Oct 29

What is Contemplative Spirituality?

The previous excerpt looked at definitions of “contemplation,” including Brother Lawrence’s practice of “a loving gaze that finds God everywhere” and the notion that, contrary to common belief, contemplation may be very noisy at times. This next excerpt will continue to give some context and grounding to what contemplation is. Afterward, I will reflect briefly and offer a few more guiding questions for your own reflection.

Contemplative Spirituality: A Shalem Senior Staff Monograph

Written by Carole Crumley, Bill Dietrich, Ann Kline, and Gerald May

March 2004

“In this sense, contemplation is an all-embracing quality of presence, including not only our own inner experience but also directly perceiving and responding to the situation and needs of the world around us. Rather than trying to balance contemplation and action, it is more accurate to see contemplation in action, undergirding and embracing everything. In this way, all our thoughts and actions can be joined together in prayerful openness and loving responsiveness.

It is contemplation – or at last a contemplative attitude – that grounds our presence in the real world. For example, in the three paths mentioned above (knowing, acting, and feeling), the direct seeing-and-responding of contemplation keeps each centered in direct responsiveness to real situations. Without this grounding in things-as-they-are, they way of knowing can lose itself in intellectual abstraction, the way of acting can succumb to blind missionary zeal or burnout, and the way of feeling can give way to self-absorbed sentimentality.

Psychologically, contemplation is traditional seen as immediate, grounded in the here-and-now. Plans for the future and memories of the past can happen in contemplation, but they don’t take one’s attention away from one’s desire for God or the needs of the situation at hand. Plans and memories, like thoughts, feelings and sense perceptions, are simply parts of what is happening in the moment.

In contemplation, awareness is open, not focused on one thing to the exclusion of others. Most of us have been taught to concentrate (focus attention) on one thing at a time. The contemplative experience however, shows that we function more lovingly – and can be more in touch with our desire for God’s guidance – when we’re more widely open to what is going on. Thus many contemplatively oriented practices involve an “unlearning” of one’s habits of focusing attention. In their place, one hopes to nurture a simple willingness to be open to God’s movements, leadings, and invitations – a contemplative attitude.”

I love the phrase contemplation in action for how it describes what it is like to carry a Brother Lawrence’s “loving gaze that finds God everywhere” into the realness of the world around me. It is a difference quality of being. It helps me see the potential for grace everywhere and in everyone. It helps me to see limitations and brokenness as a spaces for Love to become real and present. It helps me be more forgiving and generous in my relationships with others and myself.

In writing this, I don’t want to give you the impression that my life is easy as pie in the sky. I live with the same stresses and conflicts as everyone else. A contemplative attitude, though, helps me to stay open to possibilities I would normally be closed off to. It helps me to be aware of the ways in which God’s Spirit of Love is present and churning around me – the Lowes’ cashier who took an extra moment to help me find a grocery store, the McDonald’s employee who told me she liked my dog as I have been nervous about his transition, our congregation who listens deeply and acts compassionately as they serve others in an attitude of good-natured fun.

What about you?

When have you experienced this contemplative of openness to what is?

How has this helped you notice and respond to what is happening around you?

If you connect more strongly to one of the three paths mentioned (knowing, acting, and feeling), how does the corrective offered by a contemplative attitude resonate with you? Have you experienced getting lost in abstraction, burnout/blind missionary zeal, and self-absorbed sentimentality? How would an openness to the needs of the world and people around you help temper these extremes?

Peace,

Pastor Karsten

Oct 22

What is Contemplative Spirituality?

So far, we have looked deeply into descriptions of the word spirituality and models of the spiritual life. Part four of this series seeks to describe what contemplation is. After the excerpt, I will reflect briefly and offer a few more guiding questions for your own reflection.

Contemplative Spirituality: A Shalem Senior Staff Monograph

Written by Carole Crumley, Bill Dietrich, Ann Kline, and Gerald May

March 2004

“Although the spiritual life may take many forms, it is always and foremost about love. Perhaps the most profound and pure experience of this love occurs in what the traditions refer to as contemplation. In popular usage, to contemplate something is to think about it, considering it from a variety of angles. This is not at all the understanding of the classical authors of spirituality. Classically, contemplation is a particular kind of experience, usually occurring in the context of prayer. It is a sheer experience of loving presence, and it comes as pure gift, given when and as God chooses.

The Latin roots of the word, cum (“with”) and templum (“temple”) connote the sacredness of the experience. In its original meaning, contemplation is always a gift, and cannot be achieved by any method or practice. It is thus held in contrast to meditation, which includes all the practices and disciplines we may intentionally undertake in the course of our spiritual lives. Put simply, we can do meditation, but we cannot do contemplation because it only happens as a gift.

