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The Jesus Prayer: A Cry for Mercy, a Path of Renewal
An ancient prayer for every day: "Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me, a sinner." These words have strengthened and comforted believers for centuries. The Jesus Prayer comes to us from the Eastern Christian tradition. In these pages, John Michael Talbot explores more of the roots of the prayer along with the theological and practical meaning of each word in the lives of believers today. Readers are invited to meditate on the twelve simple words that lie at the heart of the Christian East. Complete with historical context and exercises for self-reflection, this book shows how a single prayer could sustain the spiritual life of a civilization. Each chapter ends with a brief practice using the prayer.
156 pages, Hardcover
First published May 14, 2013
23 people are currently reading
77 people want to read
About the author
John Michael Talbot
90 books45 followersTalbot was born into a Methodist family with a musical background in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and started learning to play the guitar at an early age. At age 15 he dropped out of school and was performing as a guitarist for Mason Proffit, a country folk-rock band formed with his older brother Terry.
Talbot embarked on a spiritual journey that led him through Native American religion and Buddhism to Christianity. At this point he and his brother, Terry, joined the Jesus Movement, recording the album Reborn which was re-released by Sparrow Records (originally released as "The Talbot Bros." on the Warner Brothers label).
Two solo albums followed for Talbot: John Michael Talbot (1976) and The New Earth (1977). Both of these were produced by Billy Ray Hearn. Reading the life of Saint Francis of Assisi, he was inspired to begin studying at a Franciscan center in Indianapolis. He became a Roman Catholic and joined the Secular Franciscan Order in 1978. He started a house of prayer, The Little Portion.
Talbot moved The Little Portion to Eureka Springs, Arkansas on land he had purchased during his Mason Proffit days. He formed his own community, the Brothers and Sisters of Charity, at Little Portion Hermitage as an "integrated monastic community" with celibate brothers and sisters, singles, and families. By 1989, Talbot had married Viola Pratka (with the permission of the Catholic Church). Pratka was a former Incarnate Word Sister who had come to the community in 1986.
Talbot's title is General Minister and Spiritual Father. For many years, he has promoted the work of Mercy Corps.
The hermitage suffered a fire in April 2008 in which the library and many common areas were destroyed.
Talbot embarked on a spiritual journey that led him through Native American religion and Buddhism to Christianity. At this point he and his brother, Terry, joined the Jesus Movement, recording the album Reborn which was re-released by Sparrow Records (originally released as "The Talbot Bros." on the Warner Brothers label).
Two solo albums followed for Talbot: John Michael Talbot (1976) and The New Earth (1977). Both of these were produced by Billy Ray Hearn. Reading the life of Saint Francis of Assisi, he was inspired to begin studying at a Franciscan center in Indianapolis. He became a Roman Catholic and joined the Secular Franciscan Order in 1978. He started a house of prayer, The Little Portion.
Talbot moved The Little Portion to Eureka Springs, Arkansas on land he had purchased during his Mason Proffit days. He formed his own community, the Brothers and Sisters of Charity, at Little Portion Hermitage as an "integrated monastic community" with celibate brothers and sisters, singles, and families. By 1989, Talbot had married Viola Pratka (with the permission of the Catholic Church). Pratka was a former Incarnate Word Sister who had come to the community in 1986.
Talbot's title is General Minister and Spiritual Father. For many years, he has promoted the work of Mercy Corps.
The hermitage suffered a fire in April 2008 in which the library and many common areas were destroyed.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
May 27, 2014
The Jesus Prayer is an ecumenical event! It is written by a Catholic monastic who returned to faith during the Jesus Movement of the 1970s. It is written about the Jesus Prayer, which has its origins in Eastern Orthodoxy beginning with the 5th century St. Hesychias (from whom hesychastic prayer, a form of contemplative prayer gets its name). And it is published by InterVarsity Press, a publisher most closely associated with thoughtful evangelical scholarship.
