Theophan the Recluse regarded the Jesus Prayer stronger than all other prayers by virtue of the power of the Holy Name of Jesus. The Prayer of the Heart is considered to be the Unceasing Prayer that the Apostle Paul advocates in the New Testament. The prayer is particularly esteemed by the spiritual fathers of this tradition (see Philokalia) as a method of cleaning and opening up the mind and after this the heart ( kardia), brought about first by the Prayer of the Mind, or more precisely the Noetic Prayer ( Νοερά Προσευχή), and after this the Prayer of the Heart ( Καρδιακή Προσευχή). It is often repeated continually as a part of personal ascetic practice, its use being an integral part of the eremitic tradition of prayer known as hesychasm.
' Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner.'
The Jesus Prayer, also known as The Prayer, is a short formulaic prayer, esteemed and advocated especially in Eastern Christianity:
Christogram with the Jesus Prayer in Romanian: Doamne Iisuse Hristoase, Fiul lui Dumnezeu, miluieşte-mă pe mine păcătosul ('Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner') For Jesus' own prayers, see Prayers of Jesus.
