The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See

by Richard Rohr

For Christians seeking a way of thinking outside of strict dualities, this guide explores methods for letting go of division and living in the present. Drawn from the Gospels, Jesus, Paul, and the great Christian contemplatives, this examination reveals how many of the hidden truths of Christianity have been misunderstood or lost and how to read them with the eyes of the mystics rather than interpreting them through rational thought. Filled with sayings, stories, quotations, and appeals to the heart, specific methods for identifying dualistic thinking are presented with simple practices for stripping away ego and the fear of dwelling in the present.

Genres: Spirituality, Nonfiction, Religion, Christianity, Christian, Theology, Mysticism

187 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2009

About the author

Fr. Richard Rohr is a globally recognized ecumenical teacher bearing witness to the universal awakening within Christian mysticism and the Perennial Tradition. He is a Franciscan priest of the New Mexico Province and founder of the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC) in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Fr. Richard's teaching is grounded in the Franciscan alternative orthodoxy—practices of contemplation and expressing itself in radical compassion, particularly for the socially marginalized.

Fr. Richard is author of numerous books, including Everything Belongs, Adam’s Return, The Naked Now, Breathing Under Water, Falling Upward, Immortal Diamond, Eager to Love, and The Divine Dance: The Trinity and Your Transformation (with Mike Morrell).

Fr. Richard is academic Dean of the Living School for Action and Contemplation. Drawing upon Christianity's place within the Perennial Tradition, the mission of the Living School is to produce compassionate and powerfully learned individuals who will work for positive change in the world based on awareness of our common union with God and all beings. Visit cac.org for more information.

Reviews

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've become quite a bit more selective in the religious/spiritual books I read these days. So many seem agenda-driven and lopsided in the realities they present. This book though stands out from this muddled crowd. A gift from a good friend, The Naked Now is a profound read for anyone wanting to peel back the layers of veneer of religion, and dig into what I feel is one of the key aspects of reality. I really don't see this as a religious book (even though Rohr is an ordained priest), but as a view into something deeply profound and important to what it means to be fully human.

Rohr presents the critically important idea of non-dualistic thinking, but in a way that digs into the reaches of humanity, faith and reality. I have to admit, I had to read this book twice through—with a gap of time between reads—to begin to wrap my pointed little head around it. My book is littered with notations, scribblings and "ah-ha" moments in the margins, from both my first read and the second. Nearly every chapter provided an awakening of sorts for me, as I began to realize how Rohr's way to presenting this profound truth aligns with what others who I've been following and reading have been trying to grasp and pursue. If you consider yourself a Christian, you may find some mind-bending concepts in here, but hang with it. This is good stuff that needs to be grasped and wrestled with.

[Christopher Kanas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mystic.

Not a word most of Christianity is comfortable with. Too scary, too deceptive, too New Age. We want our Christianity controllable. We want clear perimeters and boundaries and borders. Tell us what our responsibilities are, then God, just be out there, anywhere, managing, because we're much be comfortable as a manager above us than being so close that You actually are IN us.

Problem is, that's a religion and religion is not what Christ came to bring and act out of.

"Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God lives within you" 1 Corinthians 3:16. Wait. What? God lives in me? I have God within me?

Yes, Christianity is a mystic faith. And Richard Rohr does a great job of showing you Biblically that this is exactly how we are to see our union with God. Rohr gives ample Biblical texts and contexts that make one realize that our westernized thought of Christianity is failing us. The entire scope of Judaism giving way to the Messiah that was prophesied about and finally the Holy Spirit dwelling within is a mystic faith whose identity has been robbed by western compartmentalized thinking. Rohr goes into depth between western duality philosophy and a more eastern non-duality spirituality that is more in coherence with Biblical thought.

But let's get one thing clear here. Rohr does NOT espouse new age theology nor Buddhist self-enpowering philosophy. Nowhere does Rohr ever suggest that we are our OWN god. We are in union with God within, but the God within is God, not ourselves; the actual Holy Spirit, not any sort of our own elevated status. Any referencing to Buddhism, Taoism, or Hinduism within the book is solely in context with the way the eastern mind perceives and sees the non-duality of it's surroundings and how, as Christians, if we fail to see ourselves as channels of the living God working within us, living within us, in union with us at all times, then we are not grasping the full measure of what Christ intended for us. God is within man, now, living out His work. We are the body that now houses God's Spirit. And that, is a mystical thing whether one is too afraid too admit it or not. God is not solely "out there" He is and will always be in the inner-est part of our being.