A simple definition of contemplation is “loving presence to what is.” In a Christian context, because we “live and move and have our being” in God (Acts 17:28), being present to things as they are involves encountering the Christ who “fills the whole creation” (Eph. 1:23). In other words, Christian contemplation means finding God in all things and all things in God. Brother Lawrence, the 17th century Carmelite friar, called it “the loving gaze that finds God everywhere.”

Because people us “contemplation” to describe especially profound qualities of prayer, we often associate it with silence and stillness – perhaps even withdrawal from the world. Classically, however, it means immediate open presence in the world, directly perceiving and lovingly responding to things as they really are. Thus contemplation is not necessarily quiet and still. It may just as well be very active and noisy.”

I find Brother Lawrence’s definition of contemplation as “a loving gaze that finds God everywhere” both inspiring and practical. Brother Lawrence was a cook at the monastery, and, even though he did not like the work, he was able to find God in the pots and pans.

While contemplative prayer may seem otherworldly and mystical it is a practical way to approach life. Just take a moment and reflect on how practicing a loving gaze that finds God everywhere would change the way you live and respond to situations and people.

Brother Lawrence wrote about this in a book called Practice of the Presence. It is a short book and worth taking time read.

What do you think of contemplation being quiet and noisy?

Have you ever experienced the gift of a sheer experience of loving presence?

Where do you find God? Where haven’t you looked yet?

Peace,

Pastor Karsten

Oct 16

What is Contemplative Spirituality?

Part three looks at models or paths of spiritual formation. After a description of each, I will reflect briefly and offer a few more guiding questions for your own reflection.

Contemplative Spirituality: A Shalem Senior Staff Monograph

Written by Carole Crumley, Bill Dietrich, Ann Kline, and Gerald May

March 2004

“People express their spirituality, their fundamental loves, in a variety of ways. For example, an ancient understanding in both western and eastern thought says that spirituality expresses itself in the three main ways of knowing, acting and feeling. Christian philosophy associates these ways with attributes of God. God is ultimate Truth, Goodness, and Beauty, and these qualities of the Divine draw people along the Way of the True, the Way of the Good, and the Way of the Beautiful. Each of the ways find some expression in everyone, but at any given time an individual is likely to be more attracted to one than to the others.

Each of these ways can be an authentic express of love. The Way of the True, for example, seeks to deepen love through understanding: “…and you will know the truth, and the truth will make you free” (John 8:32). For people drawn toward this quality, loving God and neighbor involves intimate knowing and clear understanding. They are interested in theology, philosophy, and psychology. They enjoy thought-provoking sermons and are interested in discerning the accurate meanings of scripture. While this path often relies heavily on intellectual understanding, it also includes openness to intuitive insight and inspired realization.

The Way of the Good expresses love through action, doing the righteous thing, seeking to be of service and to promote justice: “just as you did it to the least of these…you did it to me” (Matt 25:40). People attracted to this quality express their love of God and neighbor by helping the poor, visiting the sick, peacemaking and social action. They have a strong concern for morality, though they may differ widely in the values they hold. In church they are drawn to mission groups and other volunteer services. In scripture, they tend to look for moral guidelines and calls to action.

The Way of the Beautiful experiences love in the form of feelings and devotion: “As a deer longs for running streams, so my soul longs for you, O God” (Ps 42:1). People drawn to this way of especially responsive to the sensory and emotional dimensions of the spiritual life. For them, love of God and neighbor is associated with passion, empathy and intimacy. They are concerned with direct, sensed experience of relationship with God and others and are drawn to praise, thanksgiving, and adoration. They especially appreciate the aesthetic and inspirational aspects of worship and the moving, heartfelt passages of scripture.

It is assumed that as a person grows in the spiritual life, these paths come together in an integrated whole. Even then, though, a person is likely to be more drawn to one way than to the others. Furter, the expressions of a person’s love are likely to change with deepening life experience. One way of understanding the process of growth in love was proposed by the twelfth-century monk Bernard of Clairvaux.

According to Bernard, many people being with the “Love of Self for One’s Own Sake.” Here we try to overcome problems and gain satisfaction in life through our own efforts. Benard maintains that sooner or later we find this doesn’t work. We are unable to control things enough to get what we want and avoid what we don’t want.

This leads most people into the second phase, which Bernard calls the “Love of God for One’s Own Sake.” Recognizing that we cannot manage life on our own, we turn toward the Divine for help. For many people, this marks the beginning of a conscious, intentional spiritual life. Bearnard maintains that one way or another, our prayers for help are answered. It may not happen in the way we expect, but we do recognize God’s grace active in our lives. Then, Bernard says, at some point our focus shifts from the gifts we are receiving to the Giver of the gifts.

