October e-bulletin
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Workshop. Do you seek the still,quiet voice of God.
Do you seek the still,quiet voice of God.
This workshop will help us to understand the Presence of God within each of us
and our intimate relationship with that Presence.
A simple meditation practice known as Centering Prayer will be introduced as a method
to help us “rest in God”
We will experience two periods of Centering Prayer practice during the day,
and also explore the benefits of Centering Prayer in ordinary life.
All are welcome to attend – those new to Centering Prayer and those re-viewing
the method.
The program will be presented in:
The Cherith Pastoral Center, Church of St Columbanus,
Loughlinstown
by Finbarr O’Leary and Conor Crowley;
Commissioned Presenters of Centering Prayer
Saturday September 30th
10am-2.30pm
OR
Saturday October 7th
10am – 2.30pm
(Please bring your own lunch – Tea/Coffee will be available)
Cost €20 per person
To book a place, please contact Teresa in the Parish Office
(Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday 8.30am-2pm
Tel. 012824085
Email: parishofloughlinstown@gmail.com
Contemplative Outreach Dublin
2023 July E-bulletin
“One advantage that Centering Prayer offers is that it establishes the letting go of self, the total sacrifice of ourselves, as the orientation and direction that grows along with our relationship with God. But, sacrifice in this world is not like it is in Heaven. It can be very difficult, very painful, even unbearable at times. All kinds of difficulties can arise, both socially and emotionally, and spiritually. Faith believes that whatever happens in the present moment is God’s will, and the only thing God can will is what is for our greatest good. By letting go of our doubts and turning them over to God, the presence of God begins to grow even in the midst of activity and adversity.”
Thomas Keating
“The Present Moment and All That Is”
That We May Be One: Christian Non-Duality
Q: Can I practice Centering Prayer as my main prayer (morning and afternoon) and during the day practice the Jesus prayer? Am I using two practices with different meanings and therefore leading my spiritual path in two directions? I also do Welcoming Prayer during the day. Should I choose between the Welcoming Prayer and the Jesus prayer?
A: Read Leslee’s response here.
You can read the complete bulletin at https://mailchi.mp/coutreach/2023-july-e-bulletin?e=9aa0837e74
June e-bulletin
Nicholas Roerich, Behest of the Sky, 1915
“Suppose you’re in mythic membership consciousness and totally absorbed in your particular belief system. Remember belief systems are the effort of people who haven’t had the experience to explain the founder’s experience of the Ultimate Reality. Most religions begin by some gigantic experience of someone or some group of people and then after a generation the others—the disciples or the students—try to put it in writing in order to preserve it. Actually, they’re at high risk of ruining it because they’ll put down their perspective of the experience which is likely to be not quite the same as the person who had it first. But that doesn’t mean that religion doesn’t continue to evolve, but it has limitations. So to treat it as the last word on every subject is to misunderstand its purpose …
Thomas Keating
Gifts for Living video excerpt
Q: I’m a practitioner of “A Course in Miracles” and other non-religious pathways. Can I or anyone that is not a traditional Christian practice Centering Prayer? Is Centering Prayer for anyone who has a sincere desire to find God regardless of their tradition or non-tradition?
A: Read Lindsay’s response here. 
You can read the complete bulletin at https://mailchi.mp/coutreach/2023-june-e-bulletin?e=9aa0837e74
May e-bulletin
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Upcoming retreats 2023
Centering Prayer Retreats – Contemplative Outreach Dublin 2023
Mercy International Centre, Baggot Street, Dubin
Sunday – Friday, August 20 – 25, 2023
SILENT CENTERING PRAYER RETREAT
This five-day retreat will provide a contemplative space to centre yourself in prayer and explore a call to deeper listening. This silent method of meditation will lead participants on a journey of connectedness to Catherine. The retreat will include time in Catherine’s house at Baggot Street, and access to spiritual direction.
Residential: €575 (Accommodation & all meals provided) Non-residential : €290 (Lunch provided)
Presented by Fionnuala Quinn O.P. and Suzanne Ryder RSM
Commissioned presenters of Contemplative Outreach Ltd.
Please book directly with Mercy International Centre, 64 Baggot Lane, Dublin 4.
Email: programmes@mercyinternational.ie Phone: + 353 (1) 661 8061
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Dromantine Conference Centre, 96 Glen Road, Newry BT 34 IRH, U.K.
6:00 p.m Friday October 13th – 2:00 p.m. Sunday, Oct 15th, 2023 .
Introductory Retreat – Centering Prayer
Presentations during this introduction will address Prayer as a Relationship; The Method of Centering Prayer; Use of the Sacred Word and the Deepening of the Relationship with God. This introduction to Centering follows a method taught by the late Fr. Thomas Keating, a Trappist monk.
