What is Affirmative Prayer?

Affirmative prayer is the technique for manifesting devised by Ernest Holmes in the textbook, The Science of Mind. It is different than other kinds of prayer, in that it is not a petition to an external source:

“Affirmative prayer is not supplication or petition, but recognition and acceptance that God is all there is; that there is no spot where God is not; that we are all Spiritual Beings here and now; and that all the abundance of the universe is already ours if we accept and embody it.”

(Foundations Course workbook, pg. 89)

In other words, it affirms the divine truth from the source within, allowing it to flow through us and into our lives. It is also known as Spiritual Mind Treatment – the spiritual work to treat human experience occurs in our own minds, which is a direct conduit to the Universal Mind that manifests into form.

The Technique

The five stages of treatment are Recognition, Unification, Realization, Thanksgiving, and Release; each has its own function in the process.

  1. Recognition: First we recognize that Spirit is all there is – One Mind, One Life, that exists in, as, and through all things.

  2. Unification: Next we unify our thinking with Spirit, recognizing that one’s mind is an individualization of Universal Mind. Here we accept the idea that we are now thinking with the Universal Mind.

  3. Realization: Make your intentions real, by stating them affirmatively in the present tense – as if they are happening now. During this step we consciously erase or dissolve whatever false beliefs or conditions that aren’t in alignment. Use whatever words and time needed to feel that your life is whole, perfect and complete.

  4. Thanksgiving: Gratitude is essential – it’s not just about what you are praying for, but where you are praying from. Here we are denying the mindset of lack, and shifting to a mindset of abundance. Give thanks for what is, the intention now set into motion, and its manifestation.

  5. Release: Mentally let your intentions go forth, knowing your good is at work manifesting. Let it go with confidence that it is already done in the Universal Mind. As some say: “Let go and let God.”

FAQs

  • The difference is where you pray from. Meditation helps to identify an idea. Traditional prayer petitions for the idea. Spiritual Mind Treatment projects the idea, to be manifested.

  • We are individualizations of Spirit; thus we are co-creators in our human experience. The work of treatment in our own mind goes directly to Universal Mind, to bring into the world of form.

  • Do what feels right to you. Many practitioners of this teaching write that it’s helpful to spend more time in the Recognition and Unification steps, until you feel it in your core.