SPIRITUAL EXPLORATIONS -- 78

WE ARE EXPLORING THE PRACTICE OF  SILENCE

+ Somewhere in those depths of silence I came upon my first experiences of God as a loving presence that was always near, and prayer as a simple trust in that presence.

 -- Cynthia Bourgeault in Centering Prayer and Inner Awakening

+ Cynthia Bourgeault offers plenty of practical wisdom on the practice of Centering Prayer along with great insights into the Wisdom emphasis of Early Christianity which is now being recovered through  her efforts and the efforts of many others.  They are finding that the mystical approach is central to what Jesus taught and to what his first followers practiced and taught.  Here are a few more quotes from Cynthia Bourgeault to whet your appetite:

“Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 2:5) The words call us up short as to what we are actually supposed to be doing on this path: not just admiring Jesus, but acquiring his consciousness. -- Cynthia Bourgeault in The Wisdom Jesus: Transforming Heart and Mind

As we actually taste the flavor of what he's teaching, we begin to see that it's not proverbs for daily living, or ways of being virtuous. He's proposing a total meltdown and recasting of human consciousness, bursting through the tiny acorn-selfhood that we arrived on the planet with into the oak tree of our fully realized personhood. He pushes us toward it, teases us, taunts us, encourages us, and ultimately walks us there. -- Cynthia Bourgeault in The Wisdom Jesus: Transforming Heart and Mind

+ Spirituality&Practice offers many resources on the Spiritual Practice of Silence and a wonderful photo and quotes gallery.

+ I have work to do on my Discernment page.   Maybe you can help.  Send an email with the subject “Discernment” to John@abundancetrek.com.

+ You can always find a link to any of the Spiritual Explorations posts by going to http://abundancetrek.com/sepostsaccess.html