Amazing Quotes by Contemplatives
Shalem Prayer Institute
"This
mystical stream [contemplative prayer and other monastic traditions]
is the Western bridge to Far Eastern spirituality."
—Tilden Edwards
"a little phrase that Love inspires," letting a word, phrase or image repeat itself quietly deep inside us as we go through our daily activities."—Gerald May
- The Outcome of Practicing Contemplative Prayer
"With practice, you can develop the habit of praying silent 'breath prayers'"
Rick Warren, from his book (p. 299)"[U]se 'breath prayers' throughout the day, as many Christians have done for centuries. You choose a brief sentence or a simple phrase that can be repeated to Jesus in one breath."—Rick Warren,
Purpose-Driven Life, p. 89.
See more quotes by Warren
"Does Buddha have anything to offer non-Buddhists in the workplace? My answer is a wholehearted, 'Yes.'—Ken Blanchard, co-author of the One Minute Manager, from the foreword and front cover of
What Would Buddha Do in the Workplace?
"We have promoted an unbiblical message that becoming born-again is the answer to everything. It's not. It changes your eternity, but it doesn't change your sexual behavior, for instance. The gospel does not always have the answer for modern-day dilemmas."
"I built myself a prayer room—a tiny sanctuary in a basement closet filled with books on spiritual disciplines, contemplative prayer, and Christian mysticism. In that space I lit candles, burned incense, hung rosaries, and listened to tapes of Benedictine monks. I meditated for hours on words, images, and sounds. I reached the point of being able to achieve alpha brain patterns..."—Mike Perschon, Youth Specialties Magazine,
December 2004"Choose a sacred word or phrase. Consistently use the same word throughout the prayer. Begin silently to repeat your sacred word or phrase"
Mark Yaconelli, Youth Specialties
National Pastor's Convention
"Spiritual ecstasy. The third phase of contemplative prayer ... a supernatural trance state ..."
Charisma magazine, Oct. 2004"Contemplative prayer is nothing other than coming into consciousness of what is already there."
Brennan Manning, Signature of Jesus"Brennan (Manning) is my friend, walking ahead of me on the path toward home. As I watch him from behind, I am drawn to more closely follow on the path..."
Larry Crabb, endorsement of Abba's Child"I began practicing meditation, specifically breath prayer, once again. I integrated the use of Tai Chi and yoga"
John Michael Talbot,
Interview with Christianity Today 10/22/2001"Its [visualization] effect is to dissolve our internal barriers to natural harmony and self realization"
Shakti Gawain, Creative Visualization"[Y]ou and I may have strong opinions on double predestination, supralapsarianism, and biblical inerrancy, but these should not be considered evangelical essentials."
Richard Foster
"We
need to become aware of the Cosmic Christ, which means recognizing that
every being has within it the light of Christ."
Matthew Fox
What works for me is a combination of disciplines: I do yoga, tai chi which is a Chinese martial art and three kinds of meditation—vipasana, transcendental and mantra (sound) meditation.
Jack Canfield,
Chicken Soup for the Soul
This quote sums it up—
"The contemplative life is often miserable. One must act more, think less, and not watch oneself live." Chamfort[1700s]
"When we go to the center of our being and pass through that center into the very center of God we get in immediate touch with this divine creating energy ... that the divine energy may have the freedom to forward the evolution of consciousness in us and through us, as a part of the whole, in the whole of the creation." —M. Basil Pennington
"Everyone is born a mystic and a lover who experiences the unity of things and all are called to keep this mystic or lover of life alive." -- Matthew Fox
"The
first time I introduced this, the kids came in, and I had a candle
going and a little incense burning and some Gregorian
chant music on the CD player"
Tony Jones, from interview with editor Jeff Bailey, Cutting Edge magazine, pp. 15-22.
"Some of the values of the emerging church are an emphasis on emotions, global outlook, a rise in the use of arts, and a rise in mysticism and spirituality."—Josh Reich
"We're
rediscovering Christianity as an Eastern religion, as a way of
life."-- Rob Bell, Teaching Pastor Mars Hill Bible Church
from The Emergent Mystique, CT
More on the Emerging Church
"Alpha is the springboard for all psychic and magical workings. It is the heart of witchcraft". Laurie Cabot, Power Of The Witch
"When I
started on the path of witch, my teachers stressed to me the importance
of meditation. Not only is it a skill
that witches should learn to help with spells and rituals, but meditation
all by itself is quite magical."
Christopher Penczak
More on Meditation
"Today I personally believe that while Jesus came to open the door to God's house, all human beings can walk through that door, whether they know about Jesus or not. Today I see it as my call to help every person claim his or her own way to God."
"The quiet repetition of a single word can help us to descend with the mind into the heart." Nouwen
More on Nouwen
"Isn't it
a pity that people are going into LSD to have spiritual experiences,
when we have a tradition in the Church [contemplative prayer]
which no one knows anything about?"1
Thomas Merton
"My acquaintance
with eastern methods of meditation has convinced me that …
there are ways of calming the mind in the spiritual disciplines
of both the east and the west [and] many serious seekers of
truth study the eastern religions,…"
Thomas Keating
"Pick
out a word or two. Tell your children to sit quietly and repeat
the word in their heads—not thinking about the word, just
repeating it."
Pope John Paul
More on Catholicism and Contemplative Spirituality
