Reflections

Many have said that this Advent feels different. The soft hopefulness diminished, the growing light muted. Instead a cavern of tangled serpents seems to be at our feet. A roiling world with dragons all around...

Holdfasts. Such a lovely name; such an unglamorous appearance. By the time a holdfast shows up on the beach, it is dead: brittle and broken, a woody knot no longer holding fast to anything. Nothing to play with...

By Therese DesCamp – photo by George Meier Our hands imbibe like roots, So I place them on what is beautiful in this world. And I fold them in prayer, And they draw from the heavens light. – St. Francis of Assisi, as interpreted by David Ladinsky As the forest fires burned a few kilometres away last summer, as dams broke around the world, wars escalated and political rhetoric sharpened, I struggled to find a quiet heart. My practice — reading, scripture, meditation, prayer —

The Church has begun the Great Fast of Lent, our Forty Days of preparation for the Mysteries of Holy Week, for our entering with Jesus into the journey of death and resurrection. Our participation includes an outer fast – putting less food into our bodies, if our health allows – to help us listen for the Divine...

Bringing together silence and sound, chant offers a contemplative path that leads us through Advent’s winter shadows. Chants, ancient or contemporary, draw us across a threshold into deeper quiet and give us courage, so that like the shepherds who rose out of fear to peer up at shining angels, we dare to step from familiar dark into unknown light. Here, Susan J. Latimer, an Episcopal priest and musician, tells us how chant can give us courage, heal us, and help us become mo

“Silence is God’s first language” ~ St. John of the Cross Snowmass recedes. We in the Centering Prayer community are mourning this month’s closure of St. Benedict’s guesthouse, and the apparent dissolution of the monastery. The universe found a vital heart at Snowmass during her few decades among us. Like a sheltering mother, she gathered us in. She encouraged us to see with wonder, find our centre, and give ourselves back to the world. There, we were nurtured and challenged

The Sunday immediately prior to Advent is what used to be called “Christ the King” and is now “updated” to “The Reign of Christ”. The readings for that day are Colossians 1: 15-20 & Luke 23: 33-43. As we enter Advent I ask myself who or what is this Christ? The image of kingship today is, obviously, anachronistic. There is no one God-king wielding unilateral power over humanity. Instead we have this Jesus – a man hanging from a cross. Who then is this “image of the unseen God

Anne Henderson June 26, 1939 – June 27, 2022 Former President and founding member of The Contemplative Society Anne Henderson died peacefully on July, 2022, with her husband Doug and sons at her side. In a beautiful tribute to Anne, member and former TCS President Pat Manning spoke at Anne’s funeral held at St John the Divine Anglican Church in Victoria, BC. We share the tribute with you here, celebrating Anne’s time with us, honouring Anne’s generous and gentle spirit, groun

In anticipation of the upcoming Zoom Retreat with Douglas Christie, TCS Board Member Therese DesCamp shares wit us this reflection: Holding the Post: An invitation to know our place within the sacred space we live I recently went up Red Mountain Road to drop off some jam for friends. Their driveway being an impassable pile of snow, I parked below and followed a trail up the side of the mountain through a tract of mature forest. I felt those woods before I really saw them.

This Advent we share with you a verdant reflection by Paula Pryce, who writes from the Yasodhara Ashram on the shores of Kootenay Lake in the interior of British Columbia, Canada. Paula takes us on a journey to an apple orchard nestled deep in the mossy rainforest. She considers stars and caves, apple seeds and birthing, trees and song, and she invites us to listen deeply and to attend to the advent of spirit and fullness of being amidst the darkness of this time… Star at the

This post is shared by Brian Mitchell as a follow up to our recent release of “Practicing Living Presence: Discovering the Mind of Christ Within – Part One” a teaching by Cynthia Bourgeault. Brian is one of the intrepid team of volunteer Editors (together with Peggy Zimmerman, Diane Walker, Harrison Russin and others) who have worked diligently to transform the raw audio of this teaching into a format we can all listen to and learn from. We are grateful to Brian and the editi

