The Center for Contemplative Practice
A Lay Cistercian Looks at Spiritual Reality
Category: catholic bishops
DIGGING FOR HEAVENLY GOLD ON EARTH: REALIZING WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN AT THE NEXT LEVEL OF OUR EVOLUTION.
WARNING: This blog is long and requires reading once or twice to dig out its gold. Don’t blame me, I only type it. Erich Fromm, an existential psychologist and author of The Art of Loving, is one of the great influencers in how I view… Continue Reading “DIGGING FOR HEAVENLY GOLD ON EARTH: REALIZING WHAT IT MEANS TO BE HUMAN AT THE NEXT LEVEL OF OUR EVOLUTION.”
THE INSTITUTIONAL CHURCH: My New Catholic Church made in my image and likeness. Part III.
MY CHURCH IS LIKE A FIVE-STORY BUILDING, EACH FLOOR HAVING FOUR QUADRANTS OR ROOMS If I build a church in my image and likeness, subject to the whims of my emotional self for self-gratification, the results might not have anything to do with Christ.… Continue Reading “THE INSTITUTIONAL CHURCH: My New Catholic Church made in my image and likeness. Part III.”
A MOSAIC PIECE OF MY LIFE: My lifelong hunt for heavenly gold. Filiments to forever.
Having examined how I view reality (which may or may not be the way you see things), I have almost by chance discovered the door of my life, which contains six locks. Very late in life, when I first romanced the notion of Lectio… Continue Reading “A MOSAIC PIECE OF MY LIFE: My lifelong hunt for heavenly gold. Filiments to forever.”
CHRIST AS MYSTIC HERO: WATCH JOSEPH CAMPBELL ON THE IMPORTANCE OF MYTH IN OUR HUMAN PROGRESSION.
(Excerpted from a book I am putting together on The Christ Principle, entitled, “CHRIST AS MYSTIC HERO: A Lay Cistercian reflects how Christ is the archetypal hero on humanity’s march to Omega.“) THE SIMPLICITY OF MYTH WITH CHRIST AS MYSTIC HERO Before I embark… Continue Reading “CHRIST AS MYSTIC HERO: WATCH JOSEPH CAMPBELL ON THE IMPORTANCE OF MYTH IN OUR HUMAN PROGRESSION.”
THE TRUTH: The weight of my daily cross
Here is a blog I wrote a few weeks ago detailing what are the criticisms of the Catholic Church. I turned it around and wrote what I thought the strengths are. Having some additional thoughts on the matter in a recent Lectio Divina, I… Continue Reading “THE TRUTH: The weight of my daily cross”
CONTEMPLATIVE READING: Growing deeper through the Word.
Reading a phone book (do those still exist?) provides me with information about how to communicate with another person if they are in the phone book. Reading Sacred Scriptures is unlike reading any other book. Because it is God’s Word, authorized through the Church… Continue Reading “CONTEMPLATIVE READING: Growing deeper through the Word.”
MY MASCULINE AND FEMININE PRAYER DIMENSIONS
Don’t ask. This topic just popped into my compendium of Lay Cistercian practices for my consideration. Whenever we use words, the user (me) has assumptions that have taken a lifetime to associate with that word, and the receiver uses the same lifetime of assuming… Continue Reading “MY MASCULINE AND FEMININE PRAYER DIMENSIONS”
THE PHENOMENON OF MAN: Background for The Christ Principle as Intelligent Progression.
If you have not done so, I recommend reading (and reflecting) on the late Teilhard de Chardin’s book, The Phenomenon of Man. I do so because it is at the heart of my Lectio Divina (Philippians 2:5) meditations about The Christ Principle. My thoughts… Continue Reading “THE PHENOMENON OF MAN: Background for The Christ Principle as Intelligent Progression.”
