https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7iqdBBYl40 Jim Martin, SJ, editor-in-chief, America, explains centering prayer. Editor's note. Short takes on the twists and turns in my spiritual life since I was diagnosed with bladder cancer Oct. 25. I had pretty much expected the diagnosis since the tumor was removed Oct. 17, but it still threw me for a loop. So in … Continue reading How a young adult novelist and a punk rocker-turned Orthodox rabbi guide my prayer life lately: ‘Are you there God, it’s me … (and help me get out of this foxhole)!’
What’s the right way to do centering prayer? ‘Pray as you can’: A stripped-down Trappist spiritual practice for today
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3IKpFHfNdnE Editor's note (Oct. 17). I started this a couple of days before I had a tumor removed from my bladder. But I ran out of time, and I was in no mood last night to stay up late journaling before a 5:30 a.m. check-in time today. The procedure went off as scheduled; I'm home … Continue reading What’s the right way to do centering prayer? ‘Pray as you can’: A stripped-down Trappist spiritual practice for today
Centering prayer: A ‘Zen Lutheran’ chatterbox meets a Trappist meditation when he needs to be still — and to trust
https://www.azquotes.com/quotes/topics/centering-prayer.html For a little more than a month now, I've been in one of those limbos we fall into when we're waiting for a biopsy. Now the surgery is scheduled -- finally! -- for next week. But it's had quite an effect on my prayer life, and I'm practicing something I call "emergency room spirituality" … Continue reading Centering prayer: A ‘Zen Lutheran’ chatterbox meets a Trappist meditation when he needs to be still — and to trust
‘Lord, teach us to pray’: A spiritual mutt reflects on Abraham’s prayer for Sodom and Gomorrah (Pentecost VII)
Sodom and Gomorrah, Jacob Willemz. de Wet II, ca. 1680 (Wikimedia Commons) Genesis 18 (NRSV): 20 Then the Lord said, “How great is the outcry against Sodom and Gomorrah and how very grave their sin! 21 I must go down and see whether they have done altogether according to the outcry that has come to me, and if not, I … Continue reading ‘Lord, teach us to pray’: A spiritual mutt reflects on Abraham’s prayer for Sodom and Gomorrah (Pentecost VII)
Spiritual direction, June 2022 ** UPDATED **
Editor’s (admin’s) note. Lightly edited copy of an email I sent to my spiritual director in advance of our monthly meeting for June. I email her every month, mostly to focus my mind before we meet, and I archive them here so I have a record of issues I’ve dealt with over time. Being able to … Continue reading Spiritual direction, June 2022 ** UPDATED **
Can an 11th-century legend of St. Patrick teach a 21st-century skeptic to pray? Echoes of a hymn from my confirmation
An Ignatian colloquy for Trinity 2020 -- 2 of ___ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fqzWs6KPoE St. Patrick's Breastplate, arr. Rod Lewis, Columbia, S.C., Trinity Sunday 2020 Editor's note. As I try to jumpstart my prayer life, I've been experimenting with Jesuit prayer exercises known as Ignatian contemplation and the Triple Colloquy, in which you imagine yourself interacting with Jesus. … Continue reading Can an 11th-century legend of St. Patrick teach a 21st-century skeptic to pray? Echoes of a hymn from my confirmation
Learning to pray from George Burns and a young adult novel by Judy Blume
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6x0i-FfeA44 I know how hard it is in these times to have faith. But maybe if you could have the faith to start with, maybe the times would change. You could change them. Think about it. Try. And try not to hurt each other. There's been enough of that. It really gets in the way. … Continue reading Learning to pray from George Burns and a young adult novel by Judy Blume
‘Just a little talk with Jesus’: Getting up to speed on a Jesuit prayer exercise — with an assist from the Oak Ridge Boys
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SH9ta2CaWaM Live performance by Oak Ridge Boys, Gaither Studios, Alexandria, Ind., 2021 Welp, I guess I talked myself into a new assignment ... trying a brand-new Jesuit prayer exercise (new for me at least, as a mainline Protestant who never had much use for organized religion until fairly recently). It's called an Ignatian "Colloquy." It … Continue reading ‘Just a little talk with Jesus’: Getting up to speed on a Jesuit prayer exercise — with an assist from the Oak Ridge Boys
DRAFT ‘Now rest beneath night’s shadow …’ DRAFT
d r a f t https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKyiGWYOQLU St. Thomas Boys' Choir Leipzig, 2016 (CHOR GESANG - Das Musikmagazin). "He who sings prays twice" -- St. Augustine (Catechism of the Catholic Church) Maybe I shouldn't admit this in public, but I've had prayer at the top of my B list for quite a while now. After a … Continue reading DRAFT ‘Now rest beneath night’s shadow …’ DRAFT
Review of Jesuit author’s practical new book on prayer cuts to the chase
Very good review in Christian Century of Fr. James Martin's new book on prayer! Author of several popular books on Jesuit spirituality and editor-at-large of America magazine, Martin has written about prayer before -- frequently, but in passing. His latest book, Prayer: A Guide for Everyone, appears to pull those thoughts together for newbies and … Continue reading Review of Jesuit author’s practical new book on prayer cuts to the chase
Ordinary Time 