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1 | Mysticism Mysticism: a False Model of the Christian's Communion with God and Sanctification by Pastor Mark R. Perkins H
Mysticism: A False Model of the Christian's Communion with God and Sanctification By Pastor Mark R. Perkins Human spirituality has suffered more from the assault of mysticism than from any other enemy. Even among Christians, mysticism is overwhelmingly misunderstood, rampantly practiced against every caution, and is a vital conduit for the introduction of a great volume of false doctrine into the world. Today, mysticism is wildly popular among Christians. Movements such as contemplative spirituality, spiritual formation, and in large part the charismatic branch of evangelical Christianity all have significant elements of mysticism. Because of extensive involvement in mysticism, the result to Christianity through the ages has been nothing less than devastating. In generation after generation mysticism has produced heresy and war, and from association with the name of Christ has done significant harm to the reputation of Christians and the church. The purpose of this presentation is to define mysticism, and then to determine whether the biblical description of communion with God, and of sanctification, meets that definition. Other benefits will accrue in the journey. The Definition of Mysticism According to the concise Oxford English Dictionary, a mystic is “a person who seeks by contemplation and self–surrender to attain unity with the Deity or the absolute, and so reach truths beyond human understanding.”1 While anything mystical is something “having a spiritual, symbolic, or allegorical significance that transcends human understanding… relating to ancient religious mysteries or other occult rites.”2 The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church adds this illumination, “In modern usage ‘mysticism’ generally refers to claims of immediate knowledge of Ultimate Reality whether or not this is called ‘God’) by direct personal experience;”3 Finally, Francis Schaeffer emphasizes the unintelligibility of mysticism, “Mysticism is nothing more than a faith contrary to rationality, deprived of content and incapable of communication. -
St. Bonaventure Catholic Community Comunidad Católica De San Buenaventura
St. Bonaventure Catholic Community Comunidad Católica de San Buenaventura 5562 Clayton Road, Concord, CA 94521 • PHONE (925) 672-5800 • FAX (925) 672-4606 • www.stbonaventure.net Blessing of departing Director of Faith Formation For Children, Rosann Hallick. Photo Credit: David Blankenhorn Fifteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time Decimoquinto Domingo del Tiempo Ordinario July 15, 2018 MASSES IN ENGLISH/EN INGLES MARRIAGE/MATRIMONIO Mission Saturday Vigil/Sábado: 5:00 PM Call the office to arrange with a Priest or Deacon. This Sunday/Domingo 7:30 AM, 9:00 AM, 11:00 AM, 5:00 PM requires six months preparation. As disciples at St. Bonaventure, we are committed to know Christ better and Llame a la oficina para solicitar información y concer- make Him better known. To this end we MISA EN ESPAÑOL IN SPANISH tar una cita con el Sacerdote. Este proceso requiere / are committed to… Domingo: 12:45 PM mínimo seis meses de preparación. Keep connected to our parish DAILY MASS/MISA DIARIA (CHAPEL/CAPILLA) RECONCILIATION/RECONCILIACÍON community, PM Monday/Lunes thru Friday/Viernes : 6:30 AM & 9:00 AM In English: Saturdays 3:30 (in the church) or by appointment. Nurture the development of our faith Llame a la oficina para hacer una cita con el Sacer- and knowledge of Christ, BAPTISM/BAUTIZOS dote. In English: Call the office to begin the process. This Offer to share the Holy Spirit’s gifts of requires two months preparation time, talent and treasure, En Español: Llame a la oficina para solicitar infor- Worship through prayer, Mass and the mación y concertar una cita con el Sacerdote. -
ORTHODOX PRAYER and BUDDHIST MINDFULNESS Fr. Brendan Pelphrey Fall, 2014 Thank You for the Invitation to Take Part in This Weeks
ORTHODOX PRAYER AND BUDDHIST MINDFULNESS Fr. Brendan Pelphrey Fall, 2014 Thank you for the invitation to take part in this weeks’ conference. My task is to compare the Orthodox tradition of silent prayer, or “watchfulness” (nipsis), as described by the Hesychasts, with the Buddhist practice of “mindfulness” (sati) in its various traditions, as we explore how these things may be beneficial to healing. To be done well I believe the topic would require someone who is experienced in monastic life, whether Orthodox Christian or Buddhist, or both. Unfortunately I am neither, but I offer my comments in light of an admonition attributed to St. Gregory Palamas: Let no one think, my fellow Christians, that only priests and monks need to pray without ceasing, and not laymen. No, no: every Christian without exception ought to dwell always in prayer. Gregory the Theologian teaches all Christians that the Name of God must be remembered in prayer as often as one draws breath.1 For Orthodox Christians our topic is in fact prayer—as different from Buddhist meditation or mindfulness as our right hand is from our left, and so opposite at every point. Orthodox watchfulness seeks the presence and energetic gifts of God, holiness, cleansing from sin, taking on the image and likeness of Christ, even in the body. “Self-awareness” is not the goal, except in the sense of becoming aware of our need for God and of delusions which deceive us. Rather, the goal is inner stillness which allows for prayer and transformation.2 This way of prayer is continual, involving the unity of body, mind and soul in Liturgy, psalmody, hymns and prayers, as well in disciplines of kindness and compassion. -
