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Trusting God's Indwelling Presence

9/30/2011

 
By Carol Quest

Last summer, at a Centering Prayer training session, the leader commented that faith in God's indwelling presence is essential to the practice of centering prayer. She went on to say, however, that she found that many people come to centering prayer without that fundamental belief. In the weeks since that training session, from time to time I have reflected on my own belief, asking myself, "What do I believe about God's presence?" I am not a theologian, so I cannot speak from that perspective. Instead, I take St. Francis as a model. A friend recently explained that St. Francis was neither a theologian nor an ordained minister. Rather he spoke directly from his experience and relationship with God. She said that is why his message has stirred the hearts of ordinary people through the centuries. So let me speak from my heart about my experience of trusting in God's indwelling presence.

Whenever the question pops into my mind "How do I know that God dwells within me?" my first impulse is to call to mind a line of support from the Bible. There are many, but two that come quickly to mind are Psalm 5 "but I, so great is your love, may come to your house and before your holy Temple bow down in reverence to you," coupled with I Corinthians 6:19 "Your body, you know, is the temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you since you received him from God." As I think about these two lines from sacred scripture together, seeing myself as the temple of the Holy Spirit is a starting point. Then I think about the love of God inviting me to turn my attention to God's presence in that temple, to reverently bow down before that divine presence. But I don't stop there. Romans 5:6 says, "The love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given us." God didn't choose to make a passing stop. No, God has poured divine love into my heart through the gift of the Holy Spirit abiding there.

In addition to the Bible, people who are serious about seeking God have given explanations that strengthen my belief. I remember Father Keating speaking on a video explaining that it is the living God who holds us in being. If, for a fraction of a second, God stopped willing our being, "Poof," he said, we would cease to be! I love that image; it makes me smile. I see myself held tenderly in the hand of God, then, like a cartoon from the 1950's, poof, there is nothing. But that doesn't happen, my heart keeps beating and my lungs keep breathing. God‘s will that I should be holds me in existence. Here I think of the words "in whom we live and move and have our being." It comforts me to remember that at every moment God is holding me in existence.

Furthermore, God, who is holding me in existence, is imminently close. The phrase I have heard many times, "God is closer to you than your own breath," stops me short. That is really close. Trusting that God is that close, I allow myself the freedom to rephrase Psalm 5 this way, "So great is your love, that I may come into your house and before your holy presence bow down filled with awe." Often I repeat these words when I sit down for a time of centering prayer. They help me to concretely acknowledge God's presence in my heart and to set my intention to put aside my concerns and ideas, so that I can give my whole-hearted attention to the Divine Mystery within me. That is just my starting place. It doesn't make centering prayer easy. I still return to my sacred word again and again as I become aware of thoughts. Nevertheless, thinking about these words has strengthened my trust in God's presence beyond centering prayer. Over time the words from Psalm 5 have presented themselves to me at times when I was not doing centering prayer. Sometimes when I am riding my bike along the Mississippi and the beauty of nature overwhelms me, these words sing in my heart--so great is your love, that I may come into your house and before your holy presence bow down filled with awe. Sometimes when I am nervous because of a challenge, these words offer themselves to me as grace when I seek wisdom or strength...so great is your love, that I may come into your house and before your holy presence bow down filled with awe. Sometimes at night before falling asleep, I might call these words to mind, letting go of the cares of the day, to sleep in God's tender embrace.

In stopping to reflect on what I believe and what I have experienced, I have come to realize that trust in God's indwelling presence is a growing reality. My practice of centering prayer clearly rests on my belief and trust that God dwells within me. As I take time every day to consent to God's presence and action within me, that trust grows and touches all of my life. So experience shows me that while trust in God's presence is a starting point for centering prayer, it is also a fruit of centering prayer.

Carol Quest is a Centering Prayer presenter, and a co-coordinator of MN Contemplative Outreach.

Meditation: Outside of the Box?

9/30/2011

 
By John Murphy

During my sessions of Centering Prayer, I am typically in the same area of my home, with a bit of the same ritual of quieting myself before prayer.

But it is SUMMER! We had a long winter, a wet summer, and I felt that I have been just cooped up for too long. So I decided to take CP out of my box and into the outside world! I knew of a very quiet place and "went for it." The first time was a sheer delight: low humidity, light breeze, a comfy temperature. Other times as I did a session or two, the outside was a delight. I felt in total union with God, Nature, and all of Human Kind! (Yes, I know we are not supposed to judge our sessions…but come on! This was the best few days in a really, really, long time!)

