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Author: Thomas Merton
Publisher: Ravenio Books
ISBN:
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 50
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Book Description
There are so many Christians who do not appreciate the magnificent dignity of their vocation to sanctity, to the knowledge, love and service of God. There are so many Christians who do not realize what possibilities God has placed in the life of Christian perfection — what possibilities for joy in the knowledge and love of Him. There are so many Christians who have practically no idea of the immense love of God for them, and of the power of that Love to do them good, to bring them happiness. Why do we think of the gift of contemplation, infused contemplation, mystical prayer, as something essentially strange and esoteric reserved for a small class of almost unnatural beings and prohibited to everyone else? It is perhaps because we have forgotten that contemplation is the work of the Holy Ghost acting on our souls through His gifts of Wisdom and Understanding with special intensity to increase and perfect our love for Him. These gifts are part of the normal equipment of Christian sanctity. They are given to all in Baptism, and if they are given it is presumably because God wants them to be developed. Their development will always remain the free gift of God and it is true that His wise Providence sees fit to develop them less in some saints than in others. But it is also true that God often measures His gifts by our desire to receive them, and by our cooperation with His grace, and the Holy Spirit will not waste any of His gifts on people who have little or no interest in them.
Author: Thomas Merton
Publisher: Ravenio Books
ISBN:
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 50
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Book Description
There are so many Christians who do not appreciate the magnificent dignity of their vocation to sanctity, to the knowledge, love and service of God. There are so many Christians who do not realize what possibilities God has placed in the life of Christian perfection — what possibilities for joy in the knowledge and love of Him. There are so many Christians who have practically no idea of the immense love of God for them, and of the power of that Love to do them good, to bring them happiness. Why do we think of the gift of contemplation, infused contemplation, mystical prayer, as something essentially strange and esoteric reserved for a small class of almost unnatural beings and prohibited to everyone else? It is perhaps because we have forgotten that contemplation is the work of the Holy Ghost acting on our souls through His gifts of Wisdom and Understanding with special intensity to increase and perfect our love for Him. These gifts are part of the normal equipment of Christian sanctity. They are given to all in Baptism, and if they are given it is presumably because God wants them to be developed. Their development will always remain the free gift of God and it is true that His wise Providence sees fit to develop them less in some saints than in others. But it is also true that God often measures His gifts by our desire to receive them, and by our cooperation with His grace, and the Holy Spirit will not waste any of His gifts on people who have little or no interest in them.
Author: John H. Coe
Publisher: InterVarsity Press
ISBN: 0830873686
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 309
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Book Description
What does a Christian life lived "by the Spirit" look like? Bringing together Protestant scholars and practitioners of spiritual formation, this volume offers a distinctly evangelical consideration of the benefits of contemplation. Drawing on historical examples from the church—including John Calvin, Richard Baxter, Jonathan Edwards, and John Wesley—this book considers how contemplative prayer can shape Christian living today.
Author: Pete Greig
Publisher: NavPress
ISBN: 1641581905
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 269
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Book Description
2021 ECPA Award Finalist in the Christian Living Category “An instant spiritual classic.” ―Christianity Today Is prayer the most challenging area of your Christian journey? It doesn’t have to be. Pete Greig, one of the founders of 24-7 Prayer International, is passionate about introducing people to simple, honest, relevant conversations with God. How to Pray is a raw, real, and remarkable how-to-guide on prayer for everyone―from the committed follower of Jesus to the skeptic and the scared. Full of biblically sound wisdom, How to Pray will offer honest encouragement and real-life methods to refresh your spirit, revitalize your faith, and help you practice life-giving and lifechanging prayer. Revolutionize your prayer life by learning how to: Start praying Keep prayer simple Ask God for things through intercessory prayer Cope with unanswered prayer Pray without words through contemplative prayer Hear God You will also be inspired by the power of prayer through the stories of Corrie Ten Boom, Joni Eareckson Tada, Saint Patrick, and many more. How to Pray is designed to be used with The Prayer Course (a free video curriculum), making it useful for personal, small group, or church-wide reading. “Pete Greig is a respected authority on exactly this kind of praying: simple, honest, straightforward, from the heart. How to Pray will get you started on a lifelong, and life-giving, practice.” ―Mark Batterson, New York Times bestselling author of Circle Maker “I’m so grateful for this book. Pete’s passion and fervor for intercession is contagious. Get this book. Read this book. Live this book.” ―Brady Boyd, author and senior pastor at New Life Church “For everyone who’s wondered how to move the experience of prayer from distant to personal and powerful, How to Pray provides a starting point for new and seasoned believers alike.” ―Nicole Unice, author of Help! My Bible is Alive! “Pete Grieg has written the prayer masterpiece for today. It is an easy-to-follow, easy-to-practice manifesto of prayer for everyday life.” ―Craig Springer, author and executive director of Alpha USA
Author: Jennifer Summit
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 022603237X
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 253
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Book Description
