6th Summons: Slow Prayer

Slow Prayer

Over the past few decades, a movement has quietly emerged across various fields of life—a movement around the idea of Slow.

I first came across this concept in Cal Newport’s book, Slow Productivity, which I’ll touch on in a moment. But Newport traces the origins of this movement—or, rather, movements—back to Italy.

In 1986, McDonald’s announced plans to open a massive restaurant with seating for 450 people in the heart of Rome. You can imagine the concern among locals who were a bit wary of such a large fast-food chain moving into their historic neighborhood. This unease led one man to pioneer a counter-movement, shifting the focus away from fast food toward Slow Food—a return to meals cooked and enjoyed slowly, with friends and family, using locally sourced ingredients. Ah, buon appetito!

What does this have to do with prayer? I’m getting there…