As [Jesus and his disciples] were leaving Jericho, a large crowd followed him. There were two blind men sitting by the roadside. When they heard that Jesus was passing by, they shouted, “Lord, have mercy on us, Son of David!” The crowd sternly ordered them to be quiet; but they...

Beth Adams gave this talk on 9 June 2015 at Christ Church Cathedral We’ve been talking for several months about masters of contemplation and their teachings, which has been fairly intellectual. Today I want to go back to the physical, to our bodies, and talk about the posture we try...

…there is a challenge from Christ to the goodness of humankind. It is not enough to be good. It is not enough to not do evil. My Christianity is something more positive; it is not a negative. There are many who say, “But I don’t kill, I don’t steal, I...

[A talk by Beth Adams given on Tuesday, May 12, 2015, to introduce Contemplative Prayer at Christ Church Cathedral] This spring, the cathedral community is grappling with questions about war and peace during a special series of presentations and discussions. War and violence are present throughout the Bible and our liturgy:...

Here’s a meditation offered by Sally Harrington Philippo during last weekend’s retreat, LIVING THE LIFE OF PRAYER. A teacher gave this homework: “Find an unnoticed flower somewhere outdoors and study it. Look carefully at its petals.  Its leaves. Its colours. Turn it over and observe the underside of it.  As...

[Remarks by Beth Adams shared during Contemplative Prayer at Christ Church Cathedral  April 28, 2015] Lately, Fr. Richard Rohr’s daily meditations have been concentrating on Saint Paul, and I feel like they’ve been addressed to me. I’m one of those Christians who’s often uncomfortable with Paul, mainly because of his writings...

[Beth Adams’ introduction to Contemplative Prayer on April 14, 2015]  During Lent we’ve been hearing advice and wisdom from important teachers of contemplation, and I plan to continue with that, but today I’d like to talk about learning from real life: the great teacher who is available to us all...

“What we discipline is any form of potential escape from reality. In other words, discipline allows us to be right here and connect with the richness of the moment.”  Pema Chödrön’s reflection on discipline was the subject of last week’s meditation talk. Chödrön is a well-known writer, the first fully...

[Beth Adams’ talk on March 10, 2015]  We recently discussed the Benedictine contemplative John Main, for whom the practice of meditation is, first of all, a way for us to become acquainted with ourselves. In his book Word into Silence, I was struck by this simple phrase: “In order to enter into...

[Beth Adams’ talk on February 24, 2015]   Some of you knew John Main OSB, who brought contemplative prayer to many people in Montreal. He was born in Ireland, and though he had wanted to become a priest, instead became a lawyer, and was posted to the Far East with the British...

“So now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? Only to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord our God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of...

Here is a poem by Mary Karr, suggested by Rhonda for contemplation this week. It’s the perfect antidote to those toomany sweets!