The advantage of praying during the night
This is the advantage of praying during the night; night is a shield against thoughts, against images and feelings. Try to be present in that moment, try to be aware of the silence that surrounds you, let the void of that darkness embrace you, let it enter you and fill you with peace and silence. There is something almost sacramental in this hidden silence and stillness before Christ. This darkness, this solitude, this instinctive awareness of one’s mortality, they all force one to open up in ways in which would be impossible by daytime.
From the Orthodox Monastery of All Celtic Saints
A fisherman saying the Jesus Prayer while returning from fishing in the evening
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eduard/j
Imi spune inima ca, rugaciunea de noapte este intalnirea ta cu Hristos. Pravila este declaratia marturisita, rugaciunea cu komboschini insa..este intalnirea ta cu EL…Doamne, miluieste-ne!
Ioan Toma
Așa este. Din cauza asta în Sf. Munte pravila se face cu „Doamne Iisuse”.
RiffRaffWL111
Instead of feeding myself with entertainment at night – better to pray, to be still, to learn to be with God. The Ladder, Step 30 #19: ‘…For there is an underground stream that nourishes the root of a plant, and their [the saintly] souls too are sustained by a celestial fire.’
Ioan Toma
Hey, hey, hey! To pray, to be still, to learn to be with God IS entertainment at night. Is THE real entertainment. Anything else is (supra-)excitation of our senses and, in the best case, a waste of time. 🙂
RiffRaffWL111
Wow, wow, wow! Thank you Ioan.
alex
I agree….The silence of the night is the most perfect time for prayer. I think it is easier to come close to God at night, without distractions. The Lord has answered many of my night-time prayers. I think He expects us to use the stillness and the darkness to converse with him. Praise God for silence and faith.
Ioan Toma
Sure. That’s why at big feasts we have… …vigils. Except of Holy Week (including Pascha) when we have an ENTIRE WEEK of vigils. Is so UNearthly…
alex
Yes, but I think there is a difference between liturgical prayer, as in vigils (which is communal prayer) and the intimate prayer of the night between the disciple and his/her Lord. Both are so important, but the nature of them is different.
Ioan Toma
Of course. However, the hours of the liturgical prayers were settled by the saints which found what hours are “best” from their personal experience in their intimate prayer(s).