Friday, September 14, 2012


“Contemplation,” or meditation as it is called by some, became more popular in our times thanks to the writings of Thomas Merton.  The word most Christians were more familiar with was simply “prayer.”
Unfortunately, prayer became something functional; something you did to achieve a desired effect ~ which puts you back in charge instead of God.  As soon as you make prayer a way to get something, you’re not moving into a new state of awareness.  It's the same old realization.  “How can I get God to do what I want God to do?”  It's the self-centeredness in us still deciding what we need, but often times trying to manipulate God as well.
This is one reason religion is in such frantic straits today.  It really isn't transforming people, but leaving them in their separated and self-centered state.  It tries to pull God inside of my agenda instead of letting God pull me inside of his.  This is still the small old self at work.  
What we need to talk about is the emergence of “a whole new creation” and a “new mind,” as St. Paul calls it.  We need to “Put on the mind of Christ” and so find a new way of living.

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