Category: Contemplative Spirituality
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Becoming
Becoming a child is a gift from God; it stems from God’s grace. The challenge for us is not to strive to obey all the rules, practice all the right disciplines, and so somehow convince God that we are really like children. Rather it is to respond to God’s invitation and accept God’s grace. In…
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Inheritance and Idolatry
The common interpretation of the word ‘inheritance’ is ‘what you get from your parents when they die’. In reality, though, an inheritance is far more than the material possessions left to you by your parents. What a child inherits from her parents is richer, deeper, and more profound than a sum of money. Who you…
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Image: a contemplative companion to chapter 9 of Growing up to be a child
Children love to play. That is perhaps one of the most striking aspects of childhood. Interestingly, their play largely seems to revolve around a combination of creativity, exploration, and relationship. If you give a child a box of bricks or a crayon, she will create something with them. If you leave a group of…
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Soul: a contemplative companion to chapter 8 of Growing up to be a child
In chapter eight of Growing up to be a child, I explore this deepest aspect of our humanity as a growing awareness of ourselves, of other people, of the world we live in, and of God. In each of these areas, I suggest that the call to ‘become like a little child’ is a call to…
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Bonaventure
Do not walk away from darkness, Therein lies a greater light; Deeper beauty, yet unseen my heart seeks out thy mystery. . Seek not out the road well-trodden, paths of knowing, truth revealed. Embrace, instead, the clouds of silence Lose thyself in depths unknown. Inspired by Richard…
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Beautiful Morality
In his book, Eager to Love (I am only part way through, but this is fast becoming my number one book of the year), Richard Rohr explores what he refers to as ‘beautiful morality’ in the lives of St Francis and St Clare. In contrast to much of the religiosity of their day (and ours)…
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Mind: a contemplative companion to Chapter 6 of Growing up to be a child
I believe in the sun, even when it is not shining; I believe in love, even when I feel it not; I believe in God, even when he is silent Take time, in stillness and silence to contemplate the mystery of a God of presence, light and love who so often seems distant, cold and…
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Preparing the Passover
A loaf of bread, a sprig of herbs, a bowl of fruit. Whole, unbroken, waiting. Hopeful, pregnant, yearning. Their fragrance trapped, goodness bound, longing to be set free. ~ Can I step in from the dusty road? Wash my feet, my face, my hands? Can I take the knife and break the bread? Crush…
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Strength: a contemplative companion to Chapter 5 of Growing up to be a child.
As a paediatrician, I am often referred young children who are delayed in their development, including those who are slow in learning to walk. When I am assessing a young child’s ability to stand and walk, I need to provide him with support and a stable base so he feels secure. In this contemplative…