I'm not sure this book is for anyone brand new to the Christian faith, as it is written with a style that assumes the reader is already familiar with some of Christianity's major tenants. It is however, an excellent book for anyone who has walked the spiritual journey a bit and is seeking to "un-do" many of the dogma's that over the years have caused one to form God in man's image. And it is more than just replacing one ideology with another ideology. Rohr makes no claim that his writing or opinion is the definitive answer to God. That would be is complete argument to his own argument; that God is non-dualistic, and is divided into predictable patterns we can understand.

Some may be uncomfortable with that. Feeling as if it's to open-ended, not central enough, not fundamentalist enough. But I ask, what is more fundamentally correct than having God within as the center and allowing God to be God. That is exactly what the Bible preaches. We do not come into a religion to serve a set of laws and dogmas. We serve a living God.

[ThereWillBeBooks · Rating 4 out of 5]

You may have to be in a certain mood or “place” in your life to really appreciate this, but if you’re open to what Rohr has to say the message contained in The Naked Now can be transformational.

A good gage of how receptive you are likely to be to the book is whether or not you rolled your eyes when I used the term “transformational” just now. If you did, maybe put it on the back-burner. If you nodded knowingly and thought “ah, I see” then you’re ready.

[Rebecca · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was my fourth book by Rohr, and as with The Universal Christ, I feel at a loss trying to express how wise and earth-shaking it is. The kernel of the argument is simple. Dualistic thinking is all or nothing, us and them. The mystical view of life involves nonduality; not knowing the right things but “knowing better” through contemplation. It’s an opening of the heart that then allows for a change of mind. And yes, as he said in at Greenbelt, it mostly comes about through great suffering – or great love. Jesus embodies nonduality by being not human or divine, but both, as does God through the multiplicity of the Trinity.

The book completely upends the fundamentalist Christianity I grew up with. Its every precept is based on Bible quotes or Christian tradition. It’s only 160 pages long, very logical and readable; I only went through it so slowly because I had to mark out and reread brilliant passages every few pages.

You can tell adult and authentic faith by people’s ability to deal with darkness, failure, and nonvalidation of the ego—and by their quiet but confident joy!

[I’ve met people who are like this.]

If your religious practice is nothing more than to remain sincerely open to the ongoing challenges of life and love, you will find God — and also yourself.

[This reminded me of “God is change,” the doctrine in Parable of the Sower by Octavia E. Butler.]

If you can handle/ignore a bit of religion, I would recommend Rohr to readers of Brené Brown, Susan Cain (thinking of Bittersweet in particular) and Anne Lamott, among other self-help and spirituality authors – e.g., he references Eckhart Tolle. Rohr is also known for being one of the popularizers of the Enneagram, a personality tool similar to the Myers-Briggs test but which in its earliest form dates back to the Desert Father Evagrius Ponticus.

Originally published on my blog, Bookish Beck.

[Tim · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Just learn how to see, and you will know whatever it is that you need to see”. Recently, I have encountered a new way of thinking. Of course, the IDEA of “enlightenment” I’ve heard before, but never has it been explained to me like this. It’s a concept of expanding consciousness, of moving beyond what we would refer to as intellectual thinking or simply incorporating the rational mind to examine the world according to your personal condition (environment, place of birth, life experiences, etc).

Richard Rohr, the great spiritualistic teacher, is the one who has brought non-dualistic thinking into my field of vision. The quote in the above paragraph is his, and it comes from his book The Naked Now. I am writing this blog as a beginning and as a BEGINNER to what I hope will be a lifetime journey of looking at the world in a completely different way. Now, this is not some personal organized religious conversion I’m experiencing. When it comes to that god, I am an atheist. I can not believe in a man made god and its right or wrong, do this don’t do that, heaven or hell dualistic dogma. Truth is truth no matter where it may be found. Rohr talks about that at great length, and does not leave out any of the world’s ideologies in his search.

