Follow-up to Centering Prayer

Hi all,

I found a few more resources that address centering prayer and a few other helpful resources when discussing the spiritual life.

The first article, Letter to the Bishops of the Catholic Church on Some Aspects of Christian Meditation, was mentioned by Robert during our last meeting. This letter was approved by Pope John Paul II in October 15, 1989.

Some interesting points:

#3: "Christian prayer is always determined by the structure of the Christian faith, in which the very truth of God and creature shines forth. For this reason, it is defined, properly speaking, as a personal, intimate and profound dialogue between man and God."

#10: "the Fathers [bishops, priests, etc from the first centuries of the Christian Church] insisted on the fact that the soul's union with God in prayer is realized in a mysterious way. [...] Moreover, it can even be achieved through experiences of affliction or desolation [...] these are not necessarily a sign that the Spirit has abandoned a soul. "

#11: "The meditation of the Christian in prayer seeks to grasp the depths of the divine in the salvific works of God in Christ, the Incarnate Word, and in the gift of his spirit."

#15: "A consideration of these truths [Jesus is God Incarnate, the Holy Spirit dwells within after baptism, etc] together brings the wonderful discovery that all the aspirations which the prayer of other religions expresses are fulfilled in the reality of Christianity beyond all measure, without the personal self or the nature of a creature being dissolved or disappearing into the sea of the Absolute."

#16: "one can take from them [non-Christian religions] what is useful so long as the Christian conception of prayer, its logic and requirements are never obscured."

#19: "The great Doctor of the Church [Augustine] recommends concentrating on oneself, but also transcending the self which is not God, but only a creature. God is 'deeper than my inmost being and higher than my greatest height."

#24: "There are certain 'mystical graces,' conferred on the founders of ecclesial institutes to benefit their foundation, and on other saints, too, which characterize their personal experience of prayer and which cannot, as such, be the object of imitation and aspiration for other members of the faithful, even those who belong to the same institutes and those who seek an ever more perfect way of prayer."

#31: "The love of God, the sole object of Christian contemplation, is a reality which cannot be 'mastered' by any method or technique."

This still doesn't clear up the difference between meditation and contemplation. The Catechism of the Catholic dedicates several paragraphs (CCC #2705-2719) to the meaning of each:

"Meditation is above all a quest. The mind seeks to understand the why and how of the Christian life, in order to adhere and respond to what the Lord is asking. The required attentiveness is difficult to sustain. We are usually helped by books, and Christians do not want for them: the Sacred Scriptures, particularly the Gospels, holy icons, liturgical texts of the day or season, writings of the spiritual fathers, works of spirituality, the great book of creation, and that of history--the page on which the 'today' of God is written." (CCC #2705)

"Contemplative prayer is silence, the 'symbol of the word to come' or 'silent love.' Words in this kind of prayer are not speeches; they are like kindling that feeds the fire of love. In this silence, unbearable to the 'outer' man, the Father speaks to us his incarnate Word, who suffered died, and rose; in this silence the Spirit of adoption enables us to share in the prayer of Jesus." (CCC #2717)

St. Thomas Aquinas also discusses contemplation in his Summa Theologica (ST, II-II, 179), specifically his reply to objection 3:

It is true that contemplation enjoys rest from external movements. Nevertheless to contemplate is itself a movement to the intellect, in so far as every operation is described as movement; in which sense the Philosopher [Aristotle] says that sensation and understanding are movements of a kind, in so far as movement is defined 'the act of a perfect thing.'

Thomas' discussion on truth is also quite interesting (ST, I, 16):

But if we speak of truth as it is in things, then all things are true by one primary truth; to which each one is assimilated according to its own entity. And thus, although the essences or forms of things are many, yet the truth of the divine intellect is one, in conformity to which all things are said to be true.

Perhaps some of this will develop into further discussion!

Christ's Peace,

Zach

Centering Prayer on March 24

Hi All,

We have invited Greg Carbone and Karen Beidel from St. Peter's parish to join us to discuss Centering Prayer.

Centering Prayer was developed following the Second Vatican Council by three Trappist monks, Fr. William Meninger, Basil Pennington and Thomas Keating. Drawing from the Church's ancient tradition of contemplative prayer and lection divina, the three developed a simple method of silent prayer for contemporary people.

