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June 2016

June 08, 2016

What is Contemplation?

What is contemplation? Unfortunately, answering this question is tricky — for contemplation is like some other...

June 01, 2016

Charismatic Mysticism

"Do Gifts of the Spirit, especially those like tongues, have any connection with mysticism? Historically, theologically,...

May 2016

May 18, 2016

Coming in the Fall of 2016

Friends, I'm so excited to announce my forthcoming book, due in October 2016 from Hampton Roads...

March 2016

March 02, 2016

Is There a “Contemplative” Personality Type?

I once heard Richard Rohr tell a charming story of giving a retreat at the...

February 2016

February 17, 2016

Seven Blessings of Silent Prayer

Silent prayer — contemplative prayer, what the Catholic Catechism calls "wordless prayer in which mind...

February 03, 2016

“The Process of Being in Relationship with God”

Okay: to summarize... Spirituality: the process of being in relationship with God. Belief and Wonder:...

January 2016

January 20, 2016

Is Contemplation Dangerous?

Is contemplation dangerous? Some people think so. This past weekend I read a book that...

January 08, 2016

Is Mysticism Genetic?

A reader of this blog named Chris writes: I have been studying the German medieval...

September 2015

September 16, 2015

Thirteen Characteristics of Healthy Spirituality

Following the passing of Anglican contemplative theologian Kenneth Leech, I've been revisiting several of his...

September 02, 2015

Three Mystics You May Have Missed

Walk into a Catholic bookstore — or a general bookstore large enough to have a...

August 2015

August 26, 2015

Seven Ways the Mystics Inspire Us Today

One of my favorite quotations comes from Karl Rahner: "The Christian of the future will...

July 2015

July 29, 2015

How Mysticism is Unique — and Universal

How, exactly, does Christian mysticism relate to all the other "mysticisms" of the world (Kabbalah,...

July 15, 2015

Mindfulness and Contemplation

Recently a reader left the following comment on this blog: I have been reading and...

June 2015

June 17, 2015

Letter and Spirit: Thoughts and Silence?

In his sermon On Conversion, Saint Bernard of Clairvaux quotes Acts 26:24, only he paraphrases it...

May 2015

May 13, 2015

Contemplation and the Ocean of Presence

Here's a little video I filmed last month at the Gulf Coast. It's only about 45...

May 06, 2015

Contemplative Leadership with Saints Benedict and Ignatius of Loyola

In recent months I have become very interested in the topic of leadership. Which might...

March 2015

March 25, 2015

Psalm 131: Humility, Silence and Hope

Sometimes I get asked "Where is contemplation in the Bible?" One obvious answer to this...

March 06, 2015

Why We Need Contemplation

I am troubled by the idea that it's harder to be a child today than it...

February 2015

February 19, 2015

The Dazzling Darkness

"There is in God (some say) A deep, but dazzling darkness" — Henry Vaughan “Truly,...

December 2014

December 04, 2014

Silence Today

Today is a wonderful day to be silent. If you have never taken time to...

July 2014

July 30, 2014

The Hidden Tradition of Christian Mysticism

Karl Rahner, one of the most renowned Christian theologians of the twentieth century, once famously...

July 30, 2014

Lectio Divina Every Day

"Love for Jesus is fed by constant meditation on the Gospels." — Michael Casey, OCSO...

May 2013

May 29, 2013

Three Video Clips: Speaking of Mysticism in Portland, OR

Here are three brief excerpts from a talk I gave in Portland, OR, in October...

July 2012

July 23, 2012

Nonduality in the Bible … and us

A reader writes: I love reading your articles but am new to the terminology. What is...

July 20, 2012

The Nondual Writers of Footnote #45

A reader of this blog writes to me: Hi Carl. I was reading Richard Rohr's The...

June 2012

June 12, 2012

The Mystic Way of Evangelism

...there are other, deeper indicators of a loss of vitality in the American church. The...

September 2011

September 01, 2011

“Accept all things… silently and with a tranquil mind…”

Then you should readily and trustfully commit yourself and all that concerns you to the...

July 2008

July 11, 2008

The Feast of St. Benedict: Ad Deificum Lumen

Today is the feast of St. Benedict. This morning at mass, Father Tom Francis (who...