The first great contemplative experiment

Contemplative prayer reflects a long and noble lineage of Christians who have attempted to "put on the mind of Christ" ... through a radical transformation of consciousness that produces the Kingdom as its fruit. Applying Jesus' teaching that "a house divided against itself cannot stand," they have striven to heal their own divided and warring consciousnesses and bring their lives into an inner alignment through which it becomes possible to actually follow the teachings of Christ (which are in fact pitched to a level of consciousness higher than the egoic) and to live them into reality with integrity and grace. Ever since that first great contemplative "experiment" in the deserts of Egypt and Syria, the goal has been radical transformation of the human person in service of the Kingdom. It doesn't require an "introverted temperament"--only honesty, commitment, and a good sense of humor. From these three raw ingredients, great saints can be fashioned.

March 2008 (Vol. XXI, No. 3)

"Is there enough Silence for the Word to be heard?"

Blessings of spring, awakening anew in our lives, dear companions on the Journey.

May our prayers include pauses of simply be-ing ... of gratitude in the Silence for the present moment of life, nature's gifts, and Love-ever-with-us. Throughout each day may we be mindful of our thoughts, for strong thought--positive or negative--are, in a real sense, our prayers. As has been wisely observed, "as we thinketh, so we become." Thoughts, like prayer, radiate energy that matters, depending on our focus, intensity, intention, and accompanying source of reception. May our prayers be from the heart, breathed into the Silence ... May our thoughts be loving, gentle, and kind ... May both our prayers and thoughts lead us to fulfillment: service and sharing wherever we meet a need ... May our gifts and creativity grow in the Silence.

Prayer consists of attention

Prayer consists of attention ... all the attention of which the soul is capable toward God.


~ Simone Weil
Simone Weil prayer

United heart to heart in prayer

United heart to heart in prayer,
we create a world of radiant life,
overflowing abundance,
and lasting peace
as we awaken to the power
of Love within.

~ from the 13th Unity World Day of Prayer
13th Unity World Day Of Prayer prayer

Prayer is a sacrament

Prayer is a sacrament,
an outer, visible expression
of an inner, invisible grace--
or intention.

~ Sam Keene
Sam Keene prayer

The tree of our centering prayer

In centering, we begin to leave aside our own thoughts and images and feelings and to make space for the Spirit to begin to operate in us through the gifts. Outside the time of prayer we begin--and often others begin before us--to perceive the presence of these wonderful gifts in our daily lives. These are the fruits by which we judge the "tree" of our centering prayer. It is only through these fruits and the healing they represent that we can know the spirit is working in our lives through this deep, quiet communion with Love at the center of our being.

~ from THE CALL TO THE CENTER by M. Basil Pennington
M. Basil Pennington The Call To The Center prayer

Prayer is an energy that, like oxygen, feeds our whole being

Prayer is an energy that, like oxygen, feeds our whole being even when we are not aware of it. When we pray, a positive, life-enhancing energy that affects us physically, emotionally, intellect-ually, and spiritually is activated within us. Prayer ministers to us. It engages the creative energy of the universe, Love. This divine energy unites with our own deepest, truest intention and goes into action. We ingest a higher, more refined kind of thinking, and this higher vibration brings its nutrients to our whole being.

~ from ADVENTURES IN PRAYER by Sharon Connors
Sharon Connors Adventures In Prayer prayer Buy on Amazon

Prayer is eternity breathing in time

Center yourself to God and PRAY night and day "without ceasing." ALL you do, think, or read can be made into prayer. Great music, art, literature, architecture, friendships are, or can be, forms of prayer. What is gained by prayer can never be lost. PRAYER is eternity breathing in time.

~ Gerard Casey in "Parabola" - Summer 1996
Gerard Casey Parabola - Summer 1996 prayer

Prayer is eternity breathing in time

Center yourself to God and PRAY night and day "without ceasing." ALL you do, think, or read can be made into prayer. Great music, art, literature, architecture, friendships are, or can be, forms of prayer. What is gained by prayer can never be lost. PRAYER is eternity breathing in time.

~ Gerard Casey in "Parabola" - Summer 1996
Gerard Casey Parabola - Summer 1996 prayer

True prayer requires no word

True prayer requires no word, no chant
no gesture, no sound.
It is communion, calm and still
with our own godly Ground.

