St. Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) was a compassionate spiritual adviser and encourager. Interestingly, she dispensed much of her advise in writing, in the form of letters. Sometimes she wrote to popes and other rulers, sometimes to simple religious folk like herself.

In a letter to her niece, who was a nun, Catherine describes three kinds of prayer. It’s helpful to take a look at her taxonomy. Note: what Catherine calls “mental prayer” (below) appears to be akin to contemplative or silent prayer:

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Prayer is of three kinds. The first is unceasing: it is a holy constant desire which prays in the sight of God, no matter what you are doing . . . The glorious saint Paul seemed to be referring to this when he urged: “Pray constantly” (1 Thes 5:17).

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The second kind is vocal prayer: you engage in this when you say the office or other prayers aloud.

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This is meant to bring you to the third kind, namely, mental prayer. Your soul reaches this kind of prayer through the use of vocal prayer with prudence and humility, so that while the tongue speaks, the heart is not far from God. And when you perceive that God is visiting your mind so that it is drawn in any way to think of its Creator, you ought to abandon vocal prayer and to fix your mind with great love on God’s visitation.

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A bit more on mental prayer:

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[The soul] rises above herself, that is, above the gross impulse of the senses, and with angelic mind is united with God in intense love. By the light of her intellect she sees and knows, and she clothes herself with truth, becoming the sister of the angels.

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Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) was a member of the Dominican Order of Penance. She was a mystic, a reformer, and an adviser to popes. Her written work includes over 300 letters and a contemplative treatise, The Dialogue. Read more here.

Read Catherine’s letters here.

Reflection: Do you practice all three kinds of prayer mentioned by Catherine of Siena?