Jan

31

Four Dimensions of Spirituality and Embracing the Mind of Christ

Contemplation / Mysticism / Spirituality / Writing

On my writer’s page at Facebook, my bio used to read like this:

Carl McColman is the author of 10 books on the spiritual life. Most of his works published before 2005 concern Pagan and Celtic spirituality. In 2005 he became a Catholic, and is now writing a book on Christian mysticism to be published in late 2010.

As of this morning, I have re-written it thusly:

Carl McColman blogs about Celtic, emergent, mystical, & contemplative spirituality at the Website of Unknowing (www.anamchara.com). He is the author of 10 books. The 11th, “The Big Book of Christian Mysticism,” will be published in August 2010.

I’ve done this for several reasons. First, I felt that, at least at this point in my journey, I am known more for this humble blog than for my even humbler books. Although my book sales are respectable enough, in any given month far more people read this blog than buy my books. So I wanted my Facebook blurb to represent me as a blogger first, booksmith second.

Then there is the minor matter of changing the anticipated pub date of The Big Book of Christian Mysticism from “late 2010″ to the more precise and accurate “August 2010.”

But the most important reason for my self-revisionism involves my growing unease with oppositional thinking, as well as an equally growing recognition that both my own spirituality and my vocation as a writer are shaped by four equal and very important dimensions of Christian experience.

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Jan

30

Quote for the Day

Prayer / Quotations

Prayer is not so much about convincing God to do what we want God to do as it is about convincing ourselves to do what God wants us to do.

— Shane Claiborne and Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove,
Becoming the Answer to Our Prayers

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Jan

29

Separated at Birth?

humor

People at work have been teasing me that John Michael Talbot is my long lost brother.

What do you think?

I personally don’t see much resemblance. Sure, we’re both jaw-droppingly handsome, but his beard is much more epic than mine could ever hope to be…

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Jan

28

Quotes for the Day

Christian mysticism / Mysticism / Quotations

All the way to heaven is heaven.

— Catherine of Siena, as quoted in New Monasticism by Jonathan Wilson-Hartgrove

You are as holy as you want to be.

—Jan van Ruusbroec, as quoted in Ruusbroec and His Mysticism by Paul Verdeyen

God never grants mystical wisdom without love.

— John of the Cross, The Dark Night of the Soul

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Jan

26

Christian Mysticism and “Ordinary” Christian Spirituality

Christianity / Mysticism / Spirituality

Last night I got an email from young person who asked me to explain Christian mysticism to her. She noted that she was a Christian but had never heard of mysticism before. Indeed, how many faithful church-goers are there, who know nothing about the splendors of the contemplative tradition?

This past Sunday I was visiting a class on Christian spirituality at a mainline Protestant church here in Atlanta, and, impressed by the articulate and eloquent expression of personal spirituality among the students, I began to ponder this question: what is the difference between Christian mysticism and, for lack of a better term, “ordinary” Christian spirituality? I know it’s counter-intuitive to start worrying about these kinds of distinctions, for this immediately puts the dualistic mind into high gear. Trying to talk about mysticism through dualistic consciousness is like trying to talk about lovemaking using only military metaphors. But, with that caveat fully in mind, here I go where angels fear to tread…

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Jan

25

Quote for the Day

Quotations / Spirituality

For those who abandon themselves to it, God’s love contains every good thing, and if you long for it with all your heart and soul it will be yours. All God asks for is love, and if you search for this kingdom where God alone rules, you can be quite sure you will find it. For if your heart is completely devoted to God, your heart itself is this treasure, this very kingdom which you desire so ardently.

— Jean-Pierre de Caussade, Abandonment to Divine Providence

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Jan

24

What’s Up…

Announcements

We interrupt the regularly scheduled programming of this blog to bring you a few notes about what’s up in the life of your humble blogger.

I’m currently reviewing and responding to the copy-edits of The Big Book of Christian Mysticism. This process will continue until February 10, when the manuscript is due back on my editor’s desk. From there the book will go to the designers, who will do the layout; copies will be mailed out to potential endorsers and early reviewers. I’ll review the book one more time after the design is finished, but that will be only for proof-reading or fixing last-minute minor glitches. The plan is to have the book to press by the beginning of summer, and in bookstores by the beginning of August.

