During my search of material related to the ICCD conference, I found this excellent material where Cynthia describe beautifully the ways of the heart. I am posting two presentations related to the interest of my blog : Praying From the Heart.
Cynthia Bourgeault leads a one-day retreat in the contemplative christian tradition,
“The Ways of the Heart: Kenosis, Abundance, Singleness”
September 3, 2011
Presentation Number two (of four) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IdvHK-gyKiw
During this past weekend, I participated on the conference Envisionthe Future: Living from a Contemplative Heart, co-sponsored by the Institute for Communal Contemplation and Dialog (ICCD) and River’s Edge in Cleveland, Ohio.
When we ask the question, what is living from a contemplative heart, we immediately start thinking that you need to have a monastic life to stay calm instead of living in our busy world. Cynthia Bourgeault made extraordinary presentations during the event. I was really touched by the emphasis she had during the event on the importance of Centering Prayer, method of prayer originated from the heart of the monastic christian tradition to develop non- dual consciousness and its similitude in effect of the Jesus teachings (Phillipians 2,5-18, and Matthew 16). In addition, she mentioned how religious belief are not necessary to be awakened to your own deepest self .
I found a clip that contain some of the material Cynthia presented in our conference so you may have a taste on the relevance of Centering Prayer in our world as a powerful method beyond the dualistic perception.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b2SRVr89GFU
During our meeting, we cover the last segment of the Gift of Life program, “Coming Home”. Our conversation took us to a beautiful ending that is summarized:
One thing I ask of the Lord;
this I seek:
to dwell in the house of the Lord
all days of my life.
PSALM 27:4
In addition we were talking about our difficulty to perceive the presence of God in our life.
To go deeper in this matter , I recommend to read the following article by Fr. Thomss Keating, The Divine Indwelling. In this article, we learn:
1) To believe in the Divine Indwelling within us, fully present and energizing every level of our being.
2) To recognize that this energy level is benign, healing and transforming.
3) To enjoy its gradual unfolding step by step, both in prayer and in action.
CO_NewsletterJan2001_pag1_2 Extraction of the article from the CO Newsletter.
CO Newsletter Jan 2001 Fall/winter
From Spirituality and Practice: Enrich your life with 37 universal spiritual practices.
“Spiritual practices connect us with our true selves, our neighbors, our world, and our Source. This alphabet is a map of the paths we use to make those vital connections. Here we share 37 main routes — forms of practice that are markers of the spiritual life in all the world’s religions and spiritual paths. Under them, you’ll find the tried-and-true practices such as prayer (Devotion) and meditation (Attention), as well as things like optimism (Hope) that become spiritual practices through our intentions.”
http://www.spiritualityandpractice.com/practices/AlphabetofPractice2013sm.pdf
Few weeks ago, our prayer group at Solon cover segment 6 of the Gif of Life- Death & Dying- Life & Living called “The Cross”. In order to go a little further about the material of Fr. Keating , I want to add some material from Joseph Venerosso.M.M: a poem and a link of an article about how we have transformed the crucifix into the symbol of divine love, mercy and forgiveness.
1. The cosmic outcast
http://ncronline.org/blogs/soul-seeing/cosmic-outcast
2.THE SHADOW OF THE CROSS by Joseph R. Veneroso. M.M
Planted long ago on Calvary hill
God’s only begotten Son-dial casts
A worldwide shadow
Across continents and seas
To touch and tell us the time
When life and love and hope
Died once and for all
Only to rise again.
Each birth and battlefield
Are blessed by its sacred shade
Thought most people are too busy
Living or dying to notice
This sublime yet simple benediction.
True, some struggle mightily to ignore
Or flee far from its terrible truth
As if avoidance or ignorance could
Provide comfort, if not remedy, for
Death’s cold grip upon our lives.
An Ecumenical Contemplative group started at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Brecksville, Ohio. Rev. Stephanie Pace is very enthusiastic with this project and she is collaborating as a leader in conjunction with Dottie Rieman and myself. Our first meeting was on May 14, 2013. Since then, we have meet twice per month, on the second and forth Tuesday of the month, at 1:30 pm.