CHAPTER 4: DISTRACTIONS AND BAD THOUGHTS DURING CONTEMPLATION
Posted on May 20, 2019, by https://thecenterforcontemplativepractice.org This might seem like an odd topic for Lectio Divina, but I assure you, it is authentic, embarrassingly honest. It is natural because none of us practice prayer and hopefully contemplation without distractions and trying to avoid evil thoughts.… Continue Reading “CHAPTER 4: DISTRACTIONS AND BAD THOUGHTS DURING CONTEMPLATION”
Leonardo DaVinci Drawing of Life
To be fully human ourselves, we must make sure everyone has a chance to be Pro-Choice. We are the sum of our choices.
CONVERSIO MORAE: Ten habits of highly successful people who move deeper into Christ Jesus.
One of the great lessons I have taken away from being exposed to Cistercian spirituality is the sheer simplicity of allowing God to shine on your behavior. This life-giving energy replenishes Faith with grace and conversio morae, growing more like Christ and less like… Continue Reading “CONVERSIO MORAE: Ten habits of highly successful people who move deeper into Christ Jesus.”
THE HUMAN RAMIFICATIONS OF VISIBILITY AND INVISIBILITY
“Why does human life find itself on a planet just far away from the Sun not to burn up, with just the correct mixtures of gases to exist, with just the correct protection from radiation not to be torched?” Added to that seeming statistical… Continue Reading “THE HUMAN RAMIFICATIONS OF VISIBILITY AND INVISIBILITY”
THREE BATTLES YOU MUST FIGHT TO WIN
In my latest Lectio Divina (Philippians 2:5), I was struck by the notion of how difficult it is to live in the world and yet also be a citizen and adopted son in the Kingdom of Heaven. This dual citizenship causes anxiety sometimes and… Continue Reading “THREE BATTLES YOU MUST FIGHT TO WIN”
FERTILIZER FOR FAITH: The God of Second Chances
You know the parable of the good seed falling on good ground. There are three fertilizers that Christ told us to use to keep the soil of our Faith from drying up and becoming sterile. It is no accident that God is depicted as… Continue Reading “FERTILIZER FOR FAITH: The God of Second Chances”
MAKE A PRIVATE RETREAT WITH THE SOUL OF THE APOSTOLATE: Ten Aides to Mental Prayer
I can remember reading The Soul of the Apostolate in College. This is the spiritual classic by DOM JEAN-BAPTIST CHAUTARD, O.C.S.O. (Abbot of Notre Dame de Sept Fons). This morning, the Holy Spirit tickled my neurons to bring up my previous encounters with this… Continue Reading “MAKE A PRIVATE RETREAT WITH THE SOUL OF THE APOSTOLATE: Ten Aides to Mental Prayer”
MAKE A CONTEMPLATIVE RETREAT IN THE SILENCE OF YOUR HEART
I made this contemplative retreat recently and found it to be life-changing and the most inspiring thoughts that I am still processing to assimilate into my personal spiritual worldview. I offer to share this with you, but be forewarned, it is not for the… Continue Reading “MAKE A CONTEMPLATIVE RETREAT IN THE SILENCE OF YOUR HEART”
MARY STUART INSPIRED ME TO FIND A QUIET TRUTH
I had gall bladder removal surgery yesterday and am slowly getting back to normal (which is no small feat for me because I haven’t been normal for over twenty years). As I grow in awareness that I don’t know the full implications of the… Continue Reading “MARY STUART INSPIRED ME TO FIND A QUIET TRUTH”
THE DIVINE EQUATION: Assumptions make us who we are as humans
To wander through the high grass of the English language is to walk through paths that are sometimes strewn with weeds among the wildflowers. The communication problem becomes one of learning to delve into the assumptions underlying the words we use. For example, to… Continue Reading “THE DIVINE EQUATION: Assumptions make us who we are as humans”
LITURGY OF THE HOURS: Office of the Dead
Would you join me in praying the Office of the Dead for my friend, Father Carl Roos, who died on April 3rd in Indianapolis, Indiana? We can also include any other souls of the Faithful Departed. May they rest in the peace of Christ.… Continue Reading “LITURGY OF THE HOURS: Office of the Dead”
A LAY CISTERCIAN’S SAYINGS
Here are some sayings that have popped up in my Lectio Divina Marriage is not the purpose of life, but the purpose of marriage is life. Love means following your heart to sit down next to Jesus on a park bench and wait. Just… Continue Reading “A LAY CISTERCIAN’S SAYINGS”
CHAPTER 4: I USED TO LOOK DOWN ON THE BAPTIST CHURCH
I USED TO LOOK DOWN AT THE BAPTISTS We all are guilty. When we hear something, we process it according to our first impressions. As the saying goes, you don’t get a second chance to make a first impression. Perhaps this is because the… Continue Reading “CHAPTER 4: I USED TO LOOK DOWN ON THE BAPTIST CHURCH”
CONVERSIO MORAE: The habit of moving from my false self to my true self. With God’s energy, there is always deeper.