So… that’s all to say that between now and February 10 I probably will not be posting to this blog every day. Or I’ll be posting more quotations from mystics and other authors, since I will be putting more time into making sure I meet my deadline. Readers who were following this blog before last August (when I was still writing the book) will remember what the rhythm was like. Not to worry, I love the blog and as soon as the copy editing review is completed, I’ll be back to posting daily.

In the meantime, I thought I’d post a few reminders and notices of upcoming events:

Upcoming Classes — I have two classes scheduled through Emory University’s Center for Lifelong Learning, starting in February and in April. Normally these classes fill up in a hurry, but this year enrollment has been sluggish; has the economy finally caught up with the Ken Wilber fans and mysticism lovers in Atlanta? Anyway, if you’re interested in them, please register soon: if we don’t reach a certain threshold, we’ll have to cancel the classes and of course I’d rather not do that. Follow the links to sign up.

  • A Brief History of Everything through Emory University’s “Evening at Emory” Program.
    American philosopher Ken Wilber writes books that combine eastern and western spirituality, psychology, biology, cultural theory, and other strands of contemporary thought to create what the author calls “integral theory.” Wilber seeks to bridge the divide between science and religion, explain the dynamics of human consciousness and moral development, and speculate on the future evolution of our species. Despite the complexity of his thought, many of Wilber’s books are written in an accessible style, including the textbook for this class, A Brief History of Everything. In this class we’ll read the book, discuss its merits and flaws, and consider how Wilber’s ideas can impact both the scientific and spiritual communities.
    Textbook: A Brief History of Everything by Ken Wilber.
    Instructor: Carl McColman
    February 10-March 10, 2010
    7:00-9:00 pm
    To register, click here

  • Introduction to World Mysticism through Emory University’s “Evening at Emory” Program.
    Madonna is studying the Kabbalah. The Shack is a runaway bestseller. Centuries after he died, everyone’s reading Rumi. Yoga, Buddhism and other eastern practices are more popular among Americans than ever. So what gives? At the heart of all these cultural trends is mysticism, a vague word that can be translated as “the spiritual principle at the heart of religion.” Many people believe mysticism is the golden thread that unites all the world’s religions. Others scoff at the idea. Come decide for yourself in this class as we explore major themes and writings from the world’s great mystical traditions. Using Andrew Harvey’s The Essential Mystics as our textbook, we’ll examine the world’s great wisdom traditions — Taoism, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism, Christianity, Islam, as well as pagan and philosophical forms of mysticism — acknowledging both the common ground and the distinctive qualities of each mystical path. Class is taught from an academic/nonsectarian perspective.
    Textbook: The Essential Mystics : Selections from the World’s Great Wisdom Traditions.
    Instructor: Carl McColman
    April 14-May 5, 2010
    7:00-9:00 pm
    To register, click here

Also… I’m currently in conversation with a church in Atlanta to host a class on The Protestant Mystics, probably on a series of Tuesday evenings after Easter (in April/May). So keep those dates free if you’re interested, and I’ll post more information on this blog when we have the details nailed down.

Looking ahead, I have two retreats at the Monastery of the Holy Spirit this summer, a writing retreat on June 4-6 and a Christian mysticism retreat July 23-25. For more information or to register, click here.

I’ll be in Portland, Oregon the last weekend in October. We’re working on those details now, but it will include at least 2-3 events open to the public. Stay tuned, details will be posted here as they come available.

More events will be happening once the book is published. Certainly more events in the Atlanta area, and I’d love to travel, but because of family commitments my travel time is necessarily limited. If you or your church/organization would like to host me for a speaking/teaching/retreat event, please contact me (my contact information is listed in a widget on the right-hand column of this blog’s home page).

Okay… that’s it for now. I’ll be posting here, just probably not every day between now and 2/10. Please keep me in your prayers.