In late June Cynthia started an important series of posts with a message to students, sharing her ideas and suggestions for “a worthy project for our Wisdom circle to take on.” Cynthia also presented a riveting keynote address at the American Teilhard Association (ATA) annual meeting. Find links for both below. THE ‘COMMON GOOD’ BLOG SERIES BY CYNTHIA BOURGEAULT Cynthia provides an orienting emphasis toward the evolving terrain of the ‘Common Good’ and the rebirth of moral l

Yukon Yurt This post is shared by Jennifer England as a follow-up to our Wisdom Solstice event offered on Zoom on June 21st. In describing her experience and the backstory, including what was occurring ‘behind-the-scenes’ as the event was about to begin, Jennifer provides a real-life example of applying our Wisdom practice to tap into a calm centering presence even while suddenly facing an unexpected set of circumstances. TCS is very grateful to Jennifer and the whole tea

Photo by S Migaj from Pexels After a short hiatus in her series of reflections, Cynthia Bourgeault continues with a new post drawing upon Jean Gebser’s Ever Present Origin and his perspectives on Integral consciousness. Go Beyond the Mind, LESSON 13 When I say that the ability to access and sustain the Integral structure of consciousness is developmental, I mean just that: it is fundamentally a question of physiology, rather than of moral virtue or mystical yearning. We

“I am so grateful for this labor of love by The Contemplative Society, which once again makes accessible Raimon Panikkar’s extraordinary teaching on the universal mysticism of Jesus Christ.” ~ Cynthia Bourgeault In addition to Cynthia’s encouraging words above, we also want to share Brian Mitchell’s wholehearted endorsement for our updated audio release of CHRISTOPHANY: Experiencing the Fullness of Christianity , a recorded teaching by Cynthia based on the 2004 book by Ra

The following is part 2 of a Holy Week reflection provided by Paula Pryce from Vancouver, Canada. Please make sure to reach the first part Absence: Forest of Longing on our blog . I throw open the gate to rushing wind and creaking branches. Not knowing what lies ahead, I step into the forest with my companions, fear, awe, and more hesitantly, joy. Like many, perhaps even like Mary Magdalene, I have found myself increasingly worn by heavy times. A veil of uneasiness and

The following is part 1 of a 2-part Holy Week reflection provided by Paula Pryce from Vancouver, Canada. Absence mills around the body like a guard dog pacing the fence line. Rigidly keeping off the night creatures, jealously defending its property. I am within a picketed sphere of isolation. Longing, despair, confusion at the memory of the banquet torn to pieces, guests fleeing, music stopped. Not long ago the home was filled with shining lamps and food for all – now

What’s new with our Principal Teacher Cynthia Bourgeault? Recently we’ve heard from a number of you wondering what Cynthia is up to while in-person events and retreats are widely curtailed. Well, unless you happen to spot her on the high seas, here are some opportunities to tune into Cynthia’s activities and catch some of her upcoming appearances: CONVERSATIONS & BLOGS New ICN Podcast: From a Cosmic Nudge to an Integral Christianity – A Conversation with Cynthia Bou

Photo by Andy Vu from Pex els In this potent and engaging conversation, Cynthia Bourgeault is hosted by Paul Smith (author of Integral Christianity ) and Luke Healy of the Integral Christian Network . Together they offer deep insights and personal experiences to illuminate the emerging scope and potential for Christianity. The dialogue is infused by their shared appreciation and revelations inspired by Jean Gebser’s seminal work Ever Present Origin . As the conversation unf

If you’re considering the multiple online course opportunities with Cynthia that are coming up, she provides this message to the Wisdom community and offers some additional input for consideration. It occurred to me that people may want a little guidance as to how to pick and choose among the sudden embarrassment of riches of Cynthia Bourgeault online course options currently opening up for registration. Here’s a bit more information to help you make your selection(s). Spiri