Our love becomes more for God’s self than for what God can do for us. This is the third phase, “The Love of God for God’s Sake.” Finally in Bernard’s thinking this love births a new and profound realization. Deeply impressed with God’s goodness and deeply feeling the flow of love, people may begin to recognize how essentially good and loveable they themselves are. This is the beginning of Bernard’s fourth phase: “Love of One’s Self for God’s Sake.” One begins to see one’s own being with fresh eyes, revealing a new beauty and worthiness.

Not everyone experiences the spiritual life as Bernard described it, nor can everyone locate themselves clearly among the three classical paths. If there is a “one right way” for a given individual, it is a matter of God’s unique guidance in that person’s soul. It cannot be prescribed by referring to a model of spiritual growth. Sill, such models can lend a certain clarity to the process of the spiritual life and, more important, affirm that a variety of experiences and attitudes can be authentic.

Further, although most spiritual models seem to indicate a stepwise progression, people’s actual experience is far less linear. “Beginners” frequently have experiences of later stages, and “advanced” people often experiences the early stages. “No one,” say Teresa of Avila, “is so advanced in prayer that they do not often have to return to the beginning.”

While models can be constricting, they are helpful in giving form to something hard to explain like spiritual formation. I appreciate both models presented here for the movement and transformation they describe. My heart resonates most strongly with the truth and beauty paths. They feel like mother languages to me and offer the clearest more accessible connection to the Divine. This is probably why I love worship and books so much. The greater Body of Christ has taught me about the path of righteous action, and I have come to see how each of the three paths nourish the others.

Benard’s model is a little less clear for me. I am inspired by the movement from being self-centered to God-centered and am moved by the idea of loving oneself for God’s sake. Seeing myself, others, and creation as God sees them is something I have glimpsed and would like to grow in. It reminds me of how spending time outdoors and serving unsheltered people have nurtured this type of seeing within me.   

What about you? Does one or more of the classical spiritual paths (truth, goodness, or beauty) resonate with you? How has this informed your spiritual journey?

Which do you recognize in our congregation? How do they inform our congregational life?

Does the movement Bernard described from being self-centered to God-centered resonate with your experience? How? What situations and/or experiences does it make you think of?

Peace,

Pastor Karsten

Oct 08

What is Contemplative Spirituality?

In part two of this series on Contemplative Spirituality, we’ll read another excerpt seeking to define “spirituality” from the introductory essay by staff of the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Formation. Then, I will reflect briefly and offer a few more guiding questions for your own reflection.

Contemplative Spirituality: A Shalem Senior Staff Monograph

Written by Carole Crumley, Bill Dietrich, Ann Kline, and Gerald May

March 2004

“The spiritual life is like a deep ocean current, often unseen, but flowing through all our experience, moving us to seek fulfillment and connectedness, impelling us towards truth, goodness and beauty. As William Wordsworth said, it is something “deeply interfused” that “rolls through all things (Lines: Written a few Miles above Tintern Abbey, 1798).”

Spirituality is the living heart of all the great world religions, and each faith tradition in its own way proclaims that the essence of spirituality is love. The Christian expression is in the two great commandments: to love God with one’s whole self and to love one’s neighbor as oneself. Thus spirituality is the heart of our desire for fulfillment of those commandments. It is our participation in the love that created us “so that we might seek God” (Acts 17:27).

In a sense, then, spirituality can be considered synonymous with love – not necessarily the feeling of love, nor the good works that spring from love, but the energy of love itself, before it is given any attributes of commentary. As we grope towards finding fulfillment, the fundamental motivating force of spirituality expresses itself in many ways, some simple and creative, and some distorted and destructive.”

Love as the essence of the all the great world religions and spiritual traditions is something I find inspiring. As a Christ-follower, I think it is helpful to realize we are not alone in our efforts but are partners in a great work of love being carried out by many people in many different ways. It is the animating energy common to us all. We respond to it differently, sing different songs, use different languages, create different theologies and worldviews, but the root remains the same, love as an energy moving us toward truth, goodness, and beauty.

This theology calls to me to look at others and our culture more deeply. Instead of the left vs. right dynamic most of us are locked into, I feel led to wonder where love is active in people’s lives and how this may be causing them to act the way they do. Though my Christian spirituality includes special concern for people who are the most vulnerable in our society, asking who or what people love and are trying to protect changes the conversation by inviting a shared vulnerability instead of simply building more walls and shouting louder. While not an easy answer, this shift toward vulnerability and deep listening opens possibilities that did not exist prior.

What about you?

Where have you seen love active in your life or the lives of others? How did it cause you or them to act?

Have you seen or experienced love in different religions or faith traditions?

What similarities and/or differences did you notice?

‘Till next time,

Pastor Karsten

Sunday, November 29th 2026 we will
be only having 1 service that day.

The service is being moved to 10:00AM

This will be our “Hanging of the Greens” service
for the start of the Christmas Season.

Please make a note of that change.
This change is ONLY for the 11/29/2026 date.