Hesychasm

Definition and Meaning

Hesychasm derives from the Greek word hesychia, meaning "stillness" or "silence." It refers to a tradition of prayer that developed in the monasteries of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The monk quiets the outward senses and distracting thoughts and focuses the mind. He then repeats a short prayer without ceasing, in rhythm with his breathing. The best-known form of the prayer is "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner," known as the Jesus Prayer. The Orthodox Church holds that this prayer leads to deification (theosis), by which a person comes to participate in the life of God through God's grace.

Biblical and Historical Background

The tradition appeals to several passages of Scripture, such as "Pray without ceasing" (1 Thessalonians 5:17) and the instruction to pray in one's closet (Matthew 6:6). The wording of the Jesus Prayer is explained as deriving from the publican's prayer in Luke 18:13 and the cry of Bartimaeus in Mark 10:47.

Historically, the tradition originated with the fourth-century desert monks of Egypt and Syria, who repeated short prayers. In the seventh century, John Climacus of Mount Sinai emphasized stillness and the remembrance of the name of Jesus in The Ladder of Divine Ascent. In the fourteenth century, a controversy arose over the method of prayer practiced by the monks of Mount Athos. Barlaam, a monk from Calabria, criticized them, charging that they claimed to see God directly by means of bodily techniques.

Gregory Palamas defended the monks against these charges. He held that the essence of God cannot be known, but that human beings can participate in God's activities (energies). He also explained that the light the monks experienced was the "uncreated light" that appeared at the Transfiguration. Councils held in Constantinople in the 1340s and 1350s accepted Palamas's position. In the late eighteenth century, the Philokalia, an anthology of monastic writings, was compiled, and in the nineteenth century the Russian work The Way of a Pilgrim brought the prayer to wide attention.

Practice in the Korean Church

Hesychasm is rarely taught at the denominational level in Korean Protestantism. Prayer culture in the Korean church centers on audible petition, as in the early morning prayer meeting and simultaneous audible prayer (tongseong gido). In the Orthodox Church in Korea, the Jesus Prayer is taught as part of the life of faith. Within Protestantism, growing interest in spiritual formation has led to its introduction to some church members and retreat groups through translations of the pilgrim's story and other works.

Assessments of the tradition vary by denomination and theological tradition.

• Reformed criticism: Some Presbyterian theologians and pastors of a Reformed persuasion raise objections. They hold that repeating the same words is inconsistent with the warning against "vain repetitions" in Matthew 6:7. They also point out that its breathing techniques resemble Eastern meditation and that the concept of deification differs from the doctrine of justification. This discussion is often taken up together with the debate over contemplative prayer.
• Wesleyan scholarship: Some scholars in the Wesleyan tradition, including Methodists, draw attention to the fact that John Wesley read the homilies of Macarius, a work of Eastern monastic literature, and included them in his Christian Library. On this basis, they discuss points of contact between Wesley's doctrine of sanctification and Eastern spirituality.
• Defenders' explanation: Defenders explain that the Jesus Prayer is a petition drawn from Scripture and that it is not meditation aimed at emptying the mind but a prayer seeking mercy from a personal God.