Anonymous:
“I
can’t imagine getting through the Covid pandemic without the practice of
Centering Prayer and the opportunities to come together with others engaging in
contemplative practices. While I treasure being able to gather on Zoom
with my weekly group, I found gathering with any CP group an experience of
being in the Body of Christ, being among others regularly opening their hearts
and minds to what the Holy Spirit had to impart. No matter what circumstances
any of us were experiencing in our daily lives,we were together for the hour or
so to recount what God was doing in our lives--the ways we were being lifted
up, strengthened, exhorted, guided, and lovingly held. We were reminded that we
have a spiritual as well as physical nature and it is in that spiritual
consciousness that we are filled with the love, grace, mercy, compassion, and
hope of the Holy and the Divine. Through our sharing in the power of the prayer
we were experiencing the Presence of Christ and all that that signifies. We
were being filled, both in the practice and in the coming together, with the
assurance of God’s love and generosity toward us.
I
have to be reminded, each and every day, of the power and goodness awaiting me
in the Oneness with God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit and the Oneness with all
creation. I have to be reminded, in Him, and through Him, to be a source
of life and light in times of threat, whether it be a pandemic or a time of
political unrest. I am being equipped to be an advocate of forgiveness and
reconciliation because I am assured that He dwells within each of us. He
is at work in the world and in every other human with whom I share this
life. I have to be reminded moment by moment.
Our
country is crying out for Spiritual healing.”
* *
* * *
Mary Williams: Some thoughts on the
Zoom experience (St Thomas More prayer group):
“It
felt awkward initially – that sense of everyone staring at you on the screen --
and it was a learning curve for everyone, navigating the technology. We are
still learning. A couple of people have opted to wait until we can meet in
person again because they do not like Zoomed gatherings, but we are in touch
through email. One older woman who cannot hear well wishes she could join us,
but her iPad is on the blink. The other five people in the group are grateful
to be able to meet through Zoom. It has actually made it easier for one woman
who would otherwise have to drive a long distance.
I
learned that the large singing bowl I typically use to open a period of
centering prayer does not sound good on Zoom. For some people it was too loud
and jarring; for others, the sound was patchy and uneven. I now use a very
small singing bowl with a higher-pitched sound; this seems to work better.
Another
thing to be aware of on Zoom: Everyone’s perspective is different. I use a
laptop PC that lets me see everyone on my screen. Some people use tablets or
phones that allow you to see up to four people at once – they have to navigate
to another page to see additional people. Thus, when people nod or use other
gestures or facial expressions to communicate, it’s important to keep in mind
that not everyone can see that. If you are answering “yes” to a question, for
example, you’ll need to say the word ‘yes,’ and not just nod.
What
I like the most about using Zoom is that I can use the share-screen function to
share visuals or to play YouTube clips of contemplative teachings or music. I
learned that going to the “advanced settings” allows me share a portion of my
screen and to optimize computer sound so that music comes through clearly.
Thus, Zoom actually offers unique advantages in sharing formation material.
The
group does miss meeting in person, though, and we look forward to the day when
that can happen again.”
* *
* * * *
John Wavrik (St. Peter’s Prayer Group):
“Something that has become clear is that Zoom is
well suited for meeting of a Centering.Prayer group. The Zoom setting is more intimate
than face-to-face meeting. You can see people more clearly when they are close
up (as in Zoom) than when they are seated across a room from you. You don’t
have to travel to get to a meeting.
Formation activities
benefit from ‘screen sharing’. You can watch videos which fill up the computer
monitor in front of you – rather than looking at a small TV on the other side
of a room.
Participants
can share readings that all can see and follow. In a small enough group one can
discuss just as effectively as when meeting together in the same room. In fact,
one does feel that everyone is in the same room – your own living room! Centering
Prayer is an individual discipline. Group meetings serve to support the
members’ practice – they are not a substitute for it. It is helpful to
periodically get together with others practicing the prayer – but it serves
primarily as a support and social supplement to a regular private practice. In
formation, particularly book study, a group provides incentive for reading.
Reading on your own and then sharing your reactions is a very helpful
supplement to private reading. It allows you to benefit from the reaction of
others to the things you are reading. Again, a joint book study is a supplement
to reading a book on your own, not a substitute.
I
am not anxious for a return to in person meetings. Meetings via Zoom have a lot
of benefits it will be hard to give up. I have come to really appreciate this
way of doing a Centering Prayer group.”
* *
* * * *
Diane
Langworthy
and members of the Centering Prayer group at her church:
“Members
of the Mary Magdalene Apostle Catholic Community Centering Prayer Group have
undoubtedly experienced that the Spirit flows in and among us, though now, also
by Zoom! Since the shelter in place order, our group has gained an
additional four members, some of whom are new to the prayer, and others who
have returned to us, as physical limitations had made getting to the group out
of their reach. How we look forward to sharing the silence together
(through zoom) and companioning each other. I have noted that we
have a deeper “tenderness” for each person, as the experience of the
pandemic has taught us to treasure the presence of each other. Through
our zoom gatherings , we raise each other up, out of isolation, and into the
gift of life in this present moment. Several group members
frequently share their poetry , art, and reflections among us. With gratitude
and awe, What follows are some of the contemplative ponderings of our
group:”
* * *
Our CP group has been a substantial
support to me during this period of our Zoom meeting. My husband Ray and
I had the COVID 19 virus ...I had a mild case, and he unfortunately had
a severe case involving hospitalization and a ventilator. He died on April
24th after 3 weeks and 3 days of his diagnosis. The prayers,
texts, phone calls and cards from our CP group and our wonderful weekly Zoom
meetings led by Diane have been a sustaining force in my life and grief
recovery and ongoing healing. Our study of Richard Rohr’s book The
Universal Christ has also helped to keep me grounded in my deeper spiritual
perspective, understanding the Love all around that is God With Me
and with all of us as community—not only now, but always. I am ever
grateful for this Centering Prayer group and look forward to it each
week.
~With a Thankful
Heart,
Linda Hill-Phoenix
* * *
“The
Day the Snake Came to Centering Prayer” ~Karla Seyb-Stockton
“We
were having centering prayer via zoom, as so many are. I was sitting in the
shade in my back yard facing my house so my camera would pick up the valley
behind me. We have our sit at the beginning of our time together and then do
our learning. By the time our sit was done the shade had moved enough I had to
move my chair. I rotated it, to make the most of the shade and so I could enjoy
the view for a while. At the time, we were reading Fr Richard Rohr’s The
Universal Christ, sharing the reading among us by each paragraph. My turn to
read was a few paragraphs away, but I glanced up from my book and what did I
see? A very large brown snake with a diamond pattern had come around the corner
of my house toward me and was about 6’ from my outstretched feet! It was
stopped, stone-still. I think I had surprised it as much as it surprised me!
Was it a rattler? Was it a gopher snake? I couldn’t tell, but I can tell you, I
wasn’t taking my eyes off it until I knew! I am not afraid of snakes, but I
certainly respect them. And this one had been around a while. It was BIG!
I
continued to listen while I watched the snake, and when my turn to read came
around, I passed and explained why. (It created a little bit of a disruption… )
After a stare-down of what seemed like an hour but must have been just a few
minutes, the snake started to flick its tongue. It was trying to figure out
what to make of me! Eventually, the snake decided taking a different path would
be the best course of action and it made its way into a bush on the far side of
my yard. Ahhh, no rattles. Thank goodness!
I was
just glad I had rotated my chair, otherwise it would have been behind me and I
would have totally missed it! It is just a reminder wild things are never far
away, even though we don’t see them very often.”
Poems that were inspired within the
context of recent CP’s…… by Paul Russo
Mirror Reflection
Learning to be an observer
No judgement or analysis
Seeing Love in the Other
And knowing love within
Eternal vibrations
Resonate between
Creator and created
Everything belongs
Reality unfolds
In the mutual
Gaze.
* * *
Gratitude In Transit
I am impelled
To give thanks
for the energies
Of life,
That I so nonchalantly
Give voice to—
Graces
That seem to reverberate
Through every cell
Of this body.
Vibrations
oscillating
In rhythmic fashion,
At times,
Like dancing butterflies
Pirouetting above
A carpet of flowers.
Energies of love,
That I sense,
Flow
Throughout an ever
Expanding universe,
To create,
Invigorate
And
Transform.
Bouquets—
Centerpieces
At tables of
Gathering friendships.
________________________________________________________________________________
“God is alive!!!
I watch him in zoom in
my daily share. More and more I grow in confidence with intimacy that we could
create a United Church that glorifies His presence among us.
I discovered God's
words, images, poems, songs, art beauty via website.
A variety of daily
prayer, multicultural masses, adorations, conferences, retreats, all kind of
expressions , People with faces full of joys, conversion, communions, United
Communities supports, friends, growth daily to extend love, help, company using
technology to minimize the effect of unexpected COVID 19's quarantine.
Centering prayer has
become the center of my life, a clear way to become UNO with God including all
of with the same Faith. As Richard Rohr teaches: Christ is more than a
religion. Christ is Universal and present in all of Human life.
From the silence and the
stillness, we connect with the Universal Heart that awakens the ego and human
conscience to recreate the Life beyond the Earth.... Amen.”
~Maria Lanz (English is a second
language for her)
* * *
"AUGUST 2020"
each dawn I am remolded,
similar yet different,
as if I were the sky.
--Poem and photo by Carl Emerich
