{"id":24963,"date":"2025-03-24T09:12:31","date_gmt":"2025-03-24T13:12:31","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/?p=24963"},"modified":"2025-03-24T09:40:06","modified_gmt":"2025-03-24T13:40:06","slug":"24963","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/?p=24963","title":{"rendered":"Why Contemplation?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Disturbed - The Sound Of Silence (Lyrics)\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/uOi_qHmKSK8?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Father Richard Rohr describes the importance of a practice of contemplation:<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Contemplation is about seeing, but a kind of seeing that is much more than mere looking because it also includes&nbsp;<em>recognizing<\/em>&nbsp;and thus&nbsp;<em>appreciating<\/em>. The contemplative mind does not tell us&nbsp;<em>what<\/em>&nbsp;to see but teaches us&nbsp;<em>how<\/em>&nbsp;to see what we behold.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Contemplation allows us to see the truth of things in their wholeness. It is a mental discipline\u202fand gift that detaches us, even neurologically, from our addiction to our habitual way of thinking and from our minds which like to think they are in control. We <strong>stop believing our little binary mind (which strips things down to two choices and then usually identifies with one of them<\/strong>) and begin to recognize the inadequacy of that limited way of knowing reality. In fact, a binary mind is a recipe for superficiality, if not silliness. Only the contemplative, or the deeply intuitive, can start venturing out into much broader and more open-ended horizons. This is probably why Einstein said that<strong> \u201cImagination is more important than knowledge. Knowledge is limited. Imagination\u202f&nbsp;encircles the world.\u201d<\/strong> [1]&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>But how do we learn this contemplative mind, this deep, mysterious, and life-giving way of seeing, of being with, reality? Why does it not come naturally to us? Actually, i<strong>t does come&nbsp;<em>momentarily,<\/em>&nbsp;in states of great love and great suffering, but such wide-eyed seeing normally does not last<\/strong>. We return quickly to dualistic analysis and use our judgments to retake control.&nbsp;<strong><em>A prayer practice\u2014contemplation\u2014is simply<\/em>&nbsp;<em>a way of maintaining the fruits of great love and great<\/em>&nbsp;<em>suffering over the long haul and in different situations.&nbsp;<\/em>And that takes a lot of practice\u2014in fact, our whole<em>&nbsp;<\/em>life becomes one continual practice.&nbsp;<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To begin to see with new eyes, w<strong>e must observe\u2014and usually be humiliated by\u2014the habitual way we encounter each and every moment.<\/strong> It is humiliating because we will see that we are well-practiced in just a few predictable responses. Few of our responses are original, fresh, or naturally respectful of what is right in front of us. The <strong>most common human responses\u202fto a new moment are mistrust, cynicism, fear, knee-jerk reactions, a spirit of dismissal, and overriding judgmentalism<\/strong>. It is so&nbsp;<em>dis-couraging<\/em>&nbsp;when we have the&nbsp;<em>courage<\/em>&nbsp;to finally see that these are the common ways that the ego tries to be in control of the data instead of allowing the moment to get some control over us\u2014and teach us something new!\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>To let the moment teach us, we must allow ourselves to be at least slightly stunned by it until\u202fit draws us inward and upward, toward a subtle experience of wonder. We normally need a single moment of gratuitous awe to get us started\u2014and such moments are the only solid foundation for the entire religious instinct and journey.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">A Simple Practice<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Richard Rohr encourages regular contemplative practice.&nbsp;<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To live in the present moment <strong>requires a change in our inner posture.<\/strong> Instead of expanding or shoring up our fortress of the small self\u2014the ego\u2014contemplation waits to discover who we truly are. Most people think they are their thinking; they don\u2019t have a clue who they are apart from their thoughts. <strong>In contemplation, we move beneath thoughts and sensations to the level of pure being and naked awareness<\/strong>.\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In contemplative prayer, we <strong>calmly observe our own stream of consciousness and see its compulsive patterns. We wait in silence with an open heart and attuned body. It doesn\u2019t take long for our usual patterns to assault us. Our habits of control, addiction, negativity, tension, anger, and fear assert themselves<\/strong>. When Jesus is \u201cdriven\u201d by the Spirit into the wilderness, the first things that show up are \u201cwild beasts\u201d (Mark 1:13). <strong>Contemplative prayer is not consoling, at least not at first, which is why so many give up. Yes, truth will set us free, but generally, it first makes us miserable.<\/strong> [1]\u202f&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><em>Inspired by Father Thomas Keating&nbsp;<\/em><em>(1923\u20132018), the<\/em><em>&nbsp;founder of Contemplative Outreach, Richard developed this exercise:&nbsp;<\/em>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Imagine you are sitting on a riverbank. Boats and ships\u2014thoughts, feelings, and sensations\u2014are sailing past. While the stream flows by your inner eye, name each of these vessels. For example, one of the boats could be called \u201cmy anxiety about tomorrow.\u201d Or along comes the ship \u201cobjections to my husband\u201d or the boat \u201cI don\u2019t do that well.\u201d <strong>Every judgment that you let pass is one of those boats; take time to name each one and then allow them move down the river.\u202f<\/strong>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This can be a difficult exercise because you\u2019re used to jumping aboard the boats\u2014your thoughts\u2014immediately. <strong>As soon as you own a boat and identify with it, it picks up energy. This is a practice in un-possessing, detaching, letting go. With every idea, with every image that comes into your head, say, \u201cNo, I\u2019m not that; I don\u2019t need that; that\u2019s not me.\u201d\u202f&nbsp;<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sometimes, a boat turns around and heads back upstream to demand your attention again. It\u2019s hard not to get hooked by habitual thoughts. Sometimes you\u2019ll be<strong> tempted to torpedo your boats. But don\u2019t attack them. Don\u2019t hate them or condemn them. Contemplation is also an exercise in nonviolence.<\/strong> The point is to recognize your thoughts,&nbsp;<em>which are not you<\/em>, and to say, \u201c<strong>That\u2019s not something I need.