"Herein
lies the secret, I believe, of the inner life of Jesus. Christ's communion
with Abba in the inner sanctuary of His soul transformed His vision
of reality, enabling Him to perceive God's love and care behind the
complexities of life. Practicing the presence helps us to discern
the providence of God at work especially in those dark hours when
the signature of Jesus is being traced in our flesh. (You may wish
to try it right now. Lower the book, center down, and offer yourself
to the indwelling God.)" From Signature of Jesus - Brennan Manning
In
Abba's Child, Brennan Manning says that Dr. Beatrice Bruteau is a"trustworthy
guide to contemplative consciousness."
Who is Beatrice Bruteau and what does she believe?
She is the founder of The School for Contemplation, and she believes
God is within every human being. She wrote the book, What We Can Learn
from the East
"We have realized ourselves as the Self that says only I AM, with
no predicate following, not "I am a this" or "I have that quality."
Only unlimited, absolute I AM" [A Song That Goes On Singing - Interview
with B.B.].
When Brennan Manning says she is trustworthy, does he mean we can
trust her when
she says we are all I AM?
Does
Brennan Manning believe that God is in every human being?
Read
these Quotes from
Signature of Jesus
"Contemplative prayer is nothing
other than coming into consciousness of what is already there."
"During a conference on contemplative prayer, the question was put
to Thomas Merton: 'How can we best help people to attain union with
God?' His answer was very clear: 'We must tell them that they are
already united with God.' Contemplative prayer is nothing other than
coming into consciousness of what is already there." (Signature of
Jesus - quote by William Shannon)
Abba's
Child by Brennan Manning; page 125 - "[I]f I find Christ, I will
find my true self and if I find my true self, I will find Christ."
Click
here to Read an Excerpt
of A Time of Departing as Ray Yungen discusses Brennan
Manning and contemplative spirituality.
Featured Resources
Contemplative Spirituality: A belief system that
uses ancient mystical practices to induce altered states of consciousness
(the silence) and is rooted in mysticism and the occult but often wrapped
in Christian terminology. The premise of contemplative spirituality
is pantheistic (God is all) and panentheistic (God is in all). Common
terms used for this movement are "spiritual formation," "the
silence," "the stillness," "ancient-wisdom,"
"spiritual disciplines," and many others.
Spiritual Formation: A movement that has provided a platform and a channel through which contemplative prayer is entering the church. Find spiritual formation being used, and in nearly every case you will find contemplative spirituality. In fact, contemplative spirituality is the heartbeat of the spiritual formation movement.