“One truth, many expressions”. If we would all be honest with ourselves, what most of us are looking for in life is our own way to express the truth, more so than the truth itself. Most of us have a basic idea of what is right and what is wrong. However, the INTELLECT, the rational mind, the left brain, can play many tricks on us through the process of interpretation. The truth becomes so convoluted in a globalized society that before you know it, everyone has their own ego-based version of the path, and anyone else be damned if they attempt to mess with it. Rohr points out that throughout history, this has gotten us absolutely nowhere. It is dualistic thinking. It becomes “I’m right and you’re wrong, and there is no negotiating”.

I was able to attend a retreat this weekend where I heard Rohr speak, and, in many ways, I have heard his ideas before, as we all have. The reason is that there is a common thread through world thinking and thinkers of THE truth. The question then becomes: How do we perceive the truth? What lens do we use to attempt to see it and why? Is it to satisfy some part of our own ego? Rohr answers that oftentimes that is the case. This can just as easily apply to people who believe they’re being radical and courageous by stepping out from the mainstream. Not that this is wrong, in fact it is encouraged as it becomes the way we change our world. However, contrarian thinking can be an ego trip just as much as it can for our mainstream newsertainment personalities who enjoy being in the spotlight.

So what exactly do we mean when we refer to “non-dualistic thinking”? I will be the first to say I don’t have all the answers to that. If I did have all the answers, then I wouldn’t even be on the PATH to non-dualistic thought. Once you feel you KNOW everything about this way of thinking, you probably haven’t even begun. I DO know some basic starting points that I learned from the book and Rohr’s speech.

Non-dualistic thought is not only a new way of being open-minded, it becomes the highest level of consciousness that you can attain. It is the ability to see with what Rohr calls the “third eye”. (The Indian or Hindu “Bindi” is perhaps the most well known symbol of this level of enlightenment). It enables us to think beyond “either/or” dualities. It’s the humility to admit you’re wrong, to be willing to change, to examine the viewpoint and take the good from that of the other. It’s a win/win way of thought vs. “survival of the fittest”. It’s not “us vs. them”, but WE. In the end, it’s love, justice, empathy, compassion, equality.

This non-dualistic way of thinking often comes to us in certain situations in life. Without a previous awareness, we may not even know we’re experiencing it. I felt it during my car accident when I had peace amidst the chaos after opening my eyes, realizing my leg was shattered and that I was upside down and bleeding profusely. I have experienced it recently though other times of suffering with my divorce a couple of years ago, an uncertain future in my lifelong radio career, and shaky finances as a result. Some of the most creative work mankind has produced is a result of adversity. This is what happens when we think non-dualistically. We just BECOME. WE ARE. We act as nature intended us to act, in the NOW and not through the filter of pre-conceived notions. In fact, it can often happen in times of great love or great suffering. It becomes a moment(s) of clarity, although it is fleeting if you try to make it solid and something that you can grasp with the intellectual side of your mind…your left brain.

Now, this is not to say that by moving our consciousness forward that we are to give up all rational thought. No, rational thought is quite necessary to get us to the place of this level of consciousness. We NEED to bounce back to our rational mind to allow the entry of the raw data that we then process with our non-dualistic way of thought. You can’t take a situation requiring justice, such as Israel/Palestine, and not know the basic rational facts surrounding the situation. Where non-dualistic thought can start is by acquiring your facts from different sources. Blindly following one person or ideology for your interpretation is dualistic. You have already decided that what you see is the “right way”. You are not open to other potentially applicable information.

Non-dualistic thinking by nature involves change. One of the hardest things a person can do after much intellectual experience is to begin again on a different path. However, a non-dualistic mind will go to any length to acquire the truth. The third eye sees that our primary mission on this earth is love. If some system of thought begins to repress, oppress, or step on the other, then our intellectualism has become dualistic. We must re-examine, and if necessary, start over.