“All of humanity’s problems stem from man’s inability to sit quietly in a room alone,” Blaise Pascal wrote in 1654. But then there’s Walt Whitman, in 1856: “Whoever you are, come forth! Or man or woman come forth! / You must not stay sleeping and dallying there in the house.” It is truly an ancient debate: Is it better to be active or contemplative? To do or to think? To make an impact, or to understand the world more deeply? Aristotle argued for contemplation as the highest state of human flourishing. But it was through action that his student Alexander the Great conquered the known world. Which should we aim at? Centuries later, this argument underlies a surprising number of the questions we face in contemporary life. Should students study the humanities, or train for a job? Should adults work for money or for meaning? And in tumultuous times, should any of us sit on the sidelines, pondering great books, or throw ourselves into protests and petition drives? With Action versus Contemplation, Jennifer Summit and Blakey Vermeule address the question in a refreshingly unexpected way: by refusing to take sides. Rather, they argue for a rethinking of the very opposition. The active and the contemplative can—and should—be vibrantly alive in each of us, fused rather than sundered. Writing in a personable, accessible style, Summit and Vermeule guide readers through the long history of this debate from Plato to Pixar, drawing compelling connections to the questions and problems of today. Rather than playing one against the other, they argue, we can discover how the two can nourish, invigorate, and give meaning to each other, as they have for the many writers, artists, and thinkers, past and present, whose examples give the book its rich, lively texture of interplay and reference. This is not a self-help book. It won’t give you instructions on how to live your life. Instead, it will do something better: it will remind you of the richness of a life that embraces action and contemplation, company and solitude, living in the moment and planning for the future. Which is better? Readers of this book will discover the answer: both.
Author: Matthew D. Walker
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1108421105
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 273
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Book Description
Provides an original, up-to-date, and systematic account of Aristotle's views on contemplation's place in the human good.
Author: Martin Laird
Publisher:
ISBN: 0199379947
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 265
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Book Description
In the third of Martin Laird's best-selling books on Christian contemplative life, Laird considers the deepening dynamics of contemplation for those who have settled into a maturing practice of meditation. Drawing on the works of writers ranging from St. Augustine and St. Teresa of Avila to Flannery O'Connor and David Foster Wallace, Laird grounds his methodology in both ancient practice and contemporary language. With characteristic lyricism and gentleness, he guides readers through new challenges of contemplative life, such as the danger of using a spiritual practice as a strategy for personal gain; making ourselves the focus of our own contemplative project; dealing with old pain; and transforming the isolation of loneliness and depression into a place of liberating solidarity with all who suffer.
Author: Ed Cyzewski
Publisher: MennoMedia, Inc.
ISBN: 1513804367
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 144
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Book Description
What if prayer could be simple rather than strenuous? Anxious, results-driven Christians can never pray enough, serve enough, or study enough. But what if God is calling us not to frenzied activity but to a simple spiritual encounter? What if we must merely receive what God has already given us? In Flee, Be Silent, Pray, writer and contemplative retreat leader Ed Cyzewski guides readers out of the anxiety factory of contemporary Christianity and toward a God whose love astounds those quiet long enough to receive it. With helpful guidance into solitude, contemplative prayer, and practices such as lectio divina and the Examen, Cyzewski guides readers toward the Christ whose yoke is easy and whose burden is light. Ready to shed the fear of the false self and the exhaustion of a duty-driven faith? Flee. Be silent. Pray.
Author: Malik Badri
Publisher: International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT)
ISBN: 1642052329
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 173
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Book Description
The human race is in crisis and very few of us – if any – are able to understand what is wrong with our lives and the world at large. How did this happen and how did humans become so ‘disconnected’ with humanity? Why are psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety, fear, and suicide on the increase, and why are conventional Western therapies unable to stem the tide? To approach this we must first look inside ourselves – to explore our own purpose in life and extend that principle to the rest of humanity. Despite the advances of modern Western psychology and the development of therapies that do help many, one area that is largely unexplored is that of the ‘human spirit’ and spirituality since it is more convenient to consider the human mind as ‘machine’ that responds to external stimuli. In this powerful exploration into the human mind and its relationship with the human spirit, Malik Badri invites the reader to open the door to self-discovery, purpose and spirituality through the practice of contemplation, reflection and meditation – understanding the true meaning and experience of spirituality as well as one’s own place in Creation. Whilst central to worship in Islam, this will also be of great interest to, and help any reader wishing to explore the notion of spirituality whether as part of worship or simply as part of self development and inner healing.
Author: Thomas Merton
Publisher: Image
ISBN: 9780385025508
Category : Religion
Languages : en
Pages : 396
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Book Description
The American trappist monk outlines means of reorganizing monastic life to meet the needs of contemporary man
Author: Thomas Merton
Publisher: Shambhala Publications
ISBN:
Category : Body, Mind & Spirit
Languages : en
Pages : 200
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Book Description
The essence of Merton's thought and its relevance for today, presented in a collection of short readings from a broad selection of his work.
