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Julie, thanks for mentioning my hope/dream for doing more contemplative courses. It’s hard to be practice-centered online, and I think that contemplative/mystical writings need to be read from a place of sustained prayer/meditation/contemplation, so this will be a bit tricky. But I think we can create the container and then each person has the option of engaging at whatever works for their life circumstances. Trusting the process really matters, it seems.
1. There’s been a deep longing in my heart to dive more deeply into the teachers of mysticism. In my online wanderings, I found you – read your book “The Big Book of Christian Mysticism” which I loved. I began following your Facebook page and attended a course you gave. It was through your social media connection and comments on this particular book that I was led to purchase it and begin reading. When you made the decision to offer a course, I knew I wanted in. I was not familiar with the “Meditations on the Tarot” prior to your introducing it.
2. Centering Prayer, lectio, and group contemplative prayer are not only familiar, but necessary for my spiritual well-being.
3. My hope would be for ‘aha’ moments where what is revealed sinks deep and makes a difference in my understanding of who I am called to be and how I might pass on learned wisdom.
4. I can’t help but wonder, Carl, how do you do all that you are doing? I am grateful to be the beneficiary of clearly what is a lot of work! Thank you.
1. What inspired you to take this course? Were you familiar with Meditations on the Tarot prior to this course?
Reading Carl’s books The Eternal Heart and Unteachable Lessons and listening to some Encountering Silence podcasts led me to semi-join Carl’s Oratory Retreat Tolkien and Lewis online discussion. I say semi-join because I live in New Zealand. International online time slots are not always convenient for me. Fortunately, the NZ time for the MOTT zoom calls is Friday at 1pm, so that is possible when work permits.
I am not familiar with MOTT and would not easily have investigated this book because of the deep nay-saying of my religious background towards ‘divination’. Carl’s approach to this book and my trust in his background and ministry have given me confidence to explore this particular archetypal insight into Mystery, guilt-free.
2. Do you have experience with Centering Prayer, lectio divina, or other forms of contemplative spiritual practice? How have exercises like this been helpful or meaningful for you?
I have a ‘charismatic protestant’ background and have only in recent years been led to contemplative meditative practices. Now I identify, as Carl does, as a ‘Christian who seeks to live as a follower of Jesus in the light of the Christian contemplative and mystical tradition’. I find Celtic Christianity fascinating and inspiring, perhaps because my roots are in the UK. No great rhema so far from my efforts to ‘be still and know, and my mind doesn’t co-operate very well with requests to put thoughts on the back-burner, but I am glad to be ‘on the road’ to a good relationship with silence, stillness and solitude. I dearly want to hear our Beloved’s Still Small Voice more clearly.
3. Is there a particular goal or hope that you bring with you as you participate in this course? What dream do you have for participating in a course like this?
No particular goal. Time, funds, energy and God-willing (life sure is a mystery on an everyday basis!), I just hope I have been Spirit-led here and am able to relate to and understand the material, and stay connected for the duration of the course, even if mainly from the sidelines. I’m grateful to be connected to seekers on a similar heart-path of interfaith and universal Love. Thank you for sharing your wisdom, Unknown Friends, and bless you Carl for your Work ?
1 & 2. I’m Maureen O’Donnell from New Bedford, MA, USA. People call me Maureen. My pronouns are she/her.
3. I was inspired to take this course when I received an image of the book from a dear friend (who is also in the course!) — she mentioned that she thought that Carl might be teaching classes based on it. I’d had the book for many years but never gotten too far with it — as intriguing as I found it — which I did. I’ve been a long-time student of Tarot and Astrology as well as a kind of ‘fallen away’ Catholic who has not been thrilled with some stances adhered to by the secular church — but I very much take to heart and love the Church’s mystical teachings. I became incredibly excited at the possibility of participating in a structured study of a work that seems to open up worlds of connectivity! My hope is that each of the amazing major Trumps will come alive for me in new ways as I focus on them more consistently and with more focus. My dream is always and ever to be more grounded in the mystery of love that is God!
4. Fun Fact: I love books — to a fault! I worked at a rare book library for nearly 20 years. I’m now in retirement and settling down to actually reading much of what I’ve stockpiled over the years (probably more than I can devote myself to in this life-time), including “Meditations on the Tarot”!I’m Mary O’Keeffe from Johnson City TN, USA
I found Carl’s introduction to the course to be so uplifting that I felt I had to participate. I want to experience more of that kind of ‘uplifting’ in my daily life.
