the soul ceases to kneel in prayer before God, she dies.
St. Ignatius of Loyola says, Meditation is the shortest road to perfection." He who makes great progress in mental prayer makes great progress, also, in perfection. It is in the time of meditation that the soul is replenished with holy thoughts, devout aspirations and desires, good resolutions, and most fervent love of God.
Lord, Thou hast made this wondrous soul
All for Thyself alone;
Ah, send Thy sweet transforming grace
To make it more Thine own!
4. How to Practise Mental Prayer
"In my meditation a fire shall flame out" (Ps. xxxviii. 4).
Make at least a short meditation every day. Mental prayer is a more appropriate and comprehensive term for that spiritual exercise which is so highly praised and commended by the saints and so conducive to holiness and perfection.
Mental prayer is within the reach of all who earnestly desire their salvation. Father Wilberforce says: " In order to pray with fruit and without distraction it is most useful and almost necessary to spend some time in meditation or pious reflection on some supernatural truth, and from this fact the whole exercise is often called meditation instead of mental prayer.