From the "Contemplative Outreach" website:

Centering Prayer is a method of silent prayer that prepares us to receive the gift of contemplative prayer, prayer in which we experience God's presence within us, closer than breathing, closer than thinking, closer than consciousness itself. This method of prayer is both a relationship with God and a discipline to foster that relationship.

Centering Prayer is not meant to replace other kinds of prayer. Rather, it adds depth of meaning to all prayer and facilitates the movement from more active modes of prayer--verbal, mental or affective prayer--into a receptive prayer of resting in God. Centering Prayer emphasizes prayer as a personal relationship with God and as a movement beyond conversation with Christ to communion with Him.

The source of Centering Prayer, as in all methods leading to contemplative prayer, is the Indwelling Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The focus of Centering Prayer is the deepening of our relationship with the living Christ. The effects of Centering Prayer are ecclesial, as the prayer tends to build communities of faith and bond the members together in mutual friendship and love.

We look forward to seeing you all on Wednesday, March 24 at Delaney's Music Pub & Eatery in Five Points from 6 PM to 8 PM.

Christ's Peace,

Zach and Matt

next meeting: March 10

Hey folks YACs is doing something new starting in March. In addition to our regular meeting at Delaney's on March 24th (we'll have a post about that coming up soon!) we're meeting on Wednesday March 10th at St. Thomas More Chapel near USC to pray Vespers.

Vespers, also known as Evensong or Evening Prayer is one of the Liturgical Hours. These prayers traditionally sung by religious (monks, nuns, priests in community) are a part of our rich Catholic patrimony. Since the Second Vatican Council the Church has encouraged the laity to participate as a community in these prayers of the church. And that is what we plan to do!

So join us March 10 and experience the richness of our Catholic Spirituality.

For more information on the Liturgy of the Hours check out these links:

Laudis Canticum - Encyclical by Pope Paul VI

General Instruction of the Liturgy of the Hours

Wikipedia

February's Meeting: Sacra Musica

For February's meeting we're going to mix things up a bit. Instead of meeting at our usual locale, we're meeting at St. Peter's on Assembly Street.

Mark Husey, the Director of Music and Liturgy, has graciously agreed to talk with us about the Music of the Church. From ancient hymns to classical works by the greats and the songs we hear today Mark will share with us from his vast repertoire of musical knowledge. We'll hear not only about the music of our Catholic tradition and it's role and place in our liturgy, but of protestant hymnody as well and how they've influenced each other and moved hearts and souls towards God.

Who knows maybe we'll even get to go into the choir loft and hear Mark play.

So join us at 6:30pm on Wednesday February 24th at St. Peter's, located at 1529 Assembly Street.

Oh, and some intersting links: St Peter's Catholic Church, and the Choir Ministry's YouTube Page.

-Matt

Janaury 2010 Meeting

Hi All,

We will meet at DeLaney's Pub in Five Points on Wednesday, January 20 at 6 PM.

Join us as we discuss Pope Benedict XVI's latest Encylical, Caritas in Veritate ("Love in Truth"). This encyclical continues to develop the Catholic Church's teachings regarding the basic rights of the human person in light of current world events.

Please see the US Bishop's site primer on previous encyclicals at the USCCB Media Blog.

Christ's Peace,

Zach

November Meeting

Hi All,

Join us for our discussion, "East Meets West." We have invited Fr. Mark Mancuso from St. Elizabeth the New Martyr Russian Orthodox Church to come and speak about Eastern Orthodoxy. This will be an open discussion exploring some of the similarities and differences between the Roman Catholic Church and the Orthodox Churches.

We will meet on Wednesday, November 11 in the back room at DeLaney's in Five Points from 6 to 8 PM.

Christ's Peace,

Zach

October Meeting

Hi All,

Our next meeting will be on Wednesday, October 7 at 6 PM at DeLaney's in Five Points. Please note the change of venue for our meeting! We will be in the back room at DeLaney's.

For this month we will discuss the ordained priesthood and how different priests have lived this out. We have tried to invite a group of priests, of different ages and from different backgrounds, to discuss their experience of being a priest. This should be a good meeting and a chance to talk with priest more candidly than perhaps you have in the past.

Come and join us!

Christ's Peace,

Zach