I wanted to sing from the top of the hills: The hills are alive with the sound of Centering Prayer!

Then, one day, I took a walk after work. I was a bit flustered by the day. "I know, I will do some CP." I found a quiet place and sat. There was no breeze. OK, just a thought: say my sacred word. It was rather hot… and after 8! OK, just a thought: Say my Sacred Word. A trickle of sweat was coming off my brow… and a bug, two bugs… I waved them away as I said my Sacred Word. I think I may have said it out loud as one of the bugs returned. I took a breath and went back to CP. That was as tough a 19 minute, 49 second session as I have had in a while. (Yes, I know we are not supposed to judge! But with the bugs, perspiration, heat… I am only human!)

The next day, my session was inside. Nice, quiet, a small fan humming in the background. Ah, life is good!

As I drove to work, one of my best contemplation times, I smiled at the similarities of outside practice vs. inside practice. We can try to control things but we can’t. Inside the phone can ring, the coffee machine sounds like it is overflowing. Outside, bugs, humidity, a bus honking and brakes screeching. (Forgot to mention that one :-) ). Some days, the discipline of CP is routine, even a touch of boredom can creep in. Other times there is joy. Or there is a feeling that a great burden has been lifted. Thoughts come wherever I go. One thing I learned outside: You need to let it all go. Recognize it, say your Sacred Word and let that go. It is returning to the practice of Centering Prayer. It is in the doing, rather than "making it special." Being disciplined to continue is the key. Yes, even if only 19 minutes and 49 seconds have passed, I could have taken in one more breath and relaxed into the communion of the intention of the prayer.

Will I ever go outside to do CP again? Yes, of course I will. I have done it in the past and will do it in the future. The lesson this time was not to get stuck on the place, but on the prayer.

Back to the Basics

9/15/2011

 
by Sister Joan Tuberty

I think it is T.S. Eliot that has said something like this: After a long journey we return to the place where we started and know it for the first time. Sometimes when I read small portions from, The Cloud of Unknowing, I feel that way. The St. Olaf Centering Prayer Group has been meeting every Saturday morning for two hours for 18 years. One hour is our practice of centering prayer and the other hour is devoted to some teaching related to centering prayer or something that supports it or spiritual growth. In the beginning we watched Fr. Thomas Keating's 24 Videos aimed at giving both the practice and the background for centering prayer. We watched them over and over in those early years. Then other sources nourished us in our practice and as a group we read and watched and listened to what others said about centering prayer/meditation as well as others who could enrich our contemplative practice and deepen our understanding of the contemplative dimension of the Gospels. As a group we also delved into The Cloud of Unknowing, the 14th Century spiritual classic upon which the practice of centering prayer is based. I think it is fair to say that we did not find it an easy book to read. However, twelve years ago, while I was visiting the Shrine of Julian in Norwich, England, I came upon a gem of a little book, Daily Readings from the Cloud of Unknowing, edited by Robert Llewelyn of the Julian Shrine, and published in the U.S. by Templegate Publishers in 1986. Llewelyn has "carefully chosen and arranged excerpts so as to give the essential message of this spiritual masterpiece." Here is one such excerpt which brings me back home, knowing again for the first time, the essence of the practice of centering prayer:

A Short Word to Keep Intact

If it suits you, you can have this naked intent wrapped up and enfolded in one word. In that case, in order that you may have a better grasp on it, take a short word of one syllable. One syllable is better than two, and the shorter the word the more suited it is to accomplish the work of the spirit.

Such a word is the word 'God' or the word 'Love.' Choose whichever you wish, or another if you prefer, but let it be of one syllable.

Fasten this word to your heart so that it never leaves you, come what may. This word is to be your shield and your spear, whether in peace or in war.

With this word you are to beat upon the cloud and the darkness above you. With it you are to smite down every manner of thought, under the cloud of forgetting. So much so that if any thought should press upon you to ask you what you would have, answer it with no other words but this one word.

And if you should be tempted to analyse this word, answer that you will have it whole and undeveloped. If you will but hold fast, be sure that the temptation will not last long.


Sister Joan Tuberty is on the staff at St. Olaf Catholic Church in Minneapolis and has been leading the Centering Prayer group there for the past 18 years.

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