The book is an extended meditation and primer on praying the Jesus Prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." Each of the brief chapters takes one word, or at most one phrase of the prayer and engages in a theological reflection upon that word, and then concludes with an exercise in praying the prayer. The book concludes with practical encouragements about praying the prayer daily (he suggests at least one 20 minute time of prayer) and helps regarding place, the role of community, the value of "fathers and mothers" or spiritual directors and the relation of the Prayer to the church and sacraments. Following the conclusion is an Appendix that goes deeper into the roots of the prayer.
What I appreciated about this book was how deeply theological this book was even as it was teaching a practice of contemplative prayer. Talbot is not interested in by-passing the head to reach the heart. He weaves this theological reflection into personal ministry narratives that bring the awesome truths of the incarnation, the Trinity, the work of the Spirit and more down to every day life.
I mentioned the ecumenical character of this book and this may either be winsome or off-putting, depending on how you think about such things. Talbot is unabashedly Catholic as he talks about Mary or the Eucharist, and yet his writing is irenic, framed in such a way to emphasize agreements and commonalities, while aware of historic differences. I found myself thinking that if ever the historic divisions in the church were healed, it would no doubt be through individuals like him, and perhaps Christians across these different communions who met together to pray the Jesus Prayer.
The book is an extended meditation and primer on praying the Jesus Prayer, "Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." Each of the brief chapters takes one word, or at most one phrase of the prayer and engages in a theological reflection upon that word, and then concludes with an exercise in praying the prayer. The book concludes with practical encouragements about praying the prayer daily (he suggests at least one 20 minute time of prayer) and helps regarding place, the role of community, the value of "fathers and mothers" or spiritual directors and the relation of the Prayer to the church and sacraments. Following the conclusion is an Appendix that goes deeper into the roots of the prayer.
What I appreciated about this book was how deeply theological this book was even as it was teaching a practice of contemplative prayer. Talbot is not interested in by-passing the head to reach the heart. He weaves this theological reflection into personal ministry narratives that bring the awesome truths of the incarnation, the Trinity, the work of the Spirit and more down to every day life.
I mentioned the ecumenical character of this book and this may either be winsome or off-putting, depending on how you think about such things. Talbot is unabashedly Catholic as he talks about Mary or the Eucharist, and yet his writing is irenic, framed in such a way to emphasize agreements and commonalities, while aware of historic differences. I found myself thinking that if ever the historic divisions in the church were healed, it would no doubt be through individuals like him, and perhaps Christians across these different communions who met together to pray the Jesus Prayer.
September 1, 2013
This work is an introduction to and exposition of the Jesus Prayer as used in Christian contemplation. So long as one remembers that this is an introduction (aimed at Westerners), it is an excellent book. John Michael Talbot reminds one of the introductory nature of the work often and points to literature that will take one deeper. But one should not let "introduction" fool one. It is true that he does introduce the prayer and the practice (every chapter has a section on practice and there is a longer section in the last chapter), but within that he includes nuggets of theological insight ( often from the various Fathers) that will be food for thought and that will challenge the mind of those who are theologically advanced. Yet with the Jesus Prayer one is not really advanced unless one is doing it, unless it has sunk into one's heart and merged with Inez's breath. It is the practice that leads one deeper, and that is what John Michael Talbot calls for.
April 22, 2020
With word-by-word detail, The Jesus Prayer explores the content of the ancient prayer both theologically and personally, offering a prayer exercise at the end of each chapter. Talbot’s Catholic underpinnings find their way into his thoughts on Mary and the nature of the Eucharist, but do not detract from the message of the book. The reader is invited into a worshipful pondering of deep truth about the Son of God in relationship to the Trinity, the paradox of the incarnation, and Jesus’s transcendence over all as Lord of the universe.
What better preparation for true repentance than an acknowledgement of Jesus’s identity wrapped up in a cry for mercy and an understanding that we are deeply flawed? Thanks be to God, we are also deeply loved, and the ultimate cure for our brokenness is implicit in the words of The Jesus Prayer. Our cry for mercy sets us on the road to renewal, and we find that God meets us on the path of prayer, carrying grace and offering us the gift of himself.
Many thanks to InterVarsity Press for providing a copy of this book to facilitate my review, which, of course, is offered freely and with honesty.