My path to non-dualism is beginning and will be a constant journey throughout my life. I have many questions. For example, how do we not take sides and become dualistic in what seems like an obvious case of injustice in places such as Palestine? I think one way of looking at it is to say: “is there an absence of love”? Obviously, in the case of Palestine there is an extreme lack of love and justice. However, we can practice non-dualism by realizing that all of humanity is valuable. The Israelis are every bit as human as the Palestinians. The much HARDER process is enacting non-dualistic thought in the real world. This particular Middle Eastern situation is exemplary because while YOU may hope to obtain a win/win for all involved, both sides are firmly entrenched in their position. However, that doesn’t mean that you stop thinking in terms of love for all vs. love for one side. No one “wins” in that scenario. What happens is that the ongoing cycle of violence and hate that is so much a part of dualistic thought continues. As a human race, we have never grasped the idea of non-dualistic thought. If we had, there would be no war and no bigotry, homophobia, racism, oppression or sexism.

Rohr and other great spiritualists like him have warned us about becoming TOO wrapped up in “having a cause”. If you’re not careful, that “cause”, however justified it might be, can become oppressive when you’re trying to avoid oppression. Obviously, this can grate an activist like me. But what Rohr is referring to is “taking sides” and therefore refusing to show love for all. Great love is non-dualistic. It is an important statement for all of us to remember as we begin.

Non-dualism can be found in all the advanced teachings of the world’s great traditions, from religious texts to Humanism and Socialism. The problem is that it becomes so easy to revert to dualistic thought when someone challenges you. I have quite often been guilty of this. The ego suddenly re-appears, the third eye closes, and the battle begins. There is no good to come of these kinds of situations. Until we learn to see with the third eye, to practice non-dualistic thought and balance it with our rational mind, we will never experience true peace and true love. I hope you decide to attempt the journey. I’m right at the start along with you.

[Joe Henry · Rating 2 out of 5]

It seems like it took me forever and a day to read the 162 pages of the body of this book. Maybe I just wasn't ready for it, but it struck me as something like 50 ways to say that " dualistic" thinking is inadequate, if not bad. I did find some nuggets in the book, but it just seemed to me to be somewhat repetitive. At the same time, I didn't feel that the book had much structure that I could recognize. I may have been moving too slowly to see it.

I also subscribe to Richard Rohr's daily email broadcast at cacradicalgrace.org. I'm much happier with that...takes just a few minutes to read...then move on. I like readings for some days better than other days, of course. Maybe it'll soak in eventually.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

For a book about nonduality and the essentiality of paradox, it sure makes a lot of claims about the “right” or “correct” meaning of this scripture or that. Relativism tends to self-contradict sooner or later, and Rohr’s insistence on uniting all religions under the same banner (even if simply for pedagogical purposes) is no exception.

Yet there’s so much to appreciate from this short work about the ways in which we cheapen truth by our need for exclusion and palatability and comfort, and the necessary work it takes to break free from our own self-collapsing.

I found myself often knowing his writing to be true, but sensing within me a resistance to its critiques of the faith (or rather, religion) of my upbringing. I believe I’ve had an experience with the things he is writing about, and I can’t chalk it up to anything other than the Divine. Even if he uses terms I’m not always comfortable with (or even find rhetorically clarifying more than distracting), I know I have much to learn from this book.

On love and suffering, on truth and its accessibility, on knowing our true selves and learning to see more clearly with the eyes of God, on release from fear and shame, on acceptance of mystery and comfort in the unknowing, on the profound truth of both/and over either/or…Rohr is accessing a whole different level of spirituality which I believe is close to the heart of God—who is surely big enough to carry all of our terms and contradictions and claims, and call us gently into correction as we stumble along.

The Naked Now seems to be about being okay walking this path, whether it’s fully lit or not.

[Timothy · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The Naked Now: Learning to See As the Mystics See" by Richard Rohr is a compelling and well-rounded argument for a kind of Christianity that would be unrecognisable to many Western Christians today.

The book is an appeal to let go of either-or duality thinking and turn to the nondual kind of "knowing" that is essential to understanding Jesus' teachings and, ultimately, the universe. This has been called mysticism, contemplation, meditation, prayer, and more throughout history, and it's described as a worldview much wider and more functional than the Greek logic-based one that most of Western culture has never even thought to question. Rohr argues that most, if not all, of the problems in modern Christianity, on levels from individual to global, lead back to its integration into this black and white Western philosophy, and he strongly advocates for a return to what it was before.

