The Desert Of The Heart Daily Readings With The Desert Fathers
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The Desert of the Heart: Daily Readings with the Desert Fathers by Sister Benedicta Ward SLG,The Desert Fathers Pdf
Fairacres Publications 179 The way of life of the fourth-century Desert Fathers, with its emphasis on solitude, silence and unceasing prayer, has inspired many modern spiritual writers. Why do the Desert Fathers have so much to say to us? To answer this question, Sister Benedicta presents some of the best and most illuminating stories and sayings from the desert. Readers will find spiritual wisdom, along with sharp humour and startling insight into human nature.
The way of life of the fourth-century Desert Fathers, with its emphasis on solitude, silence and unceasing prayer, has inspired many modern spiritual writers. Why do the Desert Fathers have so much to say to us? To answer this question, Sister Benedicta presents some of the best and most illuminating stories and sayings from the desert. Readers will find spiritual wisdom, along with sharp humour and startling insight into human nature.
In the Heart of the Desert by John Chryssavgis Pdf
Father John's inspiring introduction to the spirituality of the Desert Fathers and Mothers brings their words to life for the modern reader. These key figures of the early church chose lives of hardship and solitude, where they could point their hearts away from the outward world and toward an introspective path of God's calling in a deliberate and individual way. Contains a Foreword by Metropolitan Kallistos Ware, the second highest ranking Orthodox Bishop in England.
In the first few centuries of Christianity, thousands of believers left the cities for the desert, in order to seek a purer spirituality than they could find among the distractions of ordinary life. Their teachings began our rich heritage of Christian mysticism, and continue to inspire people today who desire to be transformed in the counter-cultural image of Christ. This collection of short sayings from the desert fathers and mothers provides a powerful word of wisdom for every day of the year. Together, they show us how the desert, or any place of inner solitude, is fertile ground for a relationship with God to grow and flourish.
Poet of the Word: Re-reading Scripture with Ephraem the Syrian by Aelred Partridge Pdf
Early Christians read the Bible somewhat differently from their modern counterparts. For example, St Ephraem’s layered approach to interpreting Sacred Scripture, especially the Old Testament, led him to delve below the literal words of the texts to uncover the rich vein of symbolic allusions that lay within them. Woven together, they formed a tapestry of spiritual wisdom. Ephraem transformed this tapestry into vibrant poetry in hymns, homilies and biblical commentaries that gesture towards the unfathomable mystery of God revealed in Christ. This brief essay examines the principles that guided Ephraem’s manner of biblical interpretation (his hermeneutics) and reveals why he is a Poet of the Word.
The Desert Fathers were the first Christian monks, living in solitude in the deserts of Egypt, Palestine, and Syria. In contrast to the formalised and official theology of the "founding fathers" of the church, the Desert Fathers were ordinary Christians who chose to renounce the world and live lives of celibacy, fasting, vigil, prayer and poverty in direct and simple response to the gospel. Their sayings were first recorded in the 4th century and consist of spiritual advice, anecdotes and parables. The Desert Fathers' teachings and lives have inspired poetry, opera and art, as well as providing spiritual nourishment and a template for monastic life.
`Give me a word, Father', visitors to early desert monks asked. The responses of these pioneer ascetics were remembered and in the fourth century written down in Coptic, Syriac, Greek, and later Latin. Their Sayings were collected, in this case in the alphabetical order of the monks and nuns who uttered them, and read by generations of Christians as life-giving words that would help readers along the path to salvation.
The wisdom of the desert fathers and mothers lies in their experiences of solitude, prayer, community life, work, and care for their neighbors. Their goal was transformation of their lives through openness to the presence and energy of God in Christ. They taught by example and by sharing narratives and sayings that reflect the deep human psychological and spiritual aspects of their journey toward authentic human life. The venue for their transformation was the whole person 'body, mind, and spirit. They emphasized self-knowledge, humility, purity of heart, and love of God and neighbor. Far from being naïve, their sayings and narratives reflect honest struggles, temptations, and failures. They also demonstrate the disciplines of prayer and meditation that kept them centered in God as their only source of strength. The daily reflections in Desert Banquet introduce readers to a variety of these early Christian mentors and offer reflections on the significance of their wisdom for life in the twenty-first century. David G. R.Keller, an Episcopal priest, is adjunct professor of ascetical theology at the General Theological Seminary in New York City. He is co-steward, with his wife, Emily Wilmer, of Oasis of Wisdom: An Institute for Contemplative Study, Practice, and Living based in Asheville, North Carolina (www.oasisofwisdom.net). He is the author of Oasis of Wisdom: The Worlds of the Desert Fathers and Mothers (Liturgical Press) and Come and See: The Transformation of Personal Prayer (Morehouse Publishing).
