Find your inner silence

Consider joining us for Centering Prayer.

Here are two explanations of what draws people to this practice:

• “God’s native language is silence, and I want to develop a deeper relationship with God. In Centering Prayer I challenge myself to understand and be comfortable in silence – not just with my mind, but with my being.”
• “Before practicing Centering Prayer I thought I knew what mysticism was, but it was only an intellectual understanding. Now I understand it with my heart. It also helped me to understand and appropriately draw from other mystical traditions like yoga and some Buddhist constructs to enhance my Christianity and Catholicism.”

Friday - Contemplative Prayer Group

Meet with other spiritual seekers to discuss a book about Centering Prayer, and then practice Centering Prayer for 20 minutes.

• Fridays, 10:00¬11:00am
• Contact jandersen@mary.org for Zoom log-in credentials. 

For more information, or to get the reading schedule, contact Janice.

Saturday  - Practice Prayer Group

Study and share in how this ancient form of Christian contemplative prayer speaks, silently, to the deepest parts of ourselves yearning for an intimate connection with God.

• Saturday, 8:30¬9:30am
• Contact jandersen@mary.org for Zoom log-in credentials. 

Father Thomas Keating once commented on an article that spoke of the blissfulness attained through Centering Prayer with... “Maybe in the beginning!” He knew that the purpose of this contemplative form of prayer wasn’t simply relaxation or spiritual consolation. Centering Prayer is a meaningful practice meant to deepen our relationship with God. A relationship nurtured in the deepest silence within our hearts. And nurturing this relationship inevitably includes wrestling with what we want (or programs for happiness) versus what God wants for us (us healed to bring love and oneness forward). Your primary Centering Prayer practice happens daily, in solitude, however, coming together each week with this group helps you explore the questions that arise through hearing of the experiences of others. Participating in a group also helps strengthen your consistency in daily practice. All levels of experience, including beginners, are encouraged and invited to join us. 

About the facilitator: Teri Rose, OblSB

Teri is a Benedictine Oblate of St Paul’s Monastery. She was introduced to Centering Prayer 25 years ago in college. However, she didn’t begin practicing at that time, choosing to explore Eastern meditations instead. She continued this exploration, and absence from her Catholic upbringing, until three years ago when she again picked up Father Keating’s “Open Mind, Open Heart” (a book she has carried with her these 25 years). This time a line stuck out that began to change everything: "If you keep up this practice every day for several months, you will know whether or not it is right for you. There is no substitute for the practice of doing it." Teri took this direction and, within those several months, finally knew her full circle search for a deeper relationship with God led her right back to her own Christian tradition.

Be still and know that I am God--Ps 46:10