Christian Meditation with Children

I’ve come across again, the meditation resource which was developed by the Townsville Catholic Parish in the 2000s called “Coming Home”. There is a great guide which was written by Ernie Christie and published by John Garratt Publishing in 2008. Most of this material is online now http://www.cominghome.org.au. Amongst it there are ten helpful tips for the teachers to guide children in mediation;

1. Ask students to sit in a comfortable position but do not be so comfortable that you fall asleep!
2. As students to quiet their bodies. Then quiet the mind. Become aware that you are in God’s presence. God is around you now in this room.
3. Ask students to close their eyes. Continue to sit straight with your back upright, relax the muscles of your body. Breathe slowly in and out.
4. When the students have become quiet, you may ring a bell or chime or simply say, “we begin our meditation now”. This signals the children to say their mantra[1] silently. Advice to students can be, “Say the mantra until you can no longer say it and as soon as you realise you have stopped saying it, start saying it again.”
5. The students are to repeat the mantra prayerfully throughout the meditation period. As the teacher, you keep track of the time and ring the bell when the period comes to an end. Remind students that they can pray silently with a mantra whenever they want to throughout the day or at home on their own.
6. Do not underestimate their faith. It may be simpler than yours, but it is sincere. Their faith may be very deep and so be a source of inspiration.
7. Do not impose your own prayer guidelines on the children. Furthermore, do not do anything that would limit their concept of God or extinguish their spontaneous expression of their relationship with God.
8. Do not give the children the impression that they can only pray at certain times or in certain places. And do not give the impression that meditation is the only way to pray or even the best way to pray. There are many ways to pray, and they can all lead us to genuine communication with God.
9. Do not over-explain or meditate for the child. Instead, invite the children to discover God’s love for themselves. Let their prayer be their own, not yours.
10. Always show respect for the children and take their religious questions seriously. When it comes to prayer and meditation, also respect the child’s privacy and dignity.

 
[1] For Christians who meditate the mantra is an expression of faith in Christ who lives is us. The mantra helps deal with distractions and can lead to a point of simplicity. The mantra recommended by the 4th century monk John Cassian and John Main and the World Community for Christian Meditation is the Aramaic word ‘Maranatha’. Aramaic is the language Jesus spoke and the word maranatha is used in 1 Corinthians 16:22 and Revelation 22:20. Maranatha means “Come Lord Jesus” or “The Lord comes”.

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