In the disciplines section, someone left this comment: How do you reconcile repetitive prayer in light of Jesus saying we should not be "like pagans, who think they will be heard for their many words..."

This is a great question. We must always be aware in all types of prayer and meditation what the dangers and pitfalls may be for us - but lets not narrow it here, everytime we pray we are open to these dangers.

In terms of the Jesus Prayer, I think, if done appropraitely, it fails to fall into these traps. The passage being talked about from the sermon on the mount makes it clear what the issue is: they think they will be heard for their many words. The Jesus Prayer has nothing to do with this. The Jesus Prayer follows a tradition of people who now live in circumstances beyond physical persecution, and for the same reason people started wearing crosses - because we need to be reminded of the reality we are in - we say the Jesus Prayer, because our fallen selves are impatient and often stray. The Jesus Prayer does not assume that if we just say it more then Jesus will listen, quite the opposite. If we say it more our hearts may listen to God. The Jesus Prayer is about opening to the reality of Jesus, who promised as our Lord He would be with us until the end of days.

Actually, I think our regular prayer life falls victim to Jesus' criticism much more. How often can we pray thinking that if we just say the right thing, or just be passionate enough, or even just stay awake that Jesus will hear and answer. The worry here is for a prayer life that is seen to be mechanistic - where we apply the right inputs (amount, frequency, etc.) and Jesus will have to respond. The Jesus Prayer is about opening to the God who is with us, it is about the reality of our fall and how wicked we remain. In actuality, it is saying that because of our inability to pray rightly, I will open to you as a person, and trust in your providence, your love, and your grace.