Rohr's case is laid out well, but does move frequently into territory that many will consider epistemologically unsound - something that he, of course, would argue is just another symptom of the reductionist thinking of the West, but which could just as well be argued to be more of spirituality's inconsistencies with reason. In between, though, there's a powerful defense of the kind of philosophy that appreciates the complexity of the truth - and one that Christians and non-Christians alike will find valuable.

✍️ Quote of the Book: "We forget that every time God forgives or shows mercy, God is breaking God’s own rules… Once you’ve known Grace, your tit-for-tat universe is forever undone: God is everywhere and always and scandalously found even in the failure of sin."

[Jeannine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rohr holds nothing back in describing the importance of contemplation in a Christian's life:
"...Jesus' primary metaphor for this new consciousness was "the kingdom of God" He is not talking about a place, or an afterlife, but a way of seeing and thinking now. The kingdom of God is the naked now—the world without human kingdoms, ethnic communities, national boundaries, or social identification...

How different this is from our later notion of salvation, which pushed the entire issue into the future and largely became a reward and punishment system."

[Deb (Readerbuzz) Nance · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’ve had this book recommended to me for years, and when I got a gift card for Mother’s Day, I finally plunged in and bought it. So glad I did.

The author is a Catholic priest and he’s had time to reflect on what religion should bring to us and what it isn’t bringing to us. And since religion isn’t doing its job, Rohr has decided to help out and share some real secrets we are missing out on.

Shall I share one? I think I shall.

Jesus is telling us these secrets in every word he speaks, but we are too caught up in our dualistic thinking to understand what he is telling us. To get to Jesus, to experience God, we have to let go of our scientific yes-no, black-white thoughts and be in the naked now.

Sounds easy, right? Rohr would beg to differ. It’s the hardest thing you will ever do.
I better get busy, then. Off to live in the naked now. Let’s see if I can try to put Rohr’s secrets to work.

[John Lustrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I heartily agreed that non-dualism should be strived for but didn’t realize how deep set dualistic thinking was in me. Getting from one to the other feels very challenging and is a much harder shift for than I expected. At least I have this book to refer to!

[Rod White · Rating 3 out of 5]

Richard Rohr can turn most subjects into a polemic, which is why I have always loved reading him, ever since the 90's when he was a guide to my radical lifestyle. So I liked this book. He makes contemplation something you need to practice or you are missing the mark. You either do it or you are immature. I think that is true, but to hear him say it the way he does males me defensive. The reason I would not recommend this book is the same reason I would not recommend David Benner's new book "Soulful Spirituality." One must sort out their turn toward Hinduism. I have not come up with a short answer to their admiration of the mystics in other religions. So far, i think they have fallen into the trap of seeing God as the capital S self of the Hindus. Meditators worldwide can see that their is something more than our material existence. The people of the time of Jesus almost universally accepted that fact. The message of Jesus includes that their is a personal God who meets us in Jesus. I often think Christians my age are just catching up with the 60's, rejecting the bad religion of our ancestors and going with the beatles to the guru in protest. But I don;t think finding the religion behind religion that unites us all is Christianity.

[Joseph · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb introduction to mysticism and mystical prayer, from an acknowledged practitioner.

[Rebekah Barkman · Rating 1 out of 5]

I found this book quite frustrating, reading it as a Christian. I think Rohr’s original intent of writing this book was worthy; a desire to have Christians see with a third eye—not just the first eye of senses or second eye of knowledge but with the third eye of presence, “a moment of deep inner connection that pulls, intensely satisfied, into the naked and undefended now.”
However, I think he lost his audience by quoting Jesus along with Buddha and Hindu sages in the same breath (over and over again). Rohr self-proclaims he is an admirer of the three great Asian religions (Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism) because they are built on a worldview of nonduality and paradox (page 188.) I feel like Rohr is not linking this book to the Presence of Jesus Christ in the end, it isn’t about a relationship with Christ but about finding the divine union within, encountering the “Real Presence” no matter what religion you happen to encounter it in. And since some other religions are doing contemplation well, their leaders are worthy ones to follow. Contemplation does not equal knowing Christ Jesus. Rohr undermined his very position by using so many facets and tenets of various religions to prove his point instead of using the words of Jesus alone.

