CONTEMPLATIVE
OUTREACH
of NORTH SAN DIEGO
BACKGROUND
Contemplative
Outreach, Ltd.
Contemplative
Outreach, Ltd, was established in 1984 by Fr. Thomas Keating, O.C.S.O., to bring
this ancient prayer practice out of the monastic milieu to those in contemporary
society. Contemplative Outreach, Ltd. is now a world-wide spiritual network of
individuals and small faith communities committed to renewing the contemplative
dimension of the Gospel in everyday life. Contemplative Outreach, Ltd. serves
the needs of this spiritual network.
Contemplative
Prayer
Contemplative
Prayer is the opening of the mind and heart, our whole being to God, the
Ultimate Mystery, beyond thoughts, words and emotions, whom we know by faith is
within us, closer than breathing, thinking, feeling, and choosing; even closer
than consciousness itself. The root of prayer is interior silence. Though we may
think of prayer as thoughts or feelings expressed in words, this is only one
expression. Contemplative Prayer is a prayer of silence, an expression of
God’s presence as the ground in which our being is rooted, the Source from
whom our life emerges at every moment. For the Church’s first sixteen
centuries, Contemplative Prayer was the goal of Christian spirituality. During
the past four centuries, this living tradition has been virtually lost. Today
with cross-cultural dialogue and historical research, the recovery of the
Christian contemplative tradition has begun. The method of Centering Prayer, in
the tradition of Lectio Divina (praying the scriptures), is contributing to this
renewal.
Centering
Prayer
Centering Prayer is a method of prayer which prepares us to receive the gifts of contemplative prayer. Centering Prayer consists of responding to the Spirit of Christ by consenting to God’s presence and action within. It furthers the development of contemplative prayer by preparing our faculties to cooperate with this gift. Centering Prayer facilitates a movement from more active modes of prayer - verbal, discursive or affective prayer – to a receptive prayer of resting in God.
Centering
Prayer is meant to enrich and complement other forms of prayer, not exclude or
replace them. Centering Prayer is, at the same time, a relationship with God and
a discipline to foster that relationship.
“The
Cloud of Unknowing” (author unknown), “