What better preparation for true repentance than an acknowledgement of Jesus’s identity wrapped up in a cry for mercy and an understanding that we are deeply flawed? Thanks be to God, we are also deeply loved, and the ultimate cure for our brokenness is implicit in the words of The Jesus Prayer. Our cry for mercy sets us on the road to renewal, and we find that God meets us on the path of prayer, carrying grace and offering us the gift of himself.
Many thanks to InterVarsity Press for providing a copy of this book to facilitate my review, which, of course, is offered freely and with honesty.
March 1, 2020
Ostensibly an exploration of the Jesus prayer: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.
In reality, an extended advertisement for Roman Catholicism.
The author is an ex-Evangelical converted to Roman Catholicism, and it shows. He thinks he is attempting to be ecumenical, and as many ex-Evangelical Catholic converts, draws much from and has much good to say about the Orthodox tradition. Nevertheless, as he proceeds to discuss each word, the Roman Catholic advertising always gets to be a bit much.
The appendix has the kind of recommendations regarding the contemplative prayer life that I was hoping would be found throughout the whole book.
If you're Catholic, this is great. If you're not, there are much better introductions to the Jesus prayer and the contemplative tradition out there.
In reality, an extended advertisement for Roman Catholicism.
The author is an ex-Evangelical converted to Roman Catholicism, and it shows. He thinks he is attempting to be ecumenical, and as many ex-Evangelical Catholic converts, draws much from and has much good to say about the Orthodox tradition. Nevertheless, as he proceeds to discuss each word, the Roman Catholic advertising always gets to be a bit much.
The appendix has the kind of recommendations regarding the contemplative prayer life that I was hoping would be found throughout the whole book.
If you're Catholic, this is great. If you're not, there are much better introductions to the Jesus prayer and the contemplative tradition out there.
August 18, 2025
A good book detailing what and how to pray the Jesus prayer. Talbott explores in depth the meaning behind each letter using monastic teachers and saints. I, a non-Catholic, found this book to be enlightening. It increased my knowledge of traditional Catholic doctrine too which I enjoyed. The challenge of this book is that it emphasizes that the book is meaningless if the prayer is not prayed. It’s simple. Would recommend any Christian looking to deepen their spirituality to read it. BEFORE YOU READ IT THOUGH, pray these words and reflect on their meaning: Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, Have mercy on me, a sinner. The power of the book is the introduction to that prayer.
Read
January 20, 2020Well, besides an excellent description and guide to praying the Jesus Prayer, "Lord Jesus, son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner" this is a wonderful little book to be used in developing the inward spiritual life. Talbot makes sure readers are aware of the need to practice in community and to seek out a spiritual tutor (he calls them spiritual directors, spiritual mothers, and spiritual fathers) in order to avoid a selfish spirituality.
I also learned Jesus does windows. Read the book. Talbot will explain it to you.
I also learned Jesus does windows. Read the book. Talbot will explain it to you.
August 6, 2021
A soul-searching (heavy) read. Talbot’s exploration of the various ‘religions’ is amazing.
“A paradox is a seeming contradiction that proclaims a greater truth. Such paradoxes speed us from the objective doctrine about God concerning faith and morality, and take us directly into an intuitive experience of God. Such paradoxes include finding communion in solitude, hearing the word in silence, finding wealth in poverty and activity in sacred stillness. The greatest paradox is finding life through death.
“A paradox is a seeming contradiction that proclaims a greater truth. Such paradoxes speed us from the objective doctrine about God concerning faith and morality, and take us directly into an intuitive experience of God. Such paradoxes include finding communion in solitude, hearing the word in silence, finding wealth in poverty and activity in sacred stillness. The greatest paradox is finding life through death.
June 6, 2025
Written by a Catholic mystic. If you’re not Catholic, there may be parts that don’t resonate, as that was my experience. Nothing against Catholicism, it’s just I’m not as interested in some of the doctrinal, historical factoids that are in many chapters.