Fairacres Publications 124 Using the words of the Russian Orthodox spiritual teacher, St Theophan, that in prayer we should ‘stand with the mind in the heart’, Sandy Ryrie explains how to use short phrases to still the mind and enable us to rest with our attention set on God. In standing before God, we open ourselves to God’s work in us. The author then explores the particular situation of night prayer. In hours of darkness and sleeplessness, we are vulnerable to the anxieties and fears which daytime activity sometimes holds at bay, but at night the spirit may also become more aware of the reality of God and more ready to pray.
Anselm of Canterbury by Sister Benedicta Ward SLG Pdf
For those who study St Anselm, his prayers provide an intimate personal introduction to his thinking and his spirituality. For Anselm, who never considered himself a teacher of prayer, his prayers were simply personal devotions that he occasionally shared with others to encourage them to develop their own devotional style. Anselm would probably have been surprised to discover not only how widely his words were disseminated, but also the ways in which their translation and interpretation changed over the centuries. This brief study, by one of the leading scholars of early monastic life and thought, examines Anselm’s prayers as models and inspiration for mystics, saints and writers up to the present day.
The flourishing website EpiscopalCafe.org produced by the Diocese of Washington attracts several thousand visitors a day. Its popular column “Speaking to the Soul,” which contains a concise, well-developed spiritual reflection for every day of the year, draws from many different sources, including scripture, church history, saints’ biographies, books of prayers, liturgies, and ancient and contemporary theologians and spiritual writers. This daily reader grew out of that column. It follows the Episcopal Church’s liturgical seasons and includes observation of major feast days as well as saints’ days. The reading for a particular saint’s day might be taken from the saint’s writings, prayers, or biography, or might develop a theme such as martyrdom or growth in the spirit. Other readings focus on particular emphases of the seasons (the Incarnation during Advent and Christmas; spiritual disciplines during Lent); or speak more generally to the Christian life (prayer, discipleship, ministry, the sacraments, conflict and reconciliation, and so on). Readings are taken from every century of the church’s life, with particular attention to how the writings and experiences of earlier Christians can shed light on the difficulties, joys, and concerns of the church today. Excerpts are long enough to give a satisfying and complete context of the writer’s intended meaning.
Terms such as ‘climate grief’ and ‘ecological anxiety’ describe the sadness and desolation triggered in many people in response to our changing climate. What are we to do with this aching that is sometimes dull, sometimes sharp? Nowhere is immune from extreme weather events, from physical suffering and even death. How should we react to this? These are questions that are central to every religious account of the world and its peoples. This book looks at the insights that can be gained from the world’s faith traditions, particularly Christianity. By considering the extent of the ecological crises that humanity faces, this book discusses the new and searching questions that these crises raise for us and for our faith, and how those questions reflect our approach to our environment and our responsibility in and for the world.
The late seventh century in the Syrian Church saw the flourishing of several noted monastic writers, amongst them Shem`on, a monk of an abbey in south-west Iran. Few of his writings remain, but this homily has been preserved as a model of instruction on the solitary life. Preached at the consecration of the cell of a monk embarking on the hermit life, it clearly states the disciplines required to live this form of asceticism, as well as the difficulties and dangers that will be encountered. Through this life of stillness (hesychia), the whole person lives centred on life in the resurrected Christ and in the continuing work of the Holy Spirit in the Church and in the world.
This collection of short prayers seeks to support and sustain individuals in private devotion throughout the changing seasons of the liturgical year, also celebrating the lives of the saints, and addressing a number of day-to-day concerns. Their purpose is to support those seeking a deeper, more devotional prayer life. They are intended to induce the wonder and mystery of intimacy with God encountered in all things, visible and invisible.
The Monastic Hours of Prayer by Sister Benedicta Ward SLG Pdf
Fairacres Publications 178 The heart of monastic prayer is based in the psalms. In these essays, Sister Benedicta Ward examines the origin and development of the use of the Psalter in the daily worship of monks. She demonstrates that the traditional description of this activity as Opus Dei should be understood as God’s work in us, not our ‘work’ of prayer. The Psalter offers both monk and non-monk prayers of great intimacy and, in the context of the Offices, a way to reorder our understanding of time. She presents ‘an example of the possibility of a unity of life and prayer here and now in time’. This study makes a noteworthy contribution to the literature on monastic history and spirituality and the Christian life of prayer.