\u201d But do it very amiably. As you learn to handle your own soul tenderly and lovingly, you\u2019ll be able to carry this same loving wisdom out into the world.<\/strong> [2]&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Many teachers insist on <strong>at least twenty minutes for a full contemplative \u201csit,\u201d because we have found that the first half (or more) of any contemplative prayer time is just letting go of those thoughts, judgments, fears, negations, and emotions that want to impose themselves. <\/strong>We become watchers and witnesses, stepping back and observing without judgment. Gradually we come to realize those thoughts and feelings are not actually \u201cme.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h1 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Thomas Keating and Centering Prayer<\/h1>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Today\u2019s post is by Mary van Balen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I\u2019m not sure when I began reading books by Thomas Merton. Probably late high school or early college. I\u2019m also not sure how I discovered them. Though I was naturally drawn to contemplative prayer, the word was unfamiliar to me until Merton\u2019s writings provided it. \u201cContemplative\u201d was not something you heard about sitting in the pews on Sundays or even in religion classes. Not usually. Reflecting on that later, I never understood why. Christianity has a long, rich contemplative tradition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Some of my friends from those early days, searching as college students do and longing for an alternative to rote prayers and rituals that, for them, had become mindless habit, explored meditation found in Eastern traditions. They hungered for a deeper relationship with God.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>A way to sink deeply into that relationship is contemplative prayer. Not reserved for \u201cspecial\u201d people or for a few \u201cadvanced\u201d souls as sometimes thought, it is simply resting in silence with the loving God who dwells within each of us.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>I was lucky to find not only Thomas Merton, but also a small community that introduced me to classics in Christian literature like Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross and provided a vocabulary to talk about contemplative prayer. What a gift it was to finally have others with whom to pray and share the journey.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Later, I found the Desert Fathers and Mothers, The Cloud of Unknowing (written by an anonymous 14<sup>th<\/sup>century English monk), John Cassian, Julian of Norwich, and other mystical writers. I had begun to practice Lectio Divina and realized that my longtime journaling was part of my contemplative prayer journey (something I love to share at retreats and workshops). Time spent with Benedictine monks and sisters broadened and deepened my prayer experience.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The hunger for contemplative prayer among many Christians remains as deep as ever. Even if it\u2019s not talked about much in parishes, there are many resources available today.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What prompted me to reflect on this was the passing on October 25 of Fr. Thomas Keating, at age 95. He is likely the most well-known Trappist monk since Merton. Keating is recognized for his development and promotion (along with others including M. Basil Pennington and William Meninger) of the centering prayer method of Christian meditation.]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>This prayer practice began in the 1970s at Saint Joseph\u2019s Abbey in Spencer Massachusetts where Keating was abbot for twenty years. It was a prompted by conversations with young Christians, who, like my college friends, were seeking a prayer path that was meditative and transformative. They stopped by the Abbey to ask directions to a Buddhist meditation center that had been opened nearby in what once had been a Catholic retreat house. When Keating asked the young searchers why they didn\u2019t look for a path in the Christian tradition, their answer was the same as my friends\u2019 might have been: There\u2019s a&nbsp;<em>Christian&nbsp;<\/em>path?<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Keating talked to the monks at the Abbey about developing a method of meditation\u2014based on Scripture and Christian tradition\u2014that would be accessible to anyone, those beyond the monastery walls as well as inside them. The result is what is now known as Centering Prayer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are many resources available if you are interested in learning more about it; here are a few:&nbsp;<em>Open Mind, Open Heart<\/em>by Keating;&nbsp;<em>Finding Grace at the Center<\/em>by Thomas Keating, M. Basil Pennington, OCSO and Thomas E. Clark, SJ.;&nbsp;<em>Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening<\/em>by Episcopalian priest Cynthia Bourgeault. The Contemplative Outreach, an organization Keating founded in 1984, has a website full of information and resources. Some parishes have Centering Prayer groups that meet weekly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Centering Prayer is not the only way to practice and nurture one\u2019s contemplative life. Shalem introduces program participants to a variety of approaches. And, of course, a person is not restricted to practicing only one. As Fr. Keating wrote in a selection found on the Contemplative Outreach website addressing different approaches to meditative prayer: \u201cIn Buddhism there are a wide variety of methods (perhaps techniques would be a better designation).&nbsp;Why shouldn\u2019t Christians have a few?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There are many! If you find yourself drawn to contemplation, Centering Prayer is one method to consider. It is popular, accessible, and practiced by hundreds of thousands around the globe.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Thank you, Fr. Keating.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Father Richard Rohr describes the importance of a practice of contemplation:&nbsp; Contemplation is about seeing, but a kind of seeing that is much more than mere looking because it also includes&nbsp;recognizing&nbsp;and thus&nbsp;appreciating. The contemplative mind does not tell us&nbsp;what&nbsp;to see but teaches us&nbsp;how&nbsp;to see what we behold.&nbsp;&nbsp; Contemplation allows us to see the truth of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24963"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=24963"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24963\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24969,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24963\/revisions\/24969"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=24963"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=24963"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/co2mannatoday.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=24963"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}