Centering Prayer
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All are welcome!
The purpose of our group is to consent to the presence and action of God within each of us through the practice of Centering Prayer and to nurture an open, supportive, and inclusive environment. All are welcome.
We usually meet in our parish building on Tuesday evenings from 7 p.m. to 8:15 p.m. but have been gathering on Zoom since the pandemic began.
Please contact Eileen McCaffrey Schuman at eileen@eileenmccaffrey.com for the link if you wish to join us.
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We keep our sharing in the group absolutely confidential.
We try to:
- Begin at the agreed-upon time (7 pm Tuesday)
- Accept one another as we are
- Listen attentively and open-mindedly without interruption
- Refrain from judgment
- Allow for silence within discussions
- Offer caring and support as God heals
- Enable anyone to share – or to remain silent -- within the confines of our meeting time (finish ~8:15 pm)
"We trust the soul, its reality and power, its self-sufficiency, its capacity to speak truth, its ability to help us to listen and respond to what we hear."
--Parker Palmer, A Hidden Wholeness
The four guidelines for centering prayer- Choose a sacred word as the symbol of your intention to consent to God’s presence and action within
- Sitting comfortably and with eyes closed, settle briefly and silently introduce the sacred word as the symbol of your consent to God’s presence and action within
- When engaged with your thoughts, return ever-so-gently to the sacred word
- At the end of the prayer period, remain in silence with eyes closed for a couple of minutes
A typical evening in our group begins with 20-25 minutes of centering prayer, followed by lectio divina (a contemplative way of listening to the Scriptures) and/or a discussion of a book or video supporting us in our practices and our spiritual journeys.
The Contemplative Outreach Ltd website provides more information about centering prayer: https://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/centering-prayer-method/
Any questions? Ready to join us?
Please contact Eileen McCaffrey Schuman at eileen@eileenmccaffrey.com.
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