I’m the first to agree that modern Christianity would do well to have more “mysticism,” in the sense of contemplation and wonder in Christ’s presence and living out of that moment to moment. Yet I do not think that a contemplative mind, no matter that religion it has been practiced well in, equates knowing Christ. Jesus said he is “The Way, The Truth, and The Life.” If this is true, no other framework in other religions, no matter how passionately experienced or well intentioned, will lead you to Jesus.

[Samuel A De La Paz · Rating 5 out of 5]

This perspective on modern religion and prayer is one I have not read anywhere else. I related well with Rohr on his frustrations and confusions with the overconfident and scripted approaches to these topics. I'm excited to continue to follow this author.

[Logan Leggett · Rating 5 out of 5]

transformational.

[Carola · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book had been on my "to read" list for years, in part because it was not available in my local library. One day I decided to clean up my list, and either dumped books off the list or purchased used copies of them. "The Naked Now" did not live up to the reviews I read of it in America Magazine. Rohr wants Catholics to understand that many aspects of Eastern religions were previously a part of the Catholic tradition, and have been lost along the way. I found this book to be heavy on catch phrases and references to lines of thought which, if they weren't already familiar to the reader, are not well explained. For spiritual awakening, I think Tolle's "The Power of Now," though longer, is far more effective.

I think the most valuable thing I learned from this book is that the Goodreads ratings for religious books is often inflated.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

My editor told me to read this. So I did. And...well, it was good. I can't decide if it changed my world or if it put words to things I had already sorta had in the back of my mind. It did make me want to read more of and about the mystics themselves--I expected to have some tangible examples from and of the mystics, but there weren't. Even so, I enjoyed this book and the perspective it gave me. I suspect it planted seeds within me that will continue to grow as I keep thinking about all it said.

[Clifton · Rating 5 out of 5]

Confession: I haven't enjoyed books about Jesus or spirituality for some time. They seem too concerned with what to believe or how to believe it. Not this book. Rohr wants to move beyond what we believe to how we see - the world, each other, ourselves. He wants to question everything we've learned and assumed about faith, not to win a debate but to broaden our understanding. Regardless of religious background, there's something here for every reader: how do we let go of knowing and embrace being? I will probably read this one again.

[Brian · Rating 1 out of 5]

A confusing mix of new-age thought with Christian mysticism. I constantly found that Rohr would talk about how the Church doesn't have this or that practice of spirituality, then a few pages later give an example of the practice from St. Teresa of Avila or some other saint. Which is it? When he sticks to Church teaching, even in a contemporary way, he has some good insights. The rest is just mystic mush!

[Jonathan P. Connor · Rating 4 out of 5]

Get Naked!!!

Now that I have your attention, I mean:

Get this book.

Read this book.

Live this book.

Reading this book and living this book will free you from "either/or" thinking.

Get in your "Right mind" and grow closer to God.

[Shawna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly wonderfully good for the soul.

[Sam Torode · Rating 5 out of 5]

Reading this poolside, the title caught some eyes... Fantastic book.

[Cate Tedford]

I have so much to learn from this book! I have been in a rut of trying to rationally convince myself to be a Christian when mature spirituality of religion is inherently irrational (at least according to dualistic thinking) lol. I think inherently, I need history and context to feel good and right about being a part of something, but now that I’ve done and continue to do the work in that arena, I’m searching for the tools of spiritual, contemplative practice.

I am grateful for Fr. Rohr’s writing—he does not frame this book as an inadvertent pat on his own back or offer us empty platitudes or impossible criteria, as many mainstream (evangelical) Christian writers do. He humbly invites us into to the work of opening our own hearts and minds to the practice of third-eye seeing through digestible and practical application. I will be coming back to this book for sure.

“The terms liberal and conservative invariably refer to rather useless polarity thinking, and thus they are not a very helpful distinction and lens for truth. But if you know only dualistic thinking, you are trapped inside that small frame. Unself-critical liberals are just as problematic as unself-critical conservatives. Liberals protect themselves by dualistic suspicion judgments, making them overly dismissive of those they consider authorities or the top. Conservatives protect themselves by dualistic worthiness judgments, making them overly dismissive of what they judge to be the bottom. Both engage in their own kind of superiority system.”

