Reflections for 12/5/10

"Many other forms of prayer we've been taught require thinking thoughts or saying and reading words. I'm not saying they're bad; they're obviously good. But we can do all of the above, think thoughts about Jesus and Mary, read the psalms or recite memorized prayers without transforming our consciousness. We do it in the old system. The ego is still in charge. It may not be conscious, but we think, 'I'm the center of the world. I have my feelings. I have my opinions and I, in this hardened silo, will think about Jesus."(R.Rohr "Radical Grace" p.10)

As an Episcopalian I will have to admit that a good chunk of my prayers are from the Book of Common Prayer. We get accused by other Christians of being so wedded to those words that we don't pray in the Spirit. I of course would counter that I heard more sermons that were advertised as prayers by those offering that critique.

But the criticism is somewhat valid. Granted they aren't my thoughts, they are someone else's, but they are still words. They keep me grounded and getting to long winded, but they don't invite me into the sheer silence.

To truly be engaged in a one one one with God, I need to let go of my to do list of things to remind about. To sit quietly and empty my mind of all my important stuff and just listen. It is in what I might hear in that silence where the transformative power of God is to be experienced.

I won't be letting go of Book of Common Prayer Worship. It works for me. But a nice addition is the more centering and contemplative prayer styles that are available to me as well.

Blessings,
Ed