Center for Action and Contemplation – Father Richard Rohr’s Daily
Meditation – Friday, 24 January 2014 “A Prayer to Know Presence”
“The Perennial Tradition”
“A Prayer to Know Presence”
Friday, January 24, 2014
My colleague and fellow faculty member of our Living School for
Action and Contemplation, James Finley, offers a prayer for us to experience
union with Divine Reality:
May each of us be so fortunate as to be overtaken by God in the
midst of little things. May we each be so blessed as to be finished off by God,
swooping down from above or welling up from beneath, to extinguish the illusion
of separateness that perpetuates our fears. May we, in having our illusory,
separate self slain by God, be born into a new and true awareness of who we
really are: one with God forever. May we continue on in this true awareness,
seeing in each and every little thing we see the fullness of God’s presence in
our lives. May we also be someone in whose presence others are better able to
recognize God’s presence in their lives, so that they, too, might know the
freedom of the children of God.
Adapted from Oneing, “The Perennial Tradition,” Volume 1 No. 1,
pages 81-82
Excerpted from the epilogue to James Finley’s forthcoming book,
Little Things that Fill the Whole World:
Gospel Metaphors of Spiritual Awakening.
Gateway to Silence: That all may be one
-------
Saturday, 25 January 2014 “The Perennial Tradition; Centering
Prayer”
“The Perennial Tradition”
“Sabbath Meditation”
Saturday, January 25, 2014
“Remember: The Perennial Tradition”
There is a Divine Reality underneath and inherent in the world
of things; there is in the human soul a natural capacity, similarity, and
longing for this Divine Reality; and the final goal of existence is union with
this Divine Reality. (Sunday)
You have to go deep in one place. When you do, you fall into the
underground stream that we all share. (Monday)
By myself I am nothing at all, but in general, I AM in the
oneing of love. For it is in this oneing that the life of all people exists.” –
Julian of Norwich (Tuesday)
Unity is not the same as uniformity. Unity . . . is the
reconciliation of differences, and those differences must be maintained—and yet
overcome! (Wednesday)
Yes, God is “One,” . . . and yet the further more subtle level
is that this oneness is, in fact, the radical love union between three
completely distinct “persons” of the Trinity. (Thursday)
May we, in having our illusory, separate self slain by God, be
born into a new and true awareness of who we really are: one with God forever.”
– James Finley (Friday)
“Rest: Centering Prayer”
Choose a word or phrase (perhaps this week’s Gateway to
Silence—That all may be one—or simply Be one) as an expression of your intent
and desire. Sit comfortably and upright, eyes closed, breathing naturally, and
begin to repeat this sacred word silently. As your attention is focused on the
desire behind the word, gradually let the word slip away. Rest in silence. When
thoughts, images or sensations arise, gently return to the word, a symbol of your
consent to God’s presence and action within you.
Two periods of twenty minutes each day is recommended for
Centering Prayer. To learn more about Centering Prayer, visit Contemplative
Outreach.
Gateway to Silence:
That all may be one
For further study:
Oneing, “The Perennial Tradition,” Vol. 1 No. 1
-------
Sunday, 26 January 2014 “Levels of Growth”
“Levels of Spiritual Development (Part One)”
“Levels of Growth”
Sunday, January 26, 2014
(Note: To give a thorough and in-depth exploration of the
stages, the meditations for this week and next will be longer than usual.)
So many of our problems can be resolved if we understand that
people are at different levels and stages of growth. The importance of levels
of development has come to be recognized by teachers as diverse as Teresa of
Avila, John of the Cross, Jean Piaget, Lawrence Kohlberg, Abraham Maslow, James
Fowler, Clare Graves, Ken Wilber, and Bill Plotkin. Some speak of six levels,
some eight, and some ten, but in general they move in a very similar direction.
There is a rather common description for human maturation.
Thomas Aquinas said, “Whatever is received is received according
to the manner of the receiver.” As a preacher and teacher, I have found that
whatever I teach will be heard on many different levels, according to the inner
psychological and spiritual maturity of the listener. It is rather obvious once
you say it. Jesus was teaching the same in his parable of the four different
kinds of soil that received the seed (Matthew 13:4-9).
My own attempt to correlate the various schemas of development
has resulted in nine levels or stages, which I will be describing over the next
two weeks. Note that this is merely a teaching tool. In real life, the
spiritual journey is much more subtle and complex. Progress through the stages
is not usually linear or completely chronological. Also, there is an inherent
danger in teaching about levels of growth as the ego will try to use this
information to place itself at a higher level than it is! So I invite you to
read these meditations with openness, humble honesty, and a desire for the
wholeness only God can give.
Adapted from The Art of Letting Go: Living the Wisdom of St.
Francis, Disc 5 (CD);
Where You Are is Where I'll Meet You: A Guide for Spiritual
Directors, Disc 1
(CD, MP3 Download);
The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See, pp. 163-164
Gateway to Silence:
Open me to wholeness
-------
Monday, 27 January 2014 “Similarities”
“Levels of Spiritual Development (Part One)”
“Similarities”
Monday, January 27, 2014
There is remarkable overlap and agreement among the various
schemata of development, and we find psychology and spirituality beautifully
coming together here. What they are all trying to say is that growth is going
somewhere, and the trajectory is toward union: union with God, with the self
(of mind, heart, and body), with others, and with the cosmos. All seem to agree
that the lower (or beginning) levels are dualistic, while the higher (or
perhaps I should say “deeper”) levels are non-dual and unitive. The early
stages are egocentric; the later ones are cosmocentric.
