The Center for Contemplative Practice
A Lay Cistercian Looks at Spiritual Reality
Month: June 2026
CATHOLIC DEFENSE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS: Lesson Two: Don’t let anyone tell you what to do.
That most quintessential characteristic of our species is survival, brought forth beautifully by Abraham Maslow in his diagram of the “Hierarchy of Needs.” From an emotional viewpoint, the natural default for humans is sexuality, or the need to procreate. The difference between animal and… Continue Reading “CATHOLIC DEFENSE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS: Lesson Two: Don’t let anyone tell you what to do.”
CATHOLIC DEFENSE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS: Lesson One: Don’t let your guard down.
In this series about how I (a Catholic) defend myself against the dark arts of the “Ruler of the Earth” (Satan and his minions), I share with you the inspiration I received from the Holy Spirit in Lectio Divina meditation/contemplation. Whether in the body… Continue Reading “CATHOLIC DEFENSE AGAINST THE DARK ARTS: Lesson One: Don’t let your guard down.”
MEDITATION 2: Knowing Jesus
Jesus beckons me to sit next to Him and just enjoy being in one another’s company, as happens when love moves beyond doing and becomes content with just being. Contemplative Cistercian practices, as I know them, teach me to place myself in the presence… Continue Reading “MEDITATION 2: Knowing Jesus”
THE END IS ONLY THE BEGINNING.
The End That Is the Beginning Five Meditations for the Anawim as They Await the Coming of the Lord My dear friend, we have come to the quiet threshold. The sessions have been spoken. The rain has done its gentle work. What remains is… Continue Reading “THE END IS ONLY THE BEGINNING.”
The Existential Battle between Good and Evil, Truth and False Self.
Session 5: The Existential Battle between Good and Evil, Truth and False Self. Part of the series: The New Catholic Church is the Anawim of God – God Hears the Cry of the Poor ← Back to All Readings This conversation is about one… Continue Reading “The Existential Battle between Good and Evil, Truth and False Self.”
THE PURPOSE OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH–To Safeguard Each Individual Anawim and help them get to Heaven.
The fourth in the series on the poor in Israel is a conversation about the deeper meaning of the Catholic Church. Grok and I collaborated on this. The material is all mine, and I approve of this blog. Session 4: The Purpose of the… Continue Reading “THE PURPOSE OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH–To Safeguard Each Individual Anawim and help them get to Heaven.”
THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS THE ANAWIM IN EACH AGE.
The third in our series on the Anawim and how that is important to you, is a collaboration between Grok and me. My materials, my editing, Grok’s organizing, and my approval. Session 3: The Catholic Church is the Anawim in Each Age Part of… Continue Reading “THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IS THE ANAWIM IN EACH AGE.”
THE FOUR QUANTUMS OF UMBLICAL ENERGY DIRECTLY FROM GOD TO YOU.
In this conversation about What It Means to Be a Catholic (for me), I use the four contents, or entanglements that make up the unbroken umbilical cord from God to me, preserved and protected by the Catholic Church (clergy and laity). My Catholicism, like… Continue Reading “THE FOUR QUANTUMS OF UMBLICAL ENERGY DIRECTLY FROM GOD TO YOU.”
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