MINDFULNESS: LEARNING TO LISTEN
(Without Leaving the World)
Tuesdays 7:30 to 9 p.m.
March 7 – April 11
At the heart of most spiritual traditions is what we hear in the call of Jesus: to repent … wake up … pay attention … in order not to miss the divine life unfolding right before our eyes. “Repent,” Jesus says, “The kingdom of God is at hand.” If we pay attention we may catch a glimpse of this divine realm. If we do, it becomes our mission to make it known.
This year’s Lenten study will remind us how to stay alert—to listen—to the kingdom of God, which is very close—“at hand”. Simple meditation techniques, focused reading, and weekly discussion will help us develop our perception of the divine life happening within us, through us, and all around us.
Our reading material will be based on books on mindfulness. You can choose whichever speaks to you. Here are some we suggest:
AN ALTAR IN THE WORLD
by Barbara Brown Taylor
OPEN MIND, OPEN HEART
by Thomas Keating
RECLAIMING SPIRITUALITY
by Diarmuid O Murchu
A RELIGION OF ONES’S OWN
By Thomas Moore
THE NAKED NOW
By Richard Rohr
THE POWER OF NOW\
By Eckhart Tolle
Here are the themes we will be exploring:
- Learning to Listen ( ‘‘Repent’’ … turn around … pay attention)
- Listening to our Mind (inner talk … the voice inside our head)
- Listening to our Body (the breath … complaints and ecstasies)
- Listening to the Spirit (consolations & desolation … leadings and promptins)
- Listening to our Heart (longings and dreams … passions and bliss)
- Listening to our Soul (the movement of the moment … the song of the earth)
So join us as we learn to listen. We’re all ears