Some things to think about

I wanted to share with you some thoughts from Richard Rohr in a recent daily meditation.

Contemplation As an Alternative Mind

The ability to stand back and calmly observe our inner dramas, without rushing to judgment, is foundational for spiritual seeing. It is the primary form of “dying to the self” that Jesus lived personally and the Buddha taught experientially. The growing consensus is that, whatever you call it, such calm, egoless seeing is invariably characteristic of people at the highest levels of doing and loving in all cultures and religions. They are the ones we call sages or wise women or holy men. They see like the mystics see. Many of us call it the contemplative mind, Paul calls it “the mind of Christ” (1 Corinthians 2:10-16), but have no doubt it is an alternative consciousness to our ordinary calculating mind.

Now do not let the word “mystic” scare you. It simply means one who has moved from mere belief systems or belonging systems to actual inner experience. All spiritual traditions agree that such a movement is possible, desirable, and available to everyone. In fact, Jesus seems to say that this is the whole point! (See, for example, John 10:19-38.)

Adapted from The Naked Now: Learning to See as the Mystics See, pp. 30, 32-33

See also Everything Belongs: The Gift of Contemplative Prayer, which develops the difference between the contemplative mind and the calculative mind.

What do you think?

Peace+,

Jim

Thanks to everyone who commented on last week’s blog on the Pine Ridge Presbyterian Church Facebook page.