What is Silence Teaches?

January 19, 2017 2 Comments

I want to THANK YOU for being a subscriber to Silence Teaches!  It means a lot to me!

As a thank you I want you to have my Free E-book on Centering Prayer!

Background

Let me share some background on how I got to this point.

Dabble In Silence

When Amos Smith’s book, “Healing the Divide” was published in March of 2013, I came across it while I browsed on Amazon. I tried a sample. I could not get into it. I was just not ready for it. I put it aside but knew that perhaps in the future I would give it another try.

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In the meantime, I began to dabble in silent prayer. I had heard that silence can transform you.  I wanted to experience this transformation too.

I would force myself to sit in silence. It was difficult! I began to test how long I could sit in silence. I started with one minute and increased it to three and even four minutes.  (I had discovered silence while I read two books by Carl McColman:  “Answering the Contemplative Call” and “The Big Book of Christian Mysticism“.)

Amos Smith:  Healing the Divide

In the beginning of 2014, I came back to Amos’s book. Maybe I was ready for it now. I started to read it. I was ready! As I read it, I began to jot down questions. What is this Jesus Paradox that Amos refers to and why should I care? Amos has been a long term practitioner of centering prayer. I wanted to learn more about centering prayer. Am I really a divine being and a human being?

I emailed Amos these questions via his web site:  Recover Christianity’s Mystic Roots (RCMR5). To my surprise, Amos quickly responded. We began an email dialogue. In time, Amos asked me to help him with RCMR social media.

In 2014, Amos asked me if I wanted to co-author a book with him. He suggested we write a book about the Jesus Paradox. I agreed. Over the last two years I have worked on our upcoming book titled, “Centering Prayer:  Discovering and Mirroring the Dynamic Unity of the Divine Christ and the Human Jesus.”

Daily Commitment to Centering Prayer

On June 1, 2014 I decided to stop the experiments and make a daily commitment to my centering prayer practice. The recommended guidelines are twice per day, twenty minutes each time. Previously, I dabbled with centering prayer. I knew this was not enough. I knew God called me and wanted me to experience more and more of Her Spirit. I decided to consent to the presence and action of God within. I knew that the only way to do this was to follow the recommended guidelines.

Laurence Freeman states, “Sitting down to meditate for the first time is a decisive moment in your spiritual path. It is similar to turning on the ignition at the beginning of a long car trip.” This was my decisive moment!

In August of 2015 I began a weekly Monday meditation to complement Amos’ Thursday weekly meditation via email (RCMR Bi-weekly Newsletter). In these meditations I share my spin