~ Angelus Silesius
Angelus Silesius prayer

Just be prayer

If prayer is getting in your way, cut it out!
Stop praying! Just BE prayer!

~ Thomas Merton
Thomas Merton prayer

Prayer is the process by which one continually surrenders to the mystery in the moment

Prayer is the process by which one continually empties out what one thinks one knows and surrenders to the mystery in the moment ... Prayer is an opening on your part to receive the gifts of God, an opening to God's unconditional love for you, an opening to God's unconditional acceptance of you as you are. When you enter the temple of prayer, you are blessed beyond measure. For, in entering, you surrender, and in surrendering, you are washed clean of all judgments you make about yourself or others.

~ from THE SILENCE OF THE HEART by Paul Ferrini
Paul Ferrini Thne Silence Of The Heart prayer

In prayer the stilled voice learns to hold its peace

In prayer the stilled voice learns to hold its peace,
to listen with the heart to silence that is joy, is
adoration. The self is shattered, all words torn apart
in this strange patterned time of contemplation that,
in time, breaks time, breaks words, breaks me, and then,
in silence, leaves me healed and mended.

~ Madeleine L'Engle
Madeleine L'Engle prayer

During prayer a new state comes on

During prayer a new state comes on. A kind of "largesse," an indescribable vastness, so great as to encompass the whole of creation. This immeasurableness simply flows right through me, no resistance from "self-important demands" blocks the flow, a feeling of absolute weightlessness and transparency. The expression "emptied of self" is a living reality.

~ from FORTY DAYS by Michaela Ozelsel
Michaela Ozelsel Forty Days prayer

May my body be a prayer stick

May my body
be a prayer stick
for the world

~ Joan Halifax
Joan Halifax prayer

The highest level of prayer is not a prayer FOR anything

The highest level of prayer is not a prayer FOR anything. It is a deep and profound silence, in which we allow ourselves to be still and know God. In that silence, we are changed. We are calmed. We are illumined. Prayer is meant to dissolve the worldly focus, to dissolve our sense of a separate self, to help us detach from the noisy world order.

Prayer is like pouring hot water on an ice cube, melting the cold and encrusted thought forms that still surround our hearts.

~ from ILLUMINATA by Marianne Williamson
Marianne Williamson Illuminatda prayer

United heart to heart in prayer

United heart to heart in prayer,
we create a world of radiant life,
overflowing abundance,
and lasting peace
as we awaken to the power
of Love within.

Prayer is a sacrament

Prayer is a sacrament,
an outer, visible expression
of an inner, invisible grace--
or intention.

The tree of our centering prayer

In centering, we begin to leave aside our own thoughts and images and feelings and to make space for the Spirit to begin to operate in us through the gifts. Outside the time of prayer we begin--and often others begin before us--to perceive the presence of these wonderful gifts in our daily lives. These are the fruits by which we judge the "tree" of our centering prayer. It is only through these fruits and the healing they represent that we can know the spirit is working in our lives through this deep, quiet communion with Love at the center of our being.

Prayer is an energy that, like oxygen, feeds our whole being

Prayer is an energy that, like oxygen, feeds our whole being even when we are not aware of it. When we pray, a positive, life-enhancing energy that affects us physically, emotionally, intellect-ually, and spiritually is activated within us. Prayer ministers to us. It engages the creative energy of the universe, Love. This divine energy unites with our own deepest, truest intention and goes into action. We ingest a higher, more refined kind of thinking, and this higher vibration brings its nutrients to our whole being.

Prayer is eternity breathing in time

Center yourself to God and PRAY night and day "without ceasing." ALL you do, think, or read can be made into prayer. Great music, art, literature, architecture, friendships are, or can be, forms of prayer. What is gained by prayer can never be lost. PRAYER is eternity breathing in time.

Prayer is eternity breathing in time

Center yourself to God and PRAY night and day "without ceasing." ALL you do, think, or read can be made into prayer. Great music, art, literature, architecture, friendships are, or can be, forms of prayer. What is gained by prayer can never be lost. PRAYER is eternity breathing in time.

True prayer requires no word

True prayer requires no word, no chant
no gesture, no sound.
It is communion, calm and still
with our own godly Ground.

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