During the Lenten season, particular emphasis is on how to move from my false self to my true self. The book, The Cistercian Way, written by the late Dom Andre Louf, O.S.C.O., is one that I continue to read, again and again, to recreate… Continue Reading “CONVERSIO MORAE: The habit of moving from my false self to my true self. With God’s energy, there is always deeper.”
ARE YOU HALF A CATHOLIC?
My Lectio Divina meditation (Philippians 2:5) took me to ask about my being faithful to what Christ taught about loving others as Christ loved us. Read the whole text about love with its fantastic approach to Christ being real inside you. I offer it… Continue Reading “ARE YOU HALF A CATHOLIC?”
A PUZZLE MORE COMPLEX THAN SUDOKU: CAN YOU SOLVE THE DIVINE EQUATION?
Actually, there is no solution to the Divine Equation as much as it is a key to living your humanity in such a way that you can see reality and thus fulfill the next step in the evolution of the species. In seeing reality… Continue Reading “A PUZZLE MORE COMPLEX THAN SUDOKU: CAN YOU SOLVE THE DIVINE EQUATION?”
LENT: A time to die
Taking up your cross each day to follow Christ is a preposterous idea to those who only live in two universes, the physical one which is our base, and the mental one which gives us the tools of reason and free choice to discover… Continue Reading “LENT: A time to die”
WHAT IS THE MOST POWERFUL ENERGY IN THE WHOLE UNIVERSE?
This might seem like an innocuous topic for contemplative practice but stick with me. The world is obsessed with power, be it physical power, personal power, military prowess, such as we witness in the takeover of Ukraine, or political power (the one I detest… Continue Reading “WHAT IS THE MOST POWERFUL ENERGY IN THE WHOLE UNIVERSE?”
THE CHRIST PRINCIPLE: We are what we choose.
Once, a young man wanted to know the one question, that, if you asked it, all others depended upon it. He set out to find that one question, one that kept him up at night, not with worry but with curiosity. He went to… Continue Reading “THE CHRIST PRINCIPLE: We are what we choose.”
SIC TRANSEAT GLORIA MUNDI
Thus passes the glory of the world. What a profound saying as the whole world seems destined for hatred and power-grabbing. My thoughts in a Lectio Divina (Philippians 2:5) had to do with what doesn’t pass away, what is secure, what lasts forever, plus… Continue Reading “SIC TRANSEAT GLORIA MUNDI”
THE RAPE OF REASON AND FREE CHOICE
Recent events in our time have one country with considerable power and military take over another country, one who is sovereign and not provoking anyone in the name of nationalism. It is not just nor is it acceptable, yet many nation-states stand on the… Continue Reading “THE RAPE OF REASON AND FREE CHOICE”
THE CORRUPTION OF THE SPIRIT–Part II
In my last few years of being a Lay Cistercian, I have completely changed my viewpoint about being the center of my world, but not in the way you might expect. I have been tutored to avoid being self-centered and selfish all of my… Continue Reading “THE CORRUPTION OF THE SPIRIT–Part II”
LAY CISTERCIAN CONTEMPLATIVE PRACTICES: Custos Oculi
One of the first things monks and nuns, particularly those cloistered, do is to learn custody of the eyes. Here are some readings for you that I, myself, did, and which I share with you. During this time of Lent, when we recognize that… Continue Reading “LAY CISTERCIAN CONTEMPLATIVE PRACTICES: Custos Oculi”
THE CORRUPTIBILITY OF THE SPIRIT: The effects on me as I live in a universe that is incorruptible, but I am corruptible.