On a good day, the most you can stretch yourself to understand
is toward people one step beyond yourself. It shows how narcissistic we all
are, I am afraid. People at the higher levels look ridiculous, wrong,
heretical, or even dangerous to people at lower levels. Now you can see why the
Jewish prophets, Jesus, and Martin Luther King, Jr. were killed. On the other
hand, people at the higher, non-dual levels have the breadth and the depth to understand,
to accept, and to forgive people at the earlier or “lower” levels. Their
honesty allows them to see that they were once there themselves.
The way you move from stage to stage is basically by some form
of wounding, failure, or darkness. John of the Cross called these experiences
“nights.” The old system that worked for a while has to stop working for you,
and it will. All seem to agree that you have to go through a period of
unknowing (sounds like faith to me) to know at a higher and more mature level.
You have to go through a period of confusion and shadowboxing, dealing with
your own conflicts and contradictions. And to be honest, we have little good
teaching on how to walk in darkness, which is the very essence of Biblical
faith.
If you do not have someone to guide you, to teach you, to hold
onto you during the times of not knowing, not feeling, not understanding, you
will normally stay at your present level of growth. This is the work of a good
spiritual director or teacher, or even an effective homily. Now you perhaps see
why Jesus praised faith even more than love. Love is the goal, but faith is the
laborious journey toward it.
Adapted from The Art of Letting Go: Living the Wisdom of St.
Francis (CD);
Where You Are is Where I'll Meet You: A Guide for Spiritual
Directors
(CD, MP3 Download); and The Naked Now: Learning to See as the
Mystics See, pp. 163-164
Gateway to Silence:
Open me to wholeness “Stage One: My body and my self-image are
who I am.”
-------
Tuesday, 28 January “Levels of Spiritual Development (Part One)”
Stage One: My body and my self-image are who I am.”
Tuesday, January 28, 2014
At the first stage a person tends to be totally identified with
their body and their image of their body: “I am my body,” the infant believes.
They are not yet connected in any enlightened way to their heart or their mind.
Each part—body, heart, and mind—is dangerous if it’s largely disconnected from
the other two. Integration is opening all three spaces so that they can
enlighten and inform and balance each other.
Think of little children. They poop and pee and cuddle and eat
without shame or defense. They are their bodies, and, in a way, that’s what
makes them so dear, because they haven’t made it complex yet by thinking too
much. They run into the room naked with no embarrassment whatsoever. We teach
them shame by our shocked reaction.
At the first stage my body, its image, and the pleasuring and
protecting of it is who I largely am. Many people in a secular, non-wisdom
culture like ours may never move past Stage One. People at this level tend to
be preoccupied with pleasure, security, safety, and defense—of their material
state. If it makes me feel secure, it is moral. Life is largely about
protecting myself. (This is seen in endless need for war and guns, little need
for education, culture, the arts, and spirituality.) Stage One people are
rather dualistic, either/or thinkers, and frankly represent a rather sizable
minority of humans. Their morality largely has to do with maintaining their
group, and their group as superior.
I believe life, God, and grace nudge most people at least to the
next stage. But first they have to allow some of their security and pleasure
absolutes to be taken away.
Adapted from The Art of Letting Go: Living the Wisdom of St.
Francis (CD);
Where You Are is Where I'll Meet You: A Guide for Spiritual
Directors
(CD, MP3 Download);
and The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See, pp.
163-164
Gateway to Silence:
Open me to wholeness
-------
Wednesday, 29 January 2014 “Stage Two: My external behavior is
who I am.”
“Levels of Spiritual Development (Part One)”
“Stage Two: My external behavior is who I am.”
Wednesday, January 29, 2014
Most of human history up to now has been at Stage Two, and,
frankly, much of Jesus’ teaching is most aimed at this level because it is all
about purity codes, debt codes, dogmas, and external rituals—because that was
the stage where most of his listeners were. At Stage Two, your concern is to
look good outside. Your concern with pleasing the neighborhood, the village,
your religion, or your kind of folks becomes such a way of life that you get
very practiced at hiding or disguising any contrary evidence. That’s why it is
so dangerous.
This becomes the birth of the shadow self. Eventually your
shadow side—your denied motives, your real self—is actually hidden from you.
You have to start pretending that you are what looks good to your group and
your religion. Your whole identity becomes defending your external behavior as
more moral than other people, and defending your family, your community, your
race, your church or temple or mosque, your nation as superior to others.
This is tribal thinking. It is a necessary stage, however, so
that you can feel like you are Chosen, are significant, or have dignity. It
gives you a strong sense of your identity and boundaries, which serves you well
as a child. But many people remain trapped here, in a worldview of win/lose and
good guys/bad guys. Far Right-wing thinking—the false conservative, in any
country and in any religion—largely proceeds from Stages One or Two.
Eventually, your own behavior or group is going to have to
disappoint you. You will begin to see that you yourself, or some people in your
group, are, in fact, unkind, dishonest, or violent. That is the beginning of
integrating the negative, of a necessary shadowboxing. If you are incapable of
such appropriate critical thinking, you will not go through the darkness, the
necessary deeper faith journey that will move you on to Stage Three.
Adapted from The Art of Letting Go: Living the Wisdom of St.
Francis (CD);
Where You Are is Where I'll Meet You: A Guide for Spiritual
Directors
(CD, MP3 Download);
and The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See, pp.
163-164
Gateway to Silence: Open me to wholeness
-------
Center for Action and Contemplation
1705 Five Points Road SW
Albuquerque, NM 87105 (physical)
PO Box 12464
Albuquerque, NM 87195-2464 (mailing)
(505) 242-9588
cac.org
-------
No comments:
Post a Comment