Roman Catholic Church in Ireland 1990-2010
The Paschal Dimension of the 40 Days as an interpretive key to a reading of the new and serious challenges to faith in the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland 1990-2010 Kevin Doherty Doctor of Philosophy 2011 MATER DEI INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION A College of Dublin City University The Paschal Dimension of the 40 Days as an interpretive key to a reading of the new and serious challenges to faith in the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland 1990-2010 Kevin Doherty M.A. (Spirituality) Moderator: Dr Brendan Leahy, DD Submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy August 2011 DECLARATION I hereby certify that this material, which I now submit for assessment on the programme of study leading to the award of Ph.D. is entirely my own work and has not been taken from the work of others save and to the extent that such work has been cited and acknowledged within the text of my work. ID No: 53155831 Date: ' M l 2 - 0 1 DEDICATION To my parents Betty and Donal Doherty. The very first tellers of the Easter Story to me, and always the most faithful tellers of that Story. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS A special thanks to all in the Diocese of Rockville Centre in New York who gave generously of their time and experience to facilitate this research: to Msgr Bob Brennan (Vicar General), Sr Mary Alice Piil (Director of Faith Formation), Marguerite Goglia (Associate Director, Children and Youth Formation), Lee Hlavecek, Carol Tannehill, Fr Jim Mannion, Msgr Bill Hanson. Also, to Fr Neil Carlin of the Columba Community in Donegal and Derry, a prophet of the contemporary Irish Church. -
On Christian Asceticism Spiritual Exercises in Saint Augustine's
Studies in Spirituality 25, 21-43. doi: 10.2143/SIS.25.0.3112887 © 2015 by Studies in Spirituality. All rights reserved. JOSEPH GRABAU ON CHRISTIAN ASCETICISM Spiritual Exercises in Saint Augustine’s Confessions* SUMMARY – The present article seeks to address an important point of contact between early Christian ascetic practice and the heritage of Platonism through the end of the fourth century AD. In short, I find marked similarities between Pierre Hadot’s reading of Plato’s Phaedo, for example, and that of St Augustine’s personal prayer book, the Confes- sions. After outlining essential characteristics of Hadot’s take on spiritual exercises and Augustinian anthropology, I subject the text of the Confes- sions to critical examination in order to determine whether an emphasis on ‘spiritual exercises’ is indeed present. I argue that similar spiritual practices may be clearly discerned. First, I discuss the distinct ‘Christian’ and Augustinian character of ‘spiritual exercises’ which incorporate bibli- cal typology of Adam and Christ as paradigmatic for the spiritual life. Next, in terms of concrete practices, I then discern from the first four books of the Confessions a series of exercises through which such a path of spiritual progress (i.e. from ‘Adam’ to ‘Christ’) may occur. Of note, I consider the dialectic praxis of 1) contemplative reading, 2) prayer- writing and 3) prayer itself, or ‘pure’ prayer – distinct from Augustine’s written reflections; 4) the role of lectio divina or meditation on Scrip- ture; and, finally, 5) meditation on death. In addition to developing these individual practices, it is the traditional Augustinian anthropology (rooted as it is in a theology of divine grace) that reveals the essential ‘Christian’ contribution of Augustine’s. -
Unity and Diversity in Our Churches
Unity in Diversity In our Churches This document is based on the Key Integration Guidelines as devised by the Parish-Based Integration Project and the Inter-Church Committee on Social Issues. A resource to assist local parishes and congregations with the integration of new residents into their faith communities Unity in Diversity In our Churches Produced by: Adrian Cristea, along with Alan Martin, Robert Cochran and Tony Walsh And further assistance from: Sr. Joan Roddy and Philip McKinley This document was produced as one of the outputs from the “Parish based Integration Project”. This project, which is largely funded by the Integration Unit of the Office of the Minister for State for Integration, was initiated and is managed by the Inter-Church Committee on Social Issues, a committee of the Irish Inter-Church Meeting which represents 15 Churches operating in the island of Ireland. The fifteen member Churches are currently: The Roman Catholic Church, The Antiochian Orthodox Church, The Church of Ireland, The Greek Orthodox Church in Britain and Ireland, The LifeLink Network of Churches, The Lutheran Church in Ireland, The Methodist Church in Ireland, The Moravian Church (Irish District), The Non-Subscribing Presbyterian Church of Ireland, The Presbyterian Church in Ireland, The Religious Society of Friends (Quakers)in Ireland, The Rock of Ages Cherubim and Seraphim Church, The Romanian Orthodox Church in Ireland, The Russian Orthodox Church in Ireland, The Salvation Army (Ireland Division). Further details on the project, and a significant body of relevant resource material, are available on the website at www.iccsi.ie An electronic version of this document is also available on the website in pdf format. -
