"God is light and in him there is no darkness at all."
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: from 1 John 1: 1 to 2:2
We declare to you what was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands, concerning the word of life – this life was revealed, and we have seen it and testify to it, and declare to you the eternal life that was with the Father and was revealed to us – we declare to you what we have seen and heard so that you also may have fellowship with us; and truly our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ. We are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.
This is the message we have heard from him and proclaim to you, that God is light and in him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with him while we are walking in darkness, we lie and do not do what is true; but if we walk in the light as he himself is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus his Son cleanses us from all sin.
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 or another contemplative guide.
The night of sense,
John of the Cross asserts, happens “fairly soon” to those who commit themselves
to the spiritual journey. By the term night John of the Cross means the
darkening of the usual ways in which we relate to God, whether through
reflection or through the experience of the senses. Our ordinary ways of
relating to God are being changed to ways that we do not know. This pulls the
rug out from under our plans and strategies for the spiritual journey. We learn
that the journey is a path that cannot be mapped out in advance. God helps us to
dis-identify from our preconceived ideas by enlightening us from within by the
contemplative gifts of the Spirit. Through the infusion of his light and the
assurance of his love, he lets us in on our weaknesses and deficiencies–not to
overwhelm us with discouragement, but to encourage us to entrust ourselves
completely to his infinite mercy.
--Thomas Keating, Intimacy with God, 69-70.
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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 Richard and Linda Hall, Contemplative Outreach of Maryland and Washington, DC]
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