Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Contemplative

2018-05-28T16:55:44-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Secrets of the Sacred Heart

Last updated on: May 28, 2018 at 4:55 pm By Carl "Skye" McColman

The Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus occurs every year on the Friday after the Feast of Corpus Christi. In 2018, that means it falls on June 8. Before I became a Catholic, I thought images and statues of the Sacred Heart were, well, a little creepy. I remember my first visit to Ireland, staying at B&Bs which allowed me an intimate glimpse into the homes of ordinary Irish folk. At that time the overwelming majority of the... Read more

2018-07-08T17:56:58-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Discover the Stories of the Sufis — Wisdom for Today

Last updated on: July 8, 2018 at 5:56 pm By Guest Contributor

Today’s guest post is by Neil Douglas-Klotz, author of The Little Book of Sufi Stories. What’s the story with Sufis today? Sufis, usually called the mystics of Islam, are best known in the West through the popular love poetry of Jelaluddin Rumi, the 13thcentury Persian mystic. Yet an internet search of “Sufi news” over the past year reveals that Sufis are just as present today as they were eight centuries ago and are playing a major role in the culture wars... Read more

2018-12-17T19:59:48-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Learning to Love the “Habit” of Spirituality

Last updated on: December 17, 2018 at 7:59 pm By Carl "Skye" McColman

We human beings are creatures of habit. We brush our teeth in the same direction, we take the same route to work, we fold our clothes or make our beds in pretty much the same manner day after day. We like to sit in the same pews at church and eat the same kinds of candy bars. We shop in our favorite stores and sometimes we even have a particular method of shopping (look at the clearance rack first, then... Read more

2018-05-22T22:45:33-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Mysticism, Separation, and Unity

Last updated on: May 22, 2018 at 10:45 pm By Carl "Skye" McColman

A friend on Facebook a few weeks back asked me what is the relationship between mysticism and separatism. Put another way: does the mystical life inherently involve a quest for separation — from the world, the flesh, the body, basically from all that is “not-God”? In other words, does our quest for union with God necessarily imply withdrawing from anything and everything that threatens to hold us back from God? Certainly mystical traditions from around the world — not just... Read more

Mysticism

Renunciation

Separation

2018-05-18T13:10:54-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

We Need to Find the Silence Within — Even in the Midst of a “Joyful Noise”

Last updated on: May 18, 2018 at 1:10 pm By Carl "Skye" McColman

Check out this insightful, evocative quotation from Barbara A. Holme’s wonderful book Joy Unspeakable: Contemplative Practices in the Black Church: Those who study contemplation have assumed that the difference between European and Africana approaches to contemplation is the presence or lack of silence … We tend to presume that one must create silent spaces for contemplation. It is as if we have drawn the spiritual veil around contemplative activity, seeking to distance prayerful and reflective practices from the noise of the... Read more

Contemplation

African-American Christianity

2018-05-17T07:24:54-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Just What is Contemplation, Anyway? And Why Should I Care?

Last updated on: May 17, 2018 at 7:24 am By Carl "Skye" McColman

A Jesuit priest, a Trappist monk, and a Tibetan buddhist walked into a bar. (No, this is not a joke). A sign above the bar said, “Free drinks to everyone in your party, if you can all agree on a definition of the word “contemplation.” Two hours later, the Buddhist and the two Catholics were very thirsty — and still arguing. Contemplation is one of those words that, frankly, means different things to different people. Even religious people can’t figure... Read more

2018-05-07T21:39:59-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Why Christian Social and Political Activists Need Contemplation and Mystery — and Now More Than Ever

Last updated on: May 7, 2018 at 9:39 pm By Carl "Skye" McColman

Last week I attended a book signing here in Atlanta, in which Jon Sweeney promoted his new biography, Phyllis Tickle: A Life. I’ve known Jon for years — we share a love for Cistercian spirituality and he edited my book The Lion, the Mouse and the Dawn Treader. But I wasn’t there just for Jon — I’m also very much a Phyllis Tickle fan, and relished hearing stories about the woman I’ve called “the merry doyenne of the ’emerging church’ movement.” Phyllis... Read more

2018-05-03T00:07:42-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

What’s the difference between Ignatian Spirituality and Centering Prayer?

Last updated on: May 3, 2018 at 12:07 am By Carl "Skye" McColman

What is the difference between centering prayer and Ignatian spirituality? To answer this question, let’s consider the difference between meditation and contemplation — or, perhaps we could say, the difference between a beautiful painting and the expansive wall on which it is hung. A reader of this blog recently posted this on Facebook: As I work with people interested in Centering Pray I also find an interest in Jesuit Spirituality. Could you do a short compare and contrast, or at... Read more

2018-04-25T08:20:05-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

A Conversation with Richard Rohr, OFM

Last updated on: April 25, 2018 at 8:20 am By Carl "Skye" McColman

Richard Rohr — author of numerous books on the contemplative dimension of spirituality, including Everything Belongs and The Naked Now — is the guest on our latest episode of the Encountering Silence podcast. Cassidy, Kevin and I recorded a Skype conversation with Fr. Richard earlier this month, where he joined us from his hermitage in New Mexico, to reflect with us on the relationship between silence and contemplation, between contemplation and action, the importance of Thomas Merton in his own spiritual development, and the... Read more

2018-04-13T09:54:12-04:00

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Talking About Mysticism in Manhattan (April 22, 2018)

Last updated on: April 13, 2018 at 9:54 am By Carl "Skye" McColman

There are still a few openings in the class I’m teaching in Manhattan on April 22, 2018. If you live in or near New York, I hope I’ll see you there. The class is called Be Still and Know: Reclaiming the Lost Art of Christian Contemplation and Meditation. Click on the title to learn more or to register. It runs on Sunday, April 22, from 9:30 AM to 4 PM, at the New York Open Center on 30th Street. Of... Read more

Uncategorized

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Which is the only book in the Old Testament named after a woman besides Ruth?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Deborah Naomi Esther Miriam

Support this
Column

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category Activism Announcements Art Books Catholicism Celtic Christianity Christian mysticism Christianity Contemplation Current events Etc. Family humor interfaith dialogue Interfaith Wisdom Interspirituality Lay Cistercians Living the Faith Meditation movies Mysticism Mystics nature Poetry Reviews Scripture silence Spirituality Uncategorized Writing

Select a Month February 2025 January 2025 November 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 March 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 August 2023 June 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 October 2013 September 2013 July 2013 May 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 March 2012 December 2011 September 2011 October 2010 August 2010 March 2010 September 2009 July 2008 January 2008 December 2007 September 2007 February 2007 January 2007 December 2004

TRENDING AT PATHEOS Contemplative