How is it possible for the Spirit to be corruptible if God is incorruptible? It isn’t. What is possible is, once I am baptized, I am corruptible in my resolve to keep myself centered on The Christ Principle. I am continuing my reflections on… Continue Reading “THE CORRUPTIBILITY OF THE SPIRIT: The effects on me as I live in a universe that is incorruptible, but I am corruptible.”
THE DIVINE EQUATION: THE CORRUPTION OF EVERYDAY LIVING
The focus of my thinking these days has been on Original Sin and how humans must live within its parameters, such as death, pain, emotions, and the ambiguity of choosing either good or bad behaviors that we think will make us satisfied. Saint Augustine… Continue Reading “THE DIVINE EQUATION: THE CORRUPTION OF EVERYDAY LIVING”
THE RULE OF THREES: THE POWER TO CHANGE UNIVERSES
You are capable of living in three realities or universes simultaneously. Think about that statement. If you are human, you automatically live in two universes. Some of us never progress to the third universe, the spiritual plane of existence. The physical universe — all… Continue Reading “THE RULE OF THREES: THE POWER TO CHANGE UNIVERSES”
THE DIVINE EQUATION: How deep is your love?
Remember the tune, “How deep is your love?” It is one of my favorite tunes from the Bee Gees. I can’t say I remember all of the words, except the refrain and the melody. This song resurrects some old thoughts from a Lectio Divina… Continue Reading “THE DIVINE EQUATION: How deep is your love?”
TEN MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS WITH MICHAEL LAST YEAR
Like any good examination of conscience (Chapter 4 of St. Benedict’s Rule, https://christdesert.org/rule-of-st-benedict/chapter-4-the-tools-for-good-works/), it is my custom to review my life achievements and frequent faults and failings at the end of each year with the resolve to “prefer nothing to the love of Christ,” with… Continue Reading “TEN MOST IMPORTANT MOMENTS WITH MICHAEL LAST YEAR”
THE TABLE OF THE LORD: Being a penitent Lay Cistercian
If you wish to love Christ as He loved us, you must be a penitential person. How you that depends on your capacitas dei (capacity for God) and listening with the ear of your heart (St. Benedict in the Prologue to the Rule). This… Continue Reading “THE TABLE OF THE LORD: Being a penitent Lay Cistercian”
THE MARTYRDOM OF THE ORDINARY
Nota Bene: This blog is lengthy. As the Feast of the Nativity fast approaches, the thought comes to mind in Advent about how each one of us should be grateful for the fact that God became one of us because of love and to… Continue Reading “THE MARTYRDOM OF THE ORDINARY”
THE TABLE OF THE LORD
Being a Lay Cistercian is one of not only discovering what it means to be Cistercian and a Layperson, but also how that openness to the heart of Christ transforms me into something I was not before. If I am a Table of the… Continue Reading “THE TABLE OF THE LORD”
UP, READY TO FIRE!
Yesterday was Veterans’ Day. I attended the Eucharist to pray for all those I know and don’t know and their families. That brought back some memories. In 1979, I was awarded The Chaplain of the Year by the Reserve Officers’ Association. I had to… Continue Reading “UP, READY TO FIRE!”
THE CHRIST PRINCIPLE: The Center
In its purest form, Lectio is a movement from just repeating one phrase in Holy Scriptures repeatedly before moving to the next sentence. Lectio has never been an end in itself, although beginners will try to move through each of the four steps of… Continue Reading “THE CHRIST PRINCIPLE: The Center”
PROFOUND LISTENING: Conditions for listening to the Holy Spirit.
Several years ago, I tried to bake one batch of biscuits to fix biscuits and gravy for my anniversary. “Tried” is the operable word here because I found out baking is not a skill that I have yet acquired, much less mastered. If I… Continue Reading “PROFOUND LISTENING: Conditions for listening to the Holy Spirit.”
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