Centering Prayer
Does reading the daily news spike your blood pressure? Looking for a few moments of peace and respite from the hectic demands of everyday life?
St. Thomas Episcopal Church on the corner of Wood and Chestnut streets in Camden offers twenty minutes of silent contemplation Sundays at 4:00 P.M. year round. We gather in the Lady Chapel ,an intimate space adjoining the main sanctuary. There the light sparks the jeweled panels of stained glass saints and warms the intricate carvings over the alter. Centering prayer was popularized in this century by Basel Pennington, Father Thomas Keating, and Cynthia Bourgeault. Its origins, however, date back to the early Christian desert Fathers and Mothers ,who sought a deeper relationship with the Holy Spirit by abandoning distractions and worldly temptations.
We are all captive emotionally and psychologically by our early conditioning. These influences can traced to our culture, our family dynamics, even our teachers and friends. We carry wounds and defenses born from past fears, traumas, abuses, and slights. Father Keating calls these “energy centers”
They become lodged in our subconscious ,affecting our abilities to love ourselves and others. In order to heal , he prescribes two twenty minute sessions of centering prayer daily.
The process is deceptively simple on the surface. Take a couple of deep breaths, back straight, and pick a word that will become your “sacred” word, a signifier that will gently remind you to return to resting in the Presence and the present moment where all power and reality lie.
Picture a river which represents your alert consciousness, and intrusive thoughts ,pleasant as they may be , as flashy boats that appear. If you find yourself climbing on the boat and getting carried away silently say your sacred word to return to the ”flow” of the river.
Over time you will see more clearly the chaotic nature of your thought patterns and be able to return to the “Peace that surpasses all understanding” more easily.
Come be refreshed, there are no commitments, sign-ups, or fees.
Also check out other Trips & Adventurous Activities in Camden.
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