The Jesus Prayer: where the Practice comes from

1,700 years of praying without ceasing

The Jesus Prayer began in the 4th and 5th centuries with Christian monks in the deserts of Egypt and Syria.

These Desert Fathers took St. Paul’s command seriously:

‘Pray without ceasing.’ (1 Thessalonians 5:17)

But how do you pray constantly while also living your life?

They developed short, repetitive prayer forms that could be prayed constantly: while wor…