Creative Prayer

by Brigid E. Herman

In this heartfelt work of enlightenment and faith, Brigid Herman attempts to find meaning and value in prayer as a creative process. True prayer, she claims, is "man's loving response to the love of God." And since divine love is the supreme act, then man's only worthy response can be one of unreserved self-giving. Herman's inspired and compassionate views, first published nearly a century ago, make essential reading for anyone embarking on the path to salvation and inner peace. The wife of a Presbyterian minister, writer BRIGID EMILY HERMAN (1876-1923) was born in Prague and eventually settled in London. Known for her works on theology and the devotional life, she also wrote The Meaning and Value of Mysticism, The Secret Garden of the Soul, and The Finding of the Cross.

Genres: Prayer

Paperback

First published April 15, 2007

Reviews

[Tom LA · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brigid Emily Herman was born in Prague in 1875, moved to London where she died in 1923. She was the wife of a Presbyterian minister who died quite young. They had no children. She gave herself to journalism and writing.

Her "Creative prayer" is a book that I found quoted on other books about prayer and meditation. Simple, passionate, it contains some great wisdom and intuitions, even if I found it a bit repetitive at times, and sometimes she seems to talk about herself without realizing or acknowledging it.

I loved how some of her considerations on the 1920's society could be perfectly applied to today's world, almost 100 years later.

Great quote: "Love as a principle, not just as an emotion".

[Shannon]

I picked this up on a free book table, intending to just kill some time this weekend. Turns out it's really good!

[RaeAnna Goss · Rating 5 out of 5]

I found this in the public domain after reading The Hour that Changes the World by Dick Eastman. I didn’t realize there were several republished books out there when I started doing the work of reformatting this wonderful book. Like Lilias Trotter, I plan to give copies to friends! More than just prayer, this book is an encouragement to everyone who seeks to love the Lord through life, discipline, and action. Not in any legalistic vein, but through the dedication of a soul and spirit to live for God.

[Henry Haney · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Not the frenzied cry of sudden anguish, but the calm, trustful committal of faith, is the normal attitude of the praying soul.”

I ordered this book after I saw it quoted in Gordon MacDonald’s Ordering Your Private World. It’s a great read on the topic of prayer from the very early 1900s.

I especially appreciated the chapters on meditation and on silence.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classic book on prayer. The chapters about silence and meditation are the best.

[Sujit Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Creative Prayer is devotional work written by Brigid E Herman in 1920 in Britain. Herman was the wife of a Presbyterian minister and her feminist and feminine spirit are evident throughout this work. The work is divided into seven chapters and is an endeavor to "elucidate the meaning and value of prayer as a creative process, whereby the man who prays and his world are made anew." In the first chapter (Prayer as Creative Energy) Herman presents the fundamental condition of prayer as creative energy. In the Second and Third Chapters she deals with Silence and Meditation respectively. It is clear in these two chapters that Herman is very familiar with Eastern Fathers and the influence becomes clear in her words. "Accustomed to commune with anyone and everyone, we have lost the art of communing with our own spirits, and prospect of such self-communing does not inspire us with confidence." "Their [desert dwellers] lives bore irrefutable witness to the truth that was in them. The wisdom that is foolishness with men was never justified more convincingly than in these children of the desert." In Chapter Four she describes prayer as the soul's pilgrimage from self to God. In the last two chapters she addresses the corporate aspect of prayer as apostolate and priesthood.
Herman writes as someone who has exercised the creative act of prayer. "Everyone who knows anything about the interior life knows that there is indeed a moment in our communion with God in which the soul knows itself to be alone with Him in the world, and knows also that in the august alone lies peace and power."
I found the entire work inspirational but struggled to get through the last chapter.
I recommend this short work because our time needs great apostles of prayer. As Herman states, "Always and everywhere apostles of prayer have arisen, calling upon a materialized Church to cease from the busyness of merely institutional activities and give herself to the true business of prayer."

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely the best book I have ever read about Christian prayer and meditation - or at least a tie with St Theresa's "Interior Castle." Maybe I will update this review when I read it again and have time to type on a PC and include some highlights. Possibly the best feature is the absolute clarity of thought and quality of the writing.