The Spiritual Art and Discipline of Watchfulness

A reflection on watchfulness as a spiritual method, by Rev Craig Bosman.
This article was first published in the December 2024 edition of Revive magazine.

A few years ago, at a dinner party, a friend suggested we go around the table answering the question: “If your spouse were an animal, what animal would they be?” I was hoping for lion, tiger or bear, but landed up with meerkat! At the time I felt quite humbled – meerkats don’t seem very impressive. Nevertheless, I’ve come to embrace my inner meerkat – they’re good at being watchful and paying attention for the good of their mob (which is apparently what my wife thinks I’m good at doing).

The meerkat is a good example of the concept of ‘nepsis’ (the English transliteration of the Greek word for ‘watchfulness’). This word appears in six places in the Second Testament, having varying shades of meaning depending on its context and translation, as follows (translation of ‘nepsis’ in bold):

• “let’s stay awake and stay sober” (1 Thess. 5:6, CEB)
• “be self-controlled” (1 Thess. 5:8, NTE)
• “keep your eye on what you’re doing” (2 Tim. 4:5, MSG)
• “once you are… thinking clearly” (1 Pet. 1:13, CEB)
• “keep awake so you can pray” (1 Pet. 4:7, NLV)
• “discipline yourselves” (1 Pet. 5:8, NRSV)

The Ammas (Mothers) and Abbas (Fathers) of Christianity spoke and wrote much about watchfulness as an indispensable component of spiritual formation. One of these writers was given the name St. Hesychius (Sinai, 8th or 9th century CE). ‘Hesychia’ is the English transliteration of the Greek word for ‘silence’ and so his name speaks of stillness and silence – essential ingredients for watchfulness.

Hesychius lived as an ascetic in the Egyptian desert, an arena for intense spiritual formation. One of Hesychius’ writings is titled, ‘Watchfulness and Holiness’ and appears in the first volume of the classic anthology of Eastern Orthodox literature called the Philokalia (meaning ‘love of the beautiful’). At the beginning of this text, he defines nepsis and its benefits as follows:

“Watchfulness is a spiritual method which, if sedulously practiced over a long period, completely frees us with God’s help from impassioned thoughts, impassioned words and evil actions. It leads, in so far as this is possible, to a sure knowledge of the inapprehensible God, and helps us to penetrate the divine and hidden mysteries.” (Philokalia Vol. 1, p161).

Thus, according to Hesychius, nepsis is an invitation to freedom from the prison of intrusive thinking and disordered passions, leading to the joy of direct encounter with the Source of all being!

Hesychius goes on to speak of four types of watchfulness. The third type is to “continually and humbly call on the Lord Jesus Christ for help” (Philokalia Vol. 1, p164-5). This type of nepsis came to be nurtured by a practice commonly known as ‘The Jesus Prayer’ which is also referred to as ‘Prayer of the Heart’ (cf. Matt. 6:6) or ‘Unceasing Prayer’ (cf. 1 Thess. 5:17). It was carefully developed in the furnace of the spiritual laboratory of the Sinai wilderness through the grueling experiments and experiences of the monastic Christians.

There are several formulas for it, all based on an amalgamation of biblical texts (e.g. Lk. 18:13, 38) including: “Lord Jesus Christ, have mercy on me.” Richard Foster, the Quaker spiritual, suggests that this practice may be “one of the finest gifts Eastern Orthodoxy has to offer to all Christians. It certainly is the most borrow-able.” Streams of Living Water – Celebrating the Great Traditions of Christian Faith, Richard Foster, p289.

There are a variety of ways to practice the Jesus Prayer, including this four-step ‘method’:

1. Sit upright and comfortably in a chair, place your hands palm down on your thighs, close your eyes, and breathe gently.
2. As you breathe in, say interiorly (not aloud): “Lord Jesus Christ.”
3. As you breathe out say interiorly: “have mercy on me.”
4. Repeat this for anywhere between 5 and 30 minutes, once or twice-a-day.

Through this still and silent repetition, the mind gently descends into the heart leading to freedom from intrusive and discursive thoughts and images and fostering an ever-growing inner hesychia – not an empty silence, but a full, rich silence of Presence.

When it comes to prayer, knowledge is necessary, but personal practice is the true teacher. This space allotted for this article doesn’t allow for addressing misconceptions, mistakes, and misuses related to the practice, so please be encouraged to read further before committing to it. For a superb introduction, I warmly recommend The Jesus Prayer: The Ancient Desert Prayer that Tunes the Heart to God by Frederica Matthewes-Green.

You may have reached the end of this article and are asking: How can I embrace my own inner meerkat using the Jesus Prayer? I suggest you begin by saying it once per day for just one-minute. After a week, build it to two-minutes, then three, and so-on until you reach one (or two) 20-minute sits per day. Most importantly, expect challenges, such as: missing days (by mistake and on purpose), finding a sit to be physically and/or mentally difficult, having doubts about whether the practice is ‘doing’ anything, etc. All of this is normal. It’s like starting a new eating, exercise, or study regimen – it requires discipline, practice and most of all guidance – don’t fly solo! Find a good group to encourage you, a trusted practitioner to help you processes your experiences, and always seek appropriate medical advice for any existing or arising physical or mental health struggles.

Rev Craig Bosman is the Rural Resource Minister with the Presbytery of WA, and part-time Minister with the Margaret River and Augusta Uniting Church congregations.

Thanks to Craig for sharing your photos with us for this article!