PERSON AT PRAYER

Person at Prayer by Judith Lawrence One of the most tender images is the human person at prayer. When the body gathers itself before the Divine, a stillness deepens. The blaring din of distraction ceases, and the deeper tranquility within the heart envelops the body. To see people at prayer is a touching sight. …It… Continue reading PERSON AT PRAYER

ADVENTURES OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE

Adventures of the Spiritual Life by Judith Lawrence (reprinted with permission June 22, 2011) “Recollection,” says Evelyn Underhill, “is the traditional term by which mystical writers define the voluntary concentration, a first collecting or gathering in of the attention of the self to its most hidden cell. That self is as yet unacquainted with the… Continue reading ADVENTURES OF THE SPIRITUAL LIFE

PRAYER IN TIMES OF DIVINE CHAOS

Prayer in Times of Divine Chaos by Judith Lawrence In the book, Entering the Castle, by Caroline Myss, subtitled An Inner Path to God and your Soul, the author speaks of chaos as an organic expression of the divine. She says that divine chaos cannot be stopped, manipulated, postponed, or bargained with. “It sweeps into your life, taking… Continue reading PRAYER IN TIMES OF DIVINE CHAOS

Liebster Award

Excitement – Liebster Award Under the Cover of Prayer has been awarded the Liebster Award by Stephanie Nickel. Thank you, Stephanie. You can find her blog at Free2Soar. The Criteria: The Liebster Blog Award is meant to showcase bloggers who have fewer than 200 followers. This is all done in the spirit of pay-it-forward. The… Continue reading Liebster Award

PRAYING THE CONTEMPLATIVE WAY

Praying the Contemplative Way by Judith Lawrence  We must expect contemplative activity to show itself in different ways and take many different names since its character will be governed by individual temperament. Evelyn Underhill: Mysticism (page 222) Spiritual growth is unique to each one of us and cannot be compared to or measured alongside another’s… Continue reading PRAYING THE CONTEMPLATIVE WAY

OPENING THE DOOR TO LOVE

Opening the Door to Love by Judith Lawrence “Though the state which contemplatives call the prayer of quiet is a common condition of mystical attainment, it is not by itself mystical at all. It is a state of preparation: a way of opening the door. That which comes in when the door is opened will… Continue reading OPENING THE DOOR TO LOVE

PRAYER OF QUIET OR SIMPLICITY

Prayer of Quiet or Simplicity by Judith Lawrence   Jesus said, “When you pray, go away by yourself, shut the door behind you, and pray to your Father in private” Matt 6:6a (New Living Translation).  “Out of the deliberate practice of loving attention to God, the contemplative glides on to a plane of perception for… Continue reading PRAYER OF QUIET OR SIMPLICITY

CONTEMPLATION – FINDING A SPACIOUS PLACE WITHIN

Contemplation—Finding a Spacious Place Within by Judith Lawrence As God promised to give the people of Israel a spacious country in which to dwell (Gen 13: 14–17), so God promises us a spacious place within—and that’s the place we call the soul. Richard Rohr, Simplicity, P. 93. Contemplation, Rohr says, is the search for a… Continue reading CONTEMPLATION – FINDING A SPACIOUS PLACE WITHIN

ACQUIRING THE ART OF CONTEMPLATION

Acquiring the Art of Contemplation by  Judith Lawrence Contemplation has been spoken of as art. The person who prays as a contemplative does not speak in words so much as in intuition; she is a soul who is like an artist or a poet, a soul who yearns to be with God in wonder and… Continue reading ACQUIRING THE ART OF CONTEMPLATION

THE PERSISTENT WIDOW

The Persistent Widow by Judith Lawrence (reprinted with permission August 2010) This month’s meditation is on the 15th parable of Jesus unique to the Gospel of St. Luke. It is the Parable of the Persistent Widow, and is found in Luke 18 verses 1 – 8 (NLT). Jesus takes every opportunity afforded to him to… Continue reading THE PERSISTENT WIDOW

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