As a young man, I was interested in learning to make stained glass windows. I could not lay my hands on any books on the craft, so I went to others who had learned from long experience.

I was shown several things. According to my teachers, all of them would take years of practice and hard work to learn. Soldering, for example...and glass, oh, that was another secret. I learned two things in those days, two very different things. First: it takes about a week and a half to lean all the above technical stuff. And, second: those who know how to do it are either terrible teachers, or they are unwilling to share the information and its simplicity.

I have written a book on Contemplative Prayer, and by this time you are probably asking what stained glass windows have to do with this most highly regarded form of prayer. I will make that clear in a few paragraphs, but now, I want to share another experience with you.

After spending many months making stained glass windows, I became interested in another form of artistic expression. I took up the study of landscape painting, i.e., oil painting. I learned to do it from someone who called himself an "out-door painter."

It took many more hours of instruction to learn to paint a simple scene, than it took to solder the windows of an entire church! During my instruction, my painting teacher kept reminding me that it is not important whether you have a "good" picture when you finish, what matters is the process of painting the picture. If you do not enjoy the process from beginning to end, then you are not entering into the process. And, if you are enjoying the process from beginning to end, the final result, the product, is bound to please you!

Painting is a special talent, but our subject, Contemplative Prayer, does not require a special talent at all!

I recently read a small but interesting book by Thomas Merton called Contemplative Prayer. All through this book, I was struck with its similarity to the information I was given about stained glass windows. Such as, "Only a few can do this, and it takes years of practice."

Why does someone write an entire book about contemplation and not explain how it is done? Instead, he says that you will not be able to do it for a long time. I do not suppose for a moment that someone is important and as well trained in religious arts as Thomas Merton was, did not know how to contemplate. But, I wonder if it was similar to my first instructors talking about stained glass; those who for some reason, were unable to share their experiences with others.

I finally learned from a friend, how to make those windows. And I would like to share with you as a friend, what I know about Contemplative Prayer.

George B. Benner
January 24, 1999
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