January 12, 2017
The Jesus Prayer, which, in its entirety, is "Lord Jesus Christ, son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner." It's my favorite prayer of all. This book does a lot right about teaching about how to expand the prayer's meaning, connection, and spirituality to the reader. Readers may find the suggestions on how to incorporate the Jesus Prayer into prayer habits useful or not useful at all. I kinda feel like the author's suggestions - "try 5 minutes a day! then do it twice! then go longer!" felt more appropriate to getting on a treadmill than about deepening one's faith, but that's a personal journey kinda thing that's different for everyone.
That's the good news. The bad news is the book also hurts its message by going off-script, and goes into diatribes as to why Christianity is the best religion and about why Catholic Christianity is the best branch of Christianity. This seems like a waste of paper because anyone reading about the Jesus Prayer is probably Christian - although not as likely Catholic, and (and I say this as a Catholic) may very well be put off from the interesting ecumenical stuff by believing somehow the two are related, when in my mind the two are very separable. Any branch of Christianity IMO can become more spiritually developed from praying the Jesus Prayer. I, for one, learned about the Jesus Prayer from readings into Orthodox Christianity - I'm not familiar with any Catholics I know that say the Jesus Prayer at all.
The author also offers IMO unrealistic or silly paths to resisting temptation and sin (the best way to avoid avarice is to join a monastery, the best way to avoid sexual sin is to do manual labor). I can't imagine a Catholic priest suggesting that someone who cares about material possessions joins a family as an act of contrition.
That's the good news. The bad news is the book also hurts its message by going off-script, and goes into diatribes as to why Christianity is the best religion and about why Catholic Christianity is the best branch of Christianity. This seems like a waste of paper because anyone reading about the Jesus Prayer is probably Christian - although not as likely Catholic, and (and I say this as a Catholic) may very well be put off from the interesting ecumenical stuff by believing somehow the two are related, when in my mind the two are very separable. Any branch of Christianity IMO can become more spiritually developed from praying the Jesus Prayer. I, for one, learned about the Jesus Prayer from readings into Orthodox Christianity - I'm not familiar with any Catholics I know that say the Jesus Prayer at all.
The author also offers IMO unrealistic or silly paths to resisting temptation and sin (the best way to avoid avarice is to join a monastery, the best way to avoid sexual sin is to do manual labor). I can't imagine a Catholic priest suggesting that someone who cares about material possessions joins a family as an act of contrition.
March 22, 2016
Short Review: I have been interested in the Jesus Prayer for a long time. It has been one of my regular prayers, not so much in the repetition but in the exasperated I don't know what else to pray right now sort of way.
I also have liked the few John Michael Talbot books I have read, so it was an easy one to pick up when it was on sale a few months ago. Talbot is a Catholic who became a Christian through the Jesus movement and interacts a lot with Protestants (and this is published by an evangelical house) so the ecumenical focus is good.
This is a more theological book than the one by Fredrica Matthews-Green on the Jesus Prayer. And Talbot is writing as a Roman Catholic not Eastern Orthodox so he is aware that he is an outsider to the much of its history. But he handles that well.
The book has an introduction and then relatively short chapters on each word (or phrase) of the prayer. There is an appendix that is more about practical prayer issues.
This wasn't an earth shattering book, but a solid one that I am glad I read.
My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/jesus-prayer/
I also have liked the few John Michael Talbot books I have read, so it was an easy one to pick up when it was on sale a few months ago. Talbot is a Catholic who became a Christian through the Jesus movement and interacts a lot with Protestants (and this is published by an evangelical house) so the ecumenical focus is good.
This is a more theological book than the one by Fredrica Matthews-Green on the Jesus Prayer. And Talbot is writing as a Roman Catholic not Eastern Orthodox so he is aware that he is an outsider to the much of its history. But he handles that well.
The book has an introduction and then relatively short chapters on each word (or phrase) of the prayer. There is an appendix that is more about practical prayer issues.
This wasn't an earth shattering book, but a solid one that I am glad I read.
My full review is on my blog at http://bookwi.se/jesus-prayer/
April 18, 2015
A great little book on this wonderful meditative prayer.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews