"It is... from [within] the human heart that evil intentions come."
We invite you to a few minutes of silence before we begin our prayer time together.
Take a deep breath and breathe in the breath of God, knowing by faith that God breathes into us the breath of life.
CONTEMPLATIVE / SILENT PRAYER
Our Centering Prayer sit is 20 - 30 minutes sounded by the chime/chant. At the end of the Prayer sit, we will linger in silence a few minutes, then follow by praying together the Our Father.
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First reading & silent reflection: Reflect in silence.
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LECTIO: Mark 7: 1-8, 14-15, 21-23.
So the Pharisees and the scribes
asked him, ‘Why do your disciples not live according to the tradition of the
elders, but eat with defiled hands?’ He said to them, “Isaiah prophesied rightly
about you hypocrites, as it is written,
' These people honour me with their lips,
but their hearts are far
from me;
in vain do they worship me,
teaching human precepts as
doctrines.’
'You abandon the commandment of God and hold to
human tradition.'
Then he called the crowd again
and said to them, “Listen to me, all of you, and understand: there is nothing
outside a person that by going in can defile, but the things that come out are
what defile.” For it is from within, from the human heart, that evil
intentions come: fornication, theft, murder, adultery, avarice, wickedness,
deceit, licentiousness, envy, slander, pride, folly. All these evil things come
from within, and they defile a person.”
Second reading & reflection: What word or phrase catches your attention? Share or pass.
Third reading & reflection: How does this word or phrase touch your life? Share or pass.
Fourth and last reading & silent reflection: How is God inviting you to grow? We will reflect in silence for a few moments before we move from Lectio Prayer to the teaching by Father Keating.
Teaching: [In the story of Mary and Martha], Martha
exemplifies “good souls” at the beginning of the spiritual journey when they
have the best intentions to serve God...She is converted on the conscious
level...but not converted on the unconscious level of her motivation...She is in
the first stage of the spiritual journey--the Purgative Way. The Purgative Way
consists in becoming aware of how our unconscious needs affect ordinary daily
life including our service of God. It is unsettling for us to realize that,
mixed in with our good intentions, are...infantile attitudes…[Martha]...is
active in the service of God but her activity is not contemplative service. She
is working for herself. No doubt she thinks she is working solely for God, but in
fact her motivation is mixed. Thomas Keating, The Better Part, 15-18.
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We now take some time to share our thoughts and reflections on our own spiritual journey and our prayer practice. Followed by brief prayers of intercession. Share or pass.
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Go in the name of Christ Jesus to love and serve the Lord. Thanks be to God!
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[This is an adapted format courtesy of Martha Johnston, Contemplative Outreach of Maryland and Washington, DC]
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