Life in the Word Week 3 “Christian Meditation” J.C. Ryle (Bible
Life in the Word Week 3 “Christian Meditation” J.C. Ryle (Bible Reading) – “Next to praying there is nothing so important in practical religion as Bible-reading. God has mercifully given us a book which is “able to make us wise unto salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus (2 Tim. 3:15). By reading that book we may learn what to believe, what to be, and what to do; how to live with comfort, and how to die in peace. Happy is that man who possesses a Bible! Happier still is he who reads it!” Ephesians 3:17-21 – “For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, 15 from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, 16 that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being, 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. 20 Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us, 21 to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever. Amen.” Jerome - “The Scriptures are shallow enough for a babe to come and drink without fear of drowning and deep enough for a theologians to swim in without ever touching the bottom.” Meditation Scriptures: • Joshua 1:8 - “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, so that you may be careful to do according to all that is written in it. -
Code Words to Hide Sex Abuse
CODE WORDS TO HIDE SEX ABUSE A.W. Richard Sipe Revised May 1, 2015 The sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic Church has gone on for so long that a community of researchers, academics, and writers has arisen to study the crisis. Among us are historians, legal scholars, sociologists, psychotherapists and more. But no matter our main discipline, we all have had to struggle with many of the same challenges. The first is coming to terms with the fact that while the Church is famously careful about its records and documents, when it comes to sex and the clergy these documents are obscure to the point of deception. The people who keep the records for the Church are driven to deceive by the clerical culture of celibacy, which forbids all sexual activity by ordained men. Because it is forbidden, clerical sexual activity is always guarded in secrecy, and individuals expend enormous effort to keep it that way. Whenever the secrets are identified within the Church, officials use code words to keep others in the dark while they establish a record that will be useful to them, but not to an outsider. This is why a search of Church documents for evidence of prior knowledge of sexually abusing priests will rarely turn-up the words pedophile, abuser, sex, or any other direct reference to actual sexual or abusive behavior. However, those of us who have worked on this issue both from within and outside the Church have noted similar coded terms and euphemisms being used in documents written around the world and at every level of the ecclesiastical bureaucracy. -
Christian Prayer, Meditation and Contemplation
虚 鈴 the empty bell Christian Prayer, Meditation and Contemplation © Robert A. Jonas, 2006 (reprint by written permission only) Robert A. Jonas, Director www.emptybell.org 虚 鈴 the empty bell ll four Gospels tell us that Jesus prayed. He prayed alone on mountains and in the wilderness. He Aprayed on roads, in people’s homes and in temples. He prayed alone with God and he prayed with and for others. He prayed out loud and he prayed silently, in his own heart. Those prayers that we hear in the words of the Gospel often reflect or even repeat the prayers we find in Jewish scriptures. Jesus prayed as a Jew and his prayers taste like the Psalms. We can guess from his ministry that Jesus placed a higher priority on prayer than on religious duties and laws. Unfortunately, Jesus did not provide us with a detailed developmental program of prayer. In fact, the only explicit direction he gave is recorded in the Gospel of Matthew where he emphasizes solitude and a specific focus on God as Creator and Father. The prayer that begins, “Our Father in heaven” is prob- ably the one prayer that Christians of all denominations have in common. By tradition it is called The Lord’s Prayer: Whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you. When you are praying, do not heap up empty phrases as the Gentiles do; for they think that they will be heard because of their many words. -
1 CURRICULUM VITAE DWIGHT H. JUDY Garrett-Evangelical
