…many people who approach prayer seriously enough to commit time to a daily prayer of meditation do not realize how seriously God takes the soul. What begins possibly to happen-the commencement of contemplative graces in prayer-is a sign that God does not seek just a devout form of prayer from a soul, whatever that might mean. He longs for the soul to give itself to him, so that he in turn can give to the soul a fuller gift of himself. The discussion of contemplative prayer is never simply to aid a soul in the advancement of prayer. That goal is always subordinated to the more primary purpose of interior prayer in opening a door within our soul to a progressive union of the soul with God.  —Father Donald Haggerty from “St John of the Cross: Master of Contemplation”