[Janelle Coady · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is not my favorite book by Father Rohr, but it still had some great insight and helped solidify much of what he discusses in his other books. I especially liked his in-depth look at contemplation, his discussion of the pillars of awareness (intellectual, moral, and religious), and his explanation for the need to shift from dualistic thinking (or even thinking at all). Also, his ideas on suffering and love and the need for both to see the mystic side of life was helpful because we have all experienced the beauty that comes from deep love and deep suffering. If not, perhaps we need more of both to really be transformed.

Perhaps, my favorite quote from the book is something along the lines of "suffering which is not transformed becomes transferred." In essence, when we do not evolve from our pain, we inflict pain on others with our bitterness, resentments, envy, etc. Also, if we try to escape from our pain or don't deal with it, we often hurt those closest to us, whether consciously or not.

I plan to continue my exploration of Father Rohr and his work. I am currently reading one and listening to another, so I hope to get even more perspective on his ideas. His knowledge is immense, and I love it when he throws in some authors and texts to support where he has gained such wisdom. He is definitely well-read and experienced in what he discusses.

[Valerie Campbell Ackroyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Whew!! I had been listening to several of his talks on YouTube, became intrigued by his thoughts on Christian mysticism. I looked up his books on Amazon and this one seemed to be a compilation of his journey “through” the mystical side of Christianity; indeed it was. I struggled to understand parts of it, finally felt I understood and then in the next chapter he discusses new thoughts and I was back to being confused. I have highlighted many, many passages and am going to print them out and put them in my journal. I need to be able to see what I highlighted and think on why I highlighted it.

In my opinion, this is a book for people already familiar with Rohr, who want to know more about modern Christian mysticism. However I would suggest to anyone reading this review who is wondering if the book might be for them to first go to cacradicalgrace.org and poke about. Or watch some of Richard Rohr’s presentations on YouTube. If they resonate with you, this book will too.

[Ben · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think every Christian should read this. I think everyone should, really. Because this is not just a 'Christian' book. Yes it is steeped in christian history and language and thought, but it is more a book of transformation. Rohr so helpfully points out and expounds upon here is that all religion primarily should be about holistic transformation of people - not doctrine, or morality, or power, or institution (though the positive effects of a transformed person include more loving morals, more conviction to change the power structures, institutions in the world, etc). And this book is all about why and how the christian contemplative tradition goes about that transformation, and how to begin on that path of nonduality that is so needed in such a binary, judgemental, dualistic, exclusively prerational/rational culture we all seemed to be trapped in - especially (imo) religious people today.

[Janis · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here’s how Richard Rohr describes the overall message of his book, The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See:

ALL SAYING MUST BE BALANCED BY UNSAYING, and knowing must be humbled by unknowing. Without this balance, religion invariably becomes arrogant, exclusionary, and even violent. ALL LIGHT MUST BE INFORMED BY DARKNESS, and all success by suffering. St. John of the Cross called this Luminous Darkness, St. Augustine, the Paschal Mystery or the necessary Passover, and Catholics proclaim it loudly as the mystery of faith at every Eucharist. Yet it is seldom an axiom at the heart of our lives.

Father Rohr examines the non-duality thinking of the Christian mystics and explains that there are many approaches to moving “from mere belief systems or belonging systems to actual inner experience.” Many, many insights and words of wisdom can be found in each chapter.

[Matthew WK · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent! This is one that I'll read again and again (hopefully). I had a copy from the library and after reading purchased a copy for my shelves as I know it's worthy of multiple re-reads. Rohr turns things on their heads - in a really good way. If you're new to the mystics or consider yourself a fundamentalist, you'll want to either approach this with a very open heart and mind or maybe start with something else. I can see how there will/is push back, but Rohr's explanations broaden the field of who belongs, who's worthy, and is based in love.

[Rio Sharkey · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 maybe. Took a couple breaks while reading this. I think I’ll take my spiritual books on tape from now on, reading them is a bit tedious. I don’t connect with christianity but I find nondual/mystic interpretations of it fascinating and hopeful. The final few chapters and the appendices were the best parts of this book, with a few gems throughout the rest as well, but sort of a lot of slow chapters/redundancy in my opinion.