1 CURRICULUM VITAE DWIGHT H. JUDY Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary 2121 Sheridan Rd. Evanston, IL 60201 email: [email protected] EMPLOYMENT Garrett-Evangelical Theological Seminary, Professor Emeritus of Spiritual Formation, July, 2012. Professor of Spiritual Formation, 2010; Associate Professor of Spiritual Formation, 2001 to 2010, oversight of United Methodist Certification in Spiritual Formation studies; director of Doctor of Ministry, 2001-2008. Coordinator of Spiritual Formation and Adjunct faculty in Spiritual Formation, fall, 2000 to 2001; Visiting Professor 1984 to 2000. Oakwood Spiritual Life Center, Syracuse, Indiana, Director of Spiritual Formation, 2001- 2005; Director of Program, 1994-2001. United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio, Mentor for Doctor of Ministry cohort, “Minister as Spiritual Director,” 2000 to 2003. Institute of Transpersonal Psychology, Palo Alto, California, Adjunct Research Faculty, effective, 2003; Faculty Chairperson of External Division, 1988 to 1994; Core Faculty appointment as Assistant Professor, 1989; appointment as Associate Professor, 1993; Dean of Students, 1984-1988. The Upper Room Academy for Spiritual Formation, Nashville, TN, Adjunct faculty, 1989 to present. Perkins School of Theology Continuing Education, Southern Methodist University, Director of Spiritual Formation, 1984-87. Psychological Assistant, Los Altos Psychological Consultants, 1985-87, Carl Culberson, Supervisor. Psychological Intern, The Transpersonal Center, ITP, 1983-85, June Singer and Frances Vaughan, Supervisors. St. Stephen United Methodist Church, Mesquite, TX, Pastor, 1971-79. A Christian Ministry in the National Parks, one-year internship, St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, 1969-70. PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS AND LICENSURE United Methodist minister, North Texas Conference Retired status, 2009. Ordination as Elder, The United Methodist Church, 1974. Ordination as Deacon, The United Methodist Church, 1968. -
Lectio Divina, Christian Meditation (Contemplation) and Levels of Relationship Compiled by Mary Ann C
Lectio Divina, Christian meditation (contemplation) and Levels of Relationship Compiled by Mary Ann C. Holtz, LMHC http://www.stpaulstpete.com/index.php/ministries/counseling Lectio Divina “Lectio Divina, literally meaning "divine reading," is an ancient practice of praying the Scriptures. During Lectio Divina, the practitioner listens to the text of the Bible with the "ear of the heart," as if he or she is in conversation with God, and God is suggesting the topics for discussion. The method of Lectio Divina includes moments of reading (lectio), reflecting on (meditatio), responding to (oratio) and resting in (contemplatio) the Word of God with the aim of nourishing and deepening one's relationship with the Divine.” (from http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/category/category/lectio-divina ; see pdf link on that page for lectio divina brochure for more guidance.) To find the daily Scripture readings from Catholic Eucharistic liturgy to use in lectio: http://www.usccb.org/bible/ Another resource to guide you through reading, reflecting, and responding to one of the daily readings is 'Sacred Space' http://www.sacredspace.ie/#chooseday “We invite you to make a 'Sacred Space' in your day, praying here and now, as you visit our website, with the help of scripture chosen every day and on-screen guidance.” Christian meditation (contemplation) For a short introduction to Christian meditation (also known a contemplative prayer) watch this 9 minute video from PBS, with Fr. Martin Laird: http://www.pbs.org/video/religion-ethics- newsweekly-father-martin-laird-on-contemplation/ To explore further, read his book Into the Silent Land: A Guide to the Christian Practice of Contemplation. -
A Study of the Origins, Development and Contemporary Manifestations of Christian Retreats
View metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk brought to you by CORE provided by Unisa Institutional Repository A STUDY OF THE ORIGINS, DEVELOPMENT AND CONTEMPORARY MANIFESTATIONS OF CHRISTIAN RETREATS by HUGH PETER JENKINS submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF THEOLOGY in the subject CHRISTIAN SPIRITUALITY at the UNIVERSITY OF SOUTH AFRICA SUPERVISOR: DR JL COYLE OCTOBER 2006 1 Key terms: Christian retreats; Biblical retreats; Spiritual withdrawal; Monasticism; Discernment; Ignatian spirituality; Christian devotions; Christian meditation; Divine-Human encounter; Christian prayer. 2 Summary: The dissertation is a study of the origins, development and contemporary manifestations of Christian retreats. It traces origins from the Biblical record until current retreats. Christian retreat is a period of withdrawal from usual activities to experience encounter with God through Christian prayer. Jesus’ pattern of engagement in ministry and withdrawal is a vital basis for retreat. Other Biblical descriptions of retreat are studied. There is an examination of retreat experiences in Church history with a particular focus on monasticism, as a major expression of retreat life, and Ignatius of Loyola, the founder of the modern retreat movement. Varieties of subsequent retreat types in the spiritualities of different traditions from the Protestant Reformation onwards are considered. The spectrum of study includes Protestant, Catholic, Eastern Orthodox and Pentecostal spiritualities. The study culminates in focusing on current Ignatian and other retreats in their many forms. This includes private devotions to lengthy periods of retreat. 3 Declaration: I declare that “A study of the origins, development and contemporary manifestations of Christian retreats” is my own work and that all the sources that I have used or quoted have been indicated and acknowledged by means of complete references.