Spirituality
Rejecting traditional Spirituality? I think not...
30/06/07 00:46
Last night went to hear Ian Mobsby of
emerging church MOOT speaking at Blah Birmingham. Ian quoted
research suggesting that people are turning away from the
traditional spiritualities of the churches to alternative
spiritualities informed by New Age - I have to disagree - why?
because I don't see many churches actually teaching people how to
practice traditional christian spirituality. How many churches are
teaching people how to pray, to meditate, ways of contemplative
prayer, lectio and deep engagement with Scripture, really? What
people are turning away from then, is the shallower stuff that's
going on. I wonder what would happen if the discipleship practices
of the christian Tradition (with a capital 'T' rather than
'traditions') were being taught, practised and promoted? As Ian
said, it's the perceived traditional spirituality people are
leaving behind...
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brand sense and 'Here's to the people behind the numbers'
16/03/07 12:58
The other week I went to listen to Simon Harrop, Executive Director of BRAND sense agency. He was saying that in the 70's people would remember around 25% of the TV ads they saw, now it's only around 5% - so he's promoting use of the other non-visual senses in advertising, particularly 'smell' and 'ritual'. Apparently people used to enjoy sliding their fingernail down the foil between two pieces of the KitKat chocolate bar to break into it - and that was a ritual - lost when the wrappers became plastic. Have you heard/seen the new Yellow Pages ad? It's both ritualistic and deeply spiritual; 'here's to the people behind the numbers' (watch it here) - slowly, repetitively, the advert honours different people - it's almost a prayer. And apparently, suggests Harrop, we use vision and audio to screen stuff out, but smell, touch and taste to engage. So why not include a little ritual and multi-sensory in your prayer times? Light some incense, use some oil to prayerfully anoint yourself/a friend, light a candle, begin your prayer time with ritual eg. 'In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit'. Seems there's some sense in the ancient traditions after all...
Spirituality of a Prayer Rope Maker
06/01/07 12:22
' has a
beautiful meditation which fits:
Cords of Love
Thank you, Lord,
for the cutting and weaving
for that first umbilical knot
you were shaping
and forming
all that I was to become.
Thank you, Lord,
for the 'ups' and 'downs'
the 'unders' and 'overs'
you were weaving
beauty and purpose
into my life.
Psalm 139: 'When I was woven together
in the depths of the earth,
your eyes saw my unformed body.'
and as you hold the cord, hold the person before God:
We hold each other's lives
in our hands
What fragility and responsibility
Eathen vessels formed
from loving hands
So easily crushed
by clumsy words and actions
and only forgiveness can reassemble the parts
according to the Maker's instructions.
Subversive shopping
17/02/06 19:27
How can the simplicity of Jesus Prayer
Spirituality be reflected in our lifestyle? I was thinking about a
concept of 'subversive spending'; our consumer advertising promotes
the expectation that we'll buy top of the range products and spend
more than we 'need'. How about if when we shop, we buy the simpler,
'adequate' product, and always donate the difference between the
cost of that and the higher end product to those in need?
Andrew
going slow...
04/02/06 20:42
I'm grateful to Chandy for sending me
this snippet: from Mrs. Lettie Cowman’s book,
Springs in the Valley
(pp. 196-197),
comes this interesting tale from African colonial
history:
It was a century or more ago that in the deep jungles of Africa, a traveler was making a long trek. Natives of the area were hired to carry the loads. The first day they marched rapidly and went far. The traveler had high hopes of a speedy journey. But the second morning these jungle tribesmen refused to move. For some strange reason they just sat and rested. When asked about the reason for this strange behavior, the traveler was informed that they had gone too fast the first day, and that they were now waiting for their souls to catch up with their bodies.
There are times when our lives move so fast, that we need to slow down and let our souls catch up with us --not literally, but figuratively. God bless, Andrew
(pp. 196-197),
comes this interesting tale from African colonial
history: It was a century or more ago that in the deep jungles of Africa, a traveler was making a long trek. Natives of the area were hired to carry the loads. The first day they marched rapidly and went far. The traveler had high hopes of a speedy journey. But the second morning these jungle tribesmen refused to move. For some strange reason they just sat and rested. When asked about the reason for this strange behavior, the traveler was informed that they had gone too fast the first day, and that they were now waiting for their souls to catch up with their bodies.
There are times when our lives move so fast, that we need to slow down and let our souls catch up with us --not literally, but figuratively. God bless, Andrew
the memory of god
11/12/05 17:16
Rowan William recently said
that we are 'held in the memory of God; tell those who are
forgotten that God remembers them'. A prayer cord helps you
remember God and that God remembers you. His book on the
spirituality of the desert fathers and mothers (from which Jesus
Prayer spirituality came) is
Silence and Honey Cakes: The Wisdom of the Desert
a prayer: "Lord you never forget me, even though I often forget: I am your project."
a prayer: "Lord you never forget me, even though I often forget: I am your project."
the seamless garment of silence...
15/11/05 23:42
From
Celtic Daily Prayer
comes
this:
'There is a contemplative
in all of us,
almost strangled
but still alive,
who craves the quiet
enjoyment of the Now,
and longs to touch
the seamless
garment of silence
which
makes us whole.
comes
this:'There is a contemplative
in all of us,
almost strangled
but still alive,
who craves the quiet
enjoyment of the Now,
and longs to touch
the seamless
garment of silence
which
makes us whole.
(Alan P. Tory)