Carl McColman's Blog, page 79

Listen to my friends…

[image error]I’d like to take a moment and send some love to some friends of mine who are creating interesting audio content for the web. Okay, a disclaimer: they’ve both talked about me and/or had me on their show. But that notwithstanding, I recommend both shows as well worth your time. Both have a strong interfaith dimension, and so are particularly suited for anyone wanting an expansive approach to spirituality.

First, from the west coast, Alison Leigh Lilly and Jeff Lilly have created a new podcast ca...

Contemplation, Fundamentalism, and Healthy Conflict

Another column for Patheos — this one might be a bit controversial — I originally titled it Is Contemplation the Enemy of Fundamentalism? but the Patheos editors shortened that to the slightly more provocative Fundamentalism vs. Contemplation? There’s a bit of a backstory here. At work I’ve had a couple of run-ins with fundamentalist persons lately, usually complaining because we are a Catholic store but sell books on other religions. I also recently read a baldly mean-spirited blog post from...

Inter-Religious Spirituality and the Contemplative Renaissance

Thomas Merton, Interfaith Friendly Contemplative

My most recent column for Patheos is based on a talk I gave at Columbia Theological Seminary on April 15, 2012, as part of the Contemplative Interfaith Conference co-sponsored by CTS and the Interfaith Community Initiatives. My talk focused on the contemplative dimension of Christianity, but as part of the talk I discussed the role of interfaith dialogue in supporting the rebirth of Christian contemplation in the modern and postmodern era.

Thomas...

Contemplation and the Bible

The Bible: You can find contemplation in it, but you have to know where to look!

The latest installment of Let the Earth Keep Silence, my column for Patheos, has been published. It is a look at the evidence for contemplative spirituality in the Bible. You can read it by following this link: Let the Earth Keep Silence: Contemplation and the Bible.

I'd love to get your thoughts on this column, since this question of "Is contemplation in the Bible?" seems to be a significant concern for many...

In Florida

Fran and Rhiannon and I were in Florida last week, and had this snapshot taken of us.

Fran McColman, Carl McColman, Rhiannon Wilburn, at Deer Park near Seagrove Beach, FL, Easter Sunday 2012.

Fran took quite a few pictures over the course of the week. Here's one of a pelican that was flying near her one morning.

Pelican at Seagrove Beach, FL, April 2012. Photo by Fran McColman.

And for those of you who might be wondering, "hmmm, Holy Week on the beach?!?" — well, we have no control over when the ...

Joyful Penitence and Easter Wishes

Here is a link to my latest column at Patheos: Joyful Penitence and a Continual Lent.

My next post to this blog won't be until after the Sacred Triduum — in other words, after Easter. So in the meantime, I wish you and yours a joyous Feast of the Resurrection — may the blessings of the resurrected life be yours.

Spirit and Standards

The Eros of Repentance

Certainly, Christians in the world cannot live precisely as monks. They can however live in accordance with the spirit and standards of monastic life. This will aid them greatly in preserving their own inner unity and balance while living in a troubled and anxious world.

— Archimandrite George Capsanis, The Eros of Repentance:

Four Talks on Athonite Monasticism

Here is one of the most concise statements of the rationale behind Lay Cistercian spirituality, coming from an...

With Great Reverence and Above Reason

Ruysbroeck's Seven Steps

But now see what it is to adore God: it is, in the Christian faith, with great reverence and above reason, to gaze in the spirit upon God, the Eternal Power, Creator and Lord of heaven and earth and all that in them is.

— John Ruysbroeck, The Seven Steps of the Ladder of Spiritual Love

The Anglican contemplative Maggie Ross is well known for her advocacy of beholding as a core element of contemplative practice, as seen in the title of her most recent book, Writing the...

The Great Blue Beautifulness

At the Back of the North Wind

After this he said nothing for a while, and I laid myself on the floor of his garret, and stared up and around at the great blue beautifulness. I had forgotten him almost, when at last he said, 'Ain't you done yet?' 'Done what?' I asked. 'Done saying your prayers,' says he. 'I wasn't saying my prayers,' I answered. 'Oh, yes, you were,' said he, 'though you didn't know it! And now I must show you something else.'

— George MacDonald, At the Back of the North Wind

The ...

Are Contemplatives Privileged?

Christ of the Breadlines

For some time now, I've noticed how gatherings of contemplatives often seem to consist largely of individuals who are well educated and/or affluent. As much as I love exploring the contemplative dimension of Christianity, I worry that only those folks who seem to enjoy a lion's share of our society's abundance appear to be pursuing the spirituality of silence. Is this just a projection of my own socio-political angst — or am I on to something here, some sort of blind s...