I don’t have any experience with Centering Prayer, although I’ve meditated for many years and I think those practices are probably very similar.
The hope or expectation that I bring to this study?? I recently retired and hope that through this study I will be led to open my heart/mind/spirit/body to where/how God wants me to serve in the future.
1. I was looking for a way to nurture my spirituality and saw Carl posting about this on Facebook. I was intrigued, but it took me a while before I decided that I wanted to make the commitment to join. I thought I had left tarot behind in a previous phase of my life when I had left Christianity, but now, even though I have returned to the church and even become an ordained minister, I feel led to revisit tarot again, but this time within a Christian framework. I’m interested to see what I discover.
2. I have experience with Centering Prayer, lectio divina, and other forms of contemplative spiritual practice. Right now my daily practice consists of praying portions of the Divine Office and journaling.
3. My hope is that I will develop a deeper experience of the Divine in the process of taking this course.
4. I don’t have any questions yet. It’s too early to know what I don’t know! I’m sure that some will come up along the way, and when they do, I’ll post them.
ad 1: I read through the book back in 2015 and remember how it opened up many new trains of thought. I remember also that a lot of the references mentioned were unfamiliar to me and it felt like I am only scratching the surface. I knew then no people to ask for guidance and to share understanding with. This course seems to offer this opportunity now.
ad 2: CP and LD have been my main practices for quite some time. For retreats, I have joined local Zen Buddhist sangha.
ad 3: I would like to understand some of the resources and references the author points to better and would like to recognize the universal patterns as they show up in particular forms in different traditions.
ad 4: This may be for the parking lot: Hermeticism and 4th Way teaching both point to Egyptian roots. I recall reading that they do not view each other in a friendly way?!Mary asked, ” I can’t help but wonder, Carl, how do you do all that you are doing? I am grateful to be the beneficiary of clearly what is a lot of work! Thank you.”
LOL! Well, this is a full-time gig, so I do have plenty of time at my disposal. And a mentor of mine many years ago told me that the secret to being a writer is being disciplined. I’m still learning how to apply that wisdom (!), but I will say that I am very structured in terms of how I manage my time each day, how much time I invest in new projects I take on, and so forth.
Plus praying every day helps! 🙂
1. What inspired you to take this course? Were you familiar with Meditations on the Tarot prior to this course?
I heard Cynthia Bourgeault mention this book somewhere, and I was immediately intrigued – what could Tarot possibly have to do with Christianity? I’m fascinated by all the synthesizing and reworking and borrowing and integrating going on among all sorts of different streams – and all of them are making sense! I’m in this class because I’m excited to have Carl as an expert facilitator and to be part of an eclectic, curious, and committed group.
One of the best parts of MOTT is the surprise inclusion of Kabbalah. I come from a Jewish background (although I have been a Christian for 40 years) and have never explored Kabbalah, thinking that it was also “questionable.” Because of MOTT, I’ve gone down the rabbit hole of investigating Jewish mysticism and the Zohar. Real synergy with some of the Cynthia Bourgeault and Sufi wisdom I’ve learned to incorporate. It’s all good and loads of fun to explore. I’m always drawn to stay close to my Christian faith, though – just expanding and integrating everything that’s good, true, and beautiful.
2. I have familiarity with Centering Prayer and Lectio Divina, but not a long history of consistent practice. I’ve done several long intensives with Centering Prayer and have been trying to practice daily for around three years. Currently, I’m part of a weekly group doing Lectio on the Gospel of Thomas. The group wisdom that arises each week is amazing and nigh unto miraculous. I’m a natural extrovert with a deeply introverted side, so I absolutely love doing contemplative practices with a group.
3. My goal is let the teachings of this book deepen my relationship with God and empower me to be of service to others.
1. I have studied tarot and took the leap to offering readings in person and online for payment a few months ago. I experience tarot reading as a sacred activity. My spiritual roots are in Catholicism. I felt such a sense of homecoming when Carl posted about ‘Meditations on the Tarot’ and ordered it immediately.
2. I am familiar with centring prayer and lectio divina. Two years ago I was introduced to, and engaged in a program of visio divina – it was the practice that paved the way for me to tarot.
3. I’m hoping to be informed, challenged and confused… and hopefully a little enlightened!
4. I’m originally from Belfast in the north of Ireland, and I am interested in how we heal from trauma and learn to love one another, no matter how different we may be
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