Presented by Denis Gleeson cfc and Fionnuala Quinn O.P
Commissioned presenters of Contemplative Outreach Ltd.
Cost: €250 /£220
Please book directly with Dromantine. www.dromantineconference.com Phone: +44 2830821964
Email: admin@dromantineconference.com
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Kylemore Abbey, Connemara
Friday – Sunday, November 17 – 19, 2023
A silent Centering Prayer, presenting the teachings of Thomas Keating OCSO.
The retreat will include times of prayer with the Benedictine Community
and Lectio Divina.
Presented by Fionnuala Quinn O.P. and Lesley O’Connor
Commissioned presenters of Contemplative Outreach Ltd.
Cost: €200 for 2 nights, 3 days includes accommodation, meals and sessions.
Please book directly with Kylemore Abbey. Email: kylemore@nd.edu Phone +353 9541815
https://kylemore.nd.edu/programs/retreats/centering-prayer-retreat/
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April e-bulletin
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2023 February e-bulletin
Hilma af Klint, What a Human Being Is, 1910
“Bonding with others takes place as the love of the Spirit is poured forth in our hearts. We feel that we belong to our community, to the human family, to the cosmos. We feel that our prayer is not just a privatized journey but is having a significant effect in the world. We can pour into the world the love that the Spirit gives us in prayer.”
Thomas Keating
Intimacy with God
Q: I’ve been practicing Zen meditation with a Christian group for 18 years. What is your view with respect to how Zen contemplation relates to Centering Prayer? The principles seem to be very similar. I ask because I’m trying to figure out the best next step for me to continue deepening in my contemplative prayer life.
Join in Global Community
United in Prayer Day
March 3-4, 2023
In honor of Thomas Keating’s birthday (March 7) and dedicated to healing the suffering world.
Join in Centering Prayer in community hosted by local groups around the world. You may enter and leave as many times as you wish. Some people make it an at-home retreat day.
More information may be found here on the calendar, including the schedule.
The Zoom link to the event will be posted on the calendar
early in March.
If you are interested in facilitating prayer for an open time slot, please reply to this email.
You can read the complete e-bulletin at https://mailchi.mp/coutreach/2023-feb-e-bulletin?e=9aa0837e74
December e-Bulletin
The Helix Nebula, NASA and Tommaso Stella
“God is manifesting in each moment as the human condition in each of us. … ‘We are icons of God.’ God experiences Godself in us and awakens God’s dispositions in us, especially humility, forgiveness and compassion. …
“Christ lives in us means that Christ prays, acts, thinks, loves, suffers, and dies in us; and at the deepest level is our true Self. … Our precious days on earth -– the spiritual journey – are not primarily about us, or even about our transformation in Christ. They are about God taking over our lives in every detail. … Living daily life and the evolution of consciousness are … about God …. The goal is not just union, or even unity with God, but God incarnating in our humanity with all its circumstances.”
Thomas Keating
Reflections on the Unknowable
Q: I heard you share this quote: “The greatest experience of God is no experience of God” (Thomas Keating). This saying has me very confused. My life has been filled with both giving and receiving love, including mercy and forgiveness, which to me is the experience of God in the my life. I’ve also been witness to the healing love of God in my life and many others. All of creation is the manifestation of God’s love, constantly pouring out, renewing, expanding and birthing more love. Please explain how this contradicts perhaps my false sense of God experience.
A: Read Fr. Carl’s response here.
You can read the complete bulletin at https://mailchi.mp/coutreach/2022-dec-e-bulletin?e=9aa0837e74
October e-bulletin
“Be still, and you will know, not by the knowledge of the mind, but by the knowledge of the heart, who God is and who you are.”
Thomas Keating
Consenting to God as God Is
Q: Sometimes during Centering Prayer, an emotional pain comes up that causes me to cry from a deep level. Is this Divine Therapy or is it the “emotionality” teachers tell us to avoid?
A: Read Mary’s response.
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Q: I’m at times confusing Centering Prayer with mindfulness meditation. At times when I’m doing Centering Prayer, I find that I’m focusing on my breath and I know I’m not supposed to focus on anything. I’m wanting to build more of a relationship with God and feel God’s presence in my life, but also I’m wanting to reduce the anxiety in my life. So, do I do two different sits each day?
A. Read Mary’s response.
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Have questions? Submit your questions about your Centering Prayer practice or other contemplative practices, the spiritual journey and the contemplative life to any of our contributors by emailing pamela@coutreach.org.
You can read the complete e-Bulletin at https://mailchi.mp/coutreach/2022-oct-e-bulletin?e=9aa0837e74