he puts under it; so the heart of man must always have something to think on. It islike a millstone. _ Whilst we live it is always in motion, but you may employ it upon what sort of grain you please; and in fine, it will work only upon what you cast into it. According to this, then, if in prayer you wish to be recollected, you must endeavour to be so all day long, and must keep a strict guard over your senses; for God loves to converse with souls that are like a garden that is enclosed. ‘It was,” says Cassian, “a maxim amongst the ancient fathers of the desert, that whoever wishes to pray well should prepare well for it, because the state and motion of the mind in prayer depend upon the state and disposition it was in before, and upon what impression it had before received.” (Cass. Coll. 9. Abb. Ica.) “Such as the liquor is,” says St. Bonaventure, ‘‘ that we pour into a vessel, such will be the scent that it will give; and such as the seed is that you have received into your heart, such will be the fruit that it will bring forth.” (Bonav. de prof. Rel. 1. ii. c. lviii.) There is nothing more common or natural than to reflect frequently upon what we love; if therefore you would have your mind at repose in time of prayer, and not be distracted by vain thoughts, you must beforehand detach your heart from earthly, and attach it to nothing but heavenly things; and the greater progress you make in this, the greater will your application and attention be to prayer, which thereby will also become more easy.

The second cause of distractions proceeds from the malice of the devil; who perceiving, as St. Basil says, that prayer is the means whereby God replenishes us with all sorts of blessings, endeavours by all ways imaginable to withdraw us from it, and to raise to it a thousand obstacles and impediments; in order that, depriving us of these succours which accompany prayer, be may afterwards find a more easy passage and entrance into our souls. He does the same against us that Holofernes did against the city of Bethulia; when, to facilitate the taking it, he broke the aqueducts through which the city was supplied with water. Prayer is the conduit or channel through which our soul receives the water of grace; and therefore the devil uses his utmost endeavours to break it, and render it useless, Wherefore St. John Climacus says, that when, at the sound of the bell, the faithful, and religious, visibly assemble to pray, and praise God; our invisible enemies invisibly assemble to tempt us, and divert. us from this pious occupation.

We read in the Spiritual Meadow, that Marcellus, an ancient father of the desert, having got up at midnight to make his prayer, and tosing psalms as his custom was, heard a noise like that of a trumpet when it sounds a charge, and being astonished how this noise should happen in so solitary a place, no soldiers being near it, the devil hereupon appeared to him, and told him, that this trumpet was the signal that gave notice to the devils to prepare themselves for combat against the servants of God, and that if he would put himself out of danger he should go back again to rest; if not, that he must expect a severe attack. But the holy old man, confiding in our Saviour’s help, put himself in prayer, and persevered in it, in spite of the devil’s efforts.

One of the things which clearly shew the merit and importance of this virtue (which the Abbot Nilus very well takes notice of) is, the particular hatred the devil conceives against those who apply themselves to prayer, and the continual war he makes against them. He suffers very patiently many other good works, as fasting, taking the discipline, and wearing the hair shirt; but he cannot suffer us to be a moment in prayer without using his utmost endeavours to hinder and molest us init. Hence it is, that when we are in prayer we are far more tempted than at other times, It is then wicked thoughts pour in upon us, as if we put ourselves in prayer to be only a butt to all sorts of temptations; for in it he excites in our mind such strange and filthy ideas, that it seems as if he had reserved them all for that particular time. He knows very well that prayer is a sovereign remedy against all evil; an infinite source or fountain of all spiritual good, and the most efficacious means of attaining all the virtues, and, therefore, he makes use of all the power he has to deter us from it. Prayer, also, according to the language of the saints, is the “scourge and torment of the devils;” which consideration ought to give us a greater esteem of it, and urge us to apply ourselves to it with so much the greater care and diligence, because we see the devil takes so much pains to withdraw us from it. St. Thomas and many other grave doctors say, that it is by reason of the war that the devil is accustomed to make against those that are in prayer, that the Church, directed by the Holy Ghost, ordains that we should begin all the canonical hours with this verse, “O God, incline unto my help, O Lord, make haste to assist me.” (Psalms 69:1) Whereby we implore God’s assistance in prayer against the snares and temptations of the enemy.

Tn the third place, distractions sometimes proceed from man’s natural weakness, without his being any way in fault; for sin has rendered us so weak and miserable, and our imagination chiefly partakes so much of the corruption of our nature, that we cannot be a moment in prayer, without having our mind digtracted with a thousand thoughts. Theremedy of this evil is to make them the subject of our prayer, and to humble ourselves upon the consideration and knowledge of our weakness; for this knowledge and humility is a very holy and profitable prayer. I shall, moreover, in the following chapters speak of some other remedies, which the saints’and masters of a spiritual life prescribe us upon this subject.

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