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Jan

23

Quote for the Day

Contemplation / Quotations

Contemplation is life itself, fully awake, fully active, fully aware that it is alive. It is spiritual wonder. It is spontaneous awe at the sacredness of life, of being. It is gratitude for life, for awareness, and for being. … Contemplation is also the response to a call: a call from Him Who has no voice, and yet Who speaks in everything that is, and Who, most of all, speaks in the depths of our own being; for we ourselves are words of His. But we are words that are meant to respond to Him, to answer to Him, to echo Him, and even in some way to contain Him and signify Him. Contemplation is this echo. It is a deep resonance in the inmost center of our spirit in which our very life loses its separate voice and re-sounds with the majesty and the mercy of the Hidden and Living One…

— Thomas Merton, New Seeds of Contemplation

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Jan

22

Recollection and the Prayer of Quiet

Christian mysticism / Christianity / Contemplation / Spirituality

In her classic work Mysticism: A Study in the Nature and Development of Spiritual Consciousness, Evelyn Underhill devotes two chapters to the subject of “introversion,” in which she explores three essential mystical practices: recollection, the prayer of quiet, and contemplation. Recollection, she points out, is a technical mystical term, not to be confused with ordinary remembrance; rather she defines mystical recollection as “the deliberate consideration of and dwelling upon some one aspect of Reality — an aspect most usually chosen from amongst the religious beliefs of self” (p. 314). In other words, recollection is a technique for focusing and perhaps stilling the mind. By this way of thinking, the method of centering prayer is a form of recollection. So also would be meditating on a single attribute of God, such as love, or forgiveness, or joy. The point behind recollection is to bring our awareness into a place of rest and repose where we can prepare for the prayer of quiet.

Such quiet Underhill describes as a profound experience which emerges out of recollection. “Out of the deep, slow brooding and pondering on some mystery, some incomprehensible link between himself and the Real, or the deliberate practice of loving attention to God, the contemplative … glides, almost insensibly, on to a plane of perception … characterized by an immense increase in the receptivity of the self, and by an almost complete suspension of the reflective powers. The strange silence which is the outstanding quality of this state — almost the only note in regard to it which the surface-intelligence can secure — is not describable” (p. 317). If recollection corresponds to centering prayer’s use of a single word to silence the discursive mind, than the prayer of quiet represents those moments in the centering experience where the repeated word gently falls away, leaving the person in prayer resting in the deep silence of the Divine presence.

If Underhill’s language (from a century ago) leaves you a bit cold, then compare her descriptions to a much more recent (2006) discussion of these topics, from John Crowder’s Miracle Workers, Reformers and the New Mystics. For Crowder, recollection is that moment of prayer “in which the Holy Spirit ministers healing and cleansing to the soul. It is here where we release the hurts, guilt, and wounds of the past … We release our burdens tot he presence of God. We are also cleansed from the expectations, fears or longings for the future … we begin to see God in the present … This first stage is a place of purification. It is where we lay our cares at the cross” (p. 235). He goes on describe the prayer of quiet as “a place where we recognize our inability to calm our own thoughts with our own strength. We become utterly dependent on God to lead us in prayer … It is a place of pure listening and quietness. Divine love pours over us and our spiritual senses are awakened” (p. 237).

It’s interesting to compare these two perspectives. Crowder’s definitions seem at first blush quite different from Underhill’s, but I think this may be driven largely by the fact that she was a British Anglo-Catholic, he an American charismatic evangelical. They are basically, it seems to me, describing two different paths up the same mountain. No doubt because of my own bias, I rather prefer Underhill’s descriptions, but I do find Crowder’s perspective both refreshing and insightful, if only for their ability to make me look at these foundational elements of contemplative experience in new ways.

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Jan

21

Quote for the Day

Mysticism / Quotations

But did anyone ever tell you that Jesus’ very first message in the Gospels, which is usually translated as “convert,” “repent,” or “reform” (Matthew 4:17, Mark 1:15) is the Greek word metanoia, which quite literally means to “change your mind”? Jesus’ first word to us was “change!” — and mind change at that! What we have translated as “repent” is not a moralistic or even churchy word at all; it is a clear strategy for enlightenment for the world. Once you accept ongoing change as a central program for yourself, you tend to continue growing throughout all of your life.
Jesus knows that self-critical, yet not negative, people will always keep growing and engaging with the world around them, with themselves, and with God.

— Richard Rohr, The Naked Now: Learning to
See as the Mystics See

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