In my recent book, Christian Mystics: 108 Seers, Saints and Sages, I made a comment that inspired a reader to reach out to me. It involves the question of evangelization, or proclaiming the Gospel. In reading this person’s email, I realized that it points to a larger question: how do contemplatives share the Gospel of Christ with others? Is there a “contemplative” style of evangelization? I believe there is. But first, here’s the letter from my reader. Hi Carl, I’m enjoying... Read more
A recent article on the UK-based website Christian Today (not to be confused with Christianity Today) poses the question “Can Science Prove Christian Meditation Works?” (click on the link to read the article). The author notes that spirituality is a “hot topic” these days, and so speculates how Christian forms of meditation stack up against meditation practices from other religious traditions and/or secular forms of meditation. “Buddhist meditation has long had a big advantage over Christian contemplation, because the latter hasn’t been scientifically researched,”... Read more
The other day, I posted this tweet: The Desert Father Abbot Pastor said, "Any trial whatever that comes to you can be conquered by silence." — Carl McColman (@CarlMcColman) July 25, 2017 And a friend of mine posted this reply: https://twitter.com/alileighlilly/status/889944174648111104 To which I made this immediate response: We need more than one word for silence. — Carl McColman (@CarlMcColman) July 25, 2017 But I think this deserves some further reflection, so here goes. In the 1980s, at the height... Read more
The Irish word for contemplation — or contemplative prayer — is rinnfheitheamh. Yes, that’s a mouthful! I only have enough Irish to be dangerous, and the pronunciation of Irish depends on which of several dialects you’re speaking, but to the best of my knowledge the pronunciation is something like RINN-eh-hev. So why such a big word, for such a simple concept? To answer that question, let’s take rinnfheitheamh apart. Rinn means a point or a tip, as in the sharp... Read more
Hello friends and readers of A Contemplative Faith. Just a quick note here to let you know that over the next five weeks this blog will be updated less frequently than normal. I’ll be traveling some, leading a few retreats here and there, as well as taking time to finish the book I’m currently working on (on Celtic spirituality) and begin gearing up for the next project (which I will say more about, when I return to regular posting). So between now... Read more
The heart of Celtic spirituality is hospitality. Indeed, from even before the coming of Christianity, the Celts recognized hospitality as a core value of their civilization. The reigns of mythic kings were judged on their hospitality (or lack thereof). Once, when Bres, a warrior of the Fomorian people — the “bad guys” of Celtic myth — became king of the Tuatha Dé Danann, he quickly became renowned for his parsimony. Bards complained that visitors to his house could count on... Read more
This is the second of a two-part series on Saint Brigid. Click here to read part one. As the abbess of Kildare, Brigid soon became renowned for her holiness and spiritual leadership. The stories told about her are both charming and illuminating. Perhaps my favorite story about Brigid involves the season of Lent, the 40-day period before Easter when Christians fast in preparation for their high holy days. The story goes that Brigid, and two other nuns from Kildare were... Read more
Would you like to learn more about the beautiful spirituality of Christian monks and nuns? Read more
Patrick may be the best known of the Celtic saints, but for many people, the heart of the Celtic tradition belongs to Brigid. Born in the middle of the fifth century, Brigid is according to legend the daughter of a pagan chief and his Christian slave. The story goes that Brigid’s mother worked in the dairy of her master’s household, and that she gave birth at dawn on the morning of February 1, precisely at the moment she was stepping... Read more
Patrick is shrouded in myth and legend — so much so that it’s virtually impossible to separate history from fable. Read more
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