“Therefore let us move beyond the elementary teachings about Christ and be taken forward to maturity, not laying again the foundation of repentance from acts that lead to death, and of faith in God”
Hebrews 6:1 (NIV)
The central idea here seems to be that there are, if you will, “ages and stages” in the Christian life. There are elementary teachings, and then there is maturity. There’s a foundation, and there is what is built on the foundation.
Read moreI’m sitting in the border village of Hay-on-Wye, Powys, Wales. It has over twenty bookshops, and is often described as a “town of books.” It is both the National Book Town of Wales and the site of the annual Hay Festival. The population is fewer than 2,000.
Read more“It is an old and a good practice that the pastor has set apart especially the first hour of the day for uninterrupted communion with God. The mind is then clearer and better fitted to true devotion. There is less danger of being interrupted.”
Gerberding, G. H. (George Henry), The Lutheran Pastor. 7th edition. Minneapolis : Augsburg, 1915, p. 197
“The worth and meaning of every ascetic practice are to be estimated in terms of quietude, lucidity of spirit, love, and purity of heart. Anything that does not lead to these is worthless, for instead of liberating us from self-preoccupation, it only reinforces our illusory and obsessive concern with our own ego and its victory over the ‘not-I.’ True quietude and purity of heart are impossible where this division of the ‘I’ (considered as right and good) and the ‘not-I’ (considered as threatening) governs our conduct and our decisions.”
Merton, Thomas. “The Spiritual Father in the Desert Tradition.” (1968) in Selected Essays. Edited with an introduction by Patrick F. O’Connell. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2013, p. 320
“Some spiritual leaders have the privilege of regularly incorporating silence into their spiritual routines. Most people would find it difficult, in the course of their work routines and family obligations, to carve out a day of silence every week or even once a month! Nonetheless, all followers of Christ would benefit from incorporating this practice into their schedules and rhythms of life. For some, it might mean setting aside a Saturday a month to spend time in the discipline of silence. For others, it may mean asking a friend to come and watch the kids for a few hours during the afternoon so that one can enter into silence without the responsibilities of parenting during that time.”
Cannon, Mae Elise. Just Spirituality: How Faith Practices Fuel Social Action. Downers Grove, IL : InterVarsity Press, 2013, p. 31.
Note: ALL followers of Christ would benefit
“Most spiritual practices will eventually lose their freshness and become a source of boredom and tedium. But it is precisely there that our faith and determination are tried, and it is only through grace-filled faith and perseverance that we are able to reach the hidden treasures of these practices. It takes time–day after day and year after year–before these treasures come to light. We must stick to it.”
Talbot, John Michael. The World is My Cloister: Living From the Hermit Within. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2010, page 121.
"One of the gifts of solitude, and one of the first to be discovered, is the gift of attentiveness. …
"Related to the gift of attentiveness is the gift of healing. … No one would deny that people play a crucial role in healing. But there is an aspect of spiritual and emotional healing that seems best accomplished alone, especially when tha healing relates to coming to terms with loss or with some significant change in one’s life. …
"Personal clarity, insight, and creativity are other gifts of solitude. …
“The greatest gift of solitude, however, is an awareness of the presence of God. God is often discovered in a very personal way during periods of solitude.”
Moore, Christopher Chamberlin. Solitude: A Neglected Path to God. Cambridge, MA: Cowley Publications, 2001, pp. 12-14.
“Solitude and silence are wonderful refreshment, a healthy alternative to the noise and chaos of this modern world. But anyone who as spent more than just a few hours or days practicing this knows that the process of rebirth from death to self is often found only through some experience of travail. Only then do we know the joys of the newborn child of the Spirit of God.”
Talbot, John Michael. The World is My Cloister: Living From the Hermit Within. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis Books, 2010, page 23.
Comment: Talbot says that the suffering of the dark night will indeed hit us – he says sooner, rather than later – once we begin the disciplines of silence and solitude. But he also assures us that it’s a period we have to go through in order to reach the joy of new life in Christ.
"Lectio is a practice in which you slow down, creating space in which you can gently learn to seek, and discern, God’s presence hidden in the sacred text and in the subtle stirrings of your heart and mind.
“By opening up to the divine presence through the written word, you simultaneously open yourself up to the deeply relational nature of the Christian contemplative life, which is indeed the heart of the mystical path.”
McColman, Carl. The New Big Book of Christian Mysticism: an Essential Guide to Contemplative Spirituality. Minneapolis: Broadleaf Books, 2023, pp. 256-257.
“Since the reigning presence of God is within us, any approach to exploring the mystical life will naturally include exercises and practices such as meditation and contemplation, intended to help us become more open to the hidden (mystical) presence of God within. As worthy as such practices are by themselves they are incomplete. Our journey to divine union also needs to be nourished by participation in some sort of community of fellow seekers who are trying, as best they can, to figure out what living and following Jesus is all about.”
McColman, Carl. The New Big Book of Christian Mysticism: an Essential Guide to Contemplative Spirituality. Minneapolis: Broadleaf Books, 2023, p. 203.
Pathology: the Study of a Path 