Status Updates From EL DISCERNIMIENTO. Cómo lee...

this is such a peaceful read

this book is good but as many of you know my reading progress is slowed at the moment bc i am trying to finish the last two seasons of Scandal. (i do not recommend Scandal) sorry to bring another form of entertainment into the sacredness that is goodreads. please forgive.

thank u luisa & claire for my new book

RTC maybe not exactly what I was hoping for, but still a mindful and contemplative read.

We are called to discern the spirits, and follow the inner voice of love

God’s first language is nature.

The sacrament of the present moment.

“Discernment is a way of recognizing that God is not limited by our conception of who belongs to him and who does not, or who is right and who is wrong… the mystery of discernment is that “deep calls to deep” and heart speaks to heart.”

“All actions for others can become acts of repentance that bring us into growing solidarity with our fellow human beings and so establish the basis for reconciliation. Indeed, God is the one who acts, and by our repentance we can hasten God’s action. Here it becomes clear that our action is part of Christ’s coming, that in a mysterious way the realization of the new heaven and new earth depends on us.”

“The most beautiful fruit of claiming your belovedness is a joy that allows us to share God’s unconditional love with others.”

“Friends may be guides who see what we may not be able to see ourselves.”

“Discernment is a life of listening to a deeper sound and marching to a different beat, a life in which we become “all ears.”

“And more importantly, God often reveals the contents of my own heart, as I slow and read not to know more but to be more fully known by God.” 🥲🥲🥲

It’s so good!! 🤩

I’m reading this book again for Lent

“Praying means breaking through the veil of existence and allowing yourself to be led by the vision that has become real to you, whatever you call that vision… Our prayers are directed not to ourselves but to Another, who wants to turn us around, who longs to be present, and who is able to guide us. The one who prays to God pierces the darkness and senses the source of all being.”

I love Neuman

"...If you trust in your deep identity as the beloved of God, then your decision will become clear. You’ll be more detached from what others say you should want. What you become won’t be what you expect or what the American culture expects.”

“Henri said, “Look. What you do follows from who you are. And who you are is the beloved of God. You need to listen to the inner voice of love. There is guidance in that voice. Like all of us, you get stuck when you listen to other voices, especially the self-doubting ones..."

"If we follow Jesus and trust Jesus, then we need to adjust our goals in the direction of downward mobility, not upward mobility.”

"...So I don’t think this will be easy. You may need to invent a role for yourself, and it will only emerge from a disciplined process of discernment. What is most important is who you are. You have to slow down and ask yourself what you really want and what will make you happy and help others to be happy. You need to pray about this."

“It’s a journey. You’re smart & you have a real gift to offer, but you’re focused on a career, & that’s not the issue right now. The real question is: What is the ultimate goal of your life? You have one foot in the secular world as a therapist, & you have always had a deep and dynamic spiritual life. It seems as if you see yourself neither in a totally secular professional job nor in a particular religious role..."

“We cannot, of course, fully understand the ways of God, or even our own ways; we simply cast ourselves into the loving hands of the living God, who alone knows and understands the steps we take. As Henri Nouwen says, “You can’t see the whole path ahead, but there is usually enough light to take the next step.” And then to trust God’s guidance in the moment.”

“Why should we be in such desperate haste to succeed, and in such desperate enterprises? If a man does not keep pace with his companions, perhaps it is because he hears a different drummer. Let him step to the music which he hears, however measured or far away”

- Henry David Thoreau

“All the great events of the gospels occur in the fullness of time (as a literal translation of the Greek word kairos shows clearly)...It is in the fullness of time that we meet God and know what we are called to be and do.”

“The world says, “When you were young, you were dependent and could not go where you wanted, but when you grow old, you will be able to make your own decisions, go your own way, and control your own destiny.” But Jesus has a different vision of maturity: it is the ability and willingness to be led where you would rather not go.”

“This is the meaning of passion (“to suffer”)—being the recipient of other people’s actions...The challenge is to see our passion as much as our action as vocation.”

“A way to rephrase “waiting patiently in expectation” is “standing vulnerable in the presence of our loving God.” This is the core of all prayer.”

“I couldn’t speak about love in a general way, then stand back and watch as government and religious leaders ignored the suffering of the very poor.”

“Beneath any diagnosis/mental health problem, there's a person who carries God inside. Psychology can give us helpful language for the varied parts of who we are, but we need theology to remind us that we can never be defined by personality/any disorder. We are defined by sth deeper & wider than those aspects. This is what is meant when we speak about the soul—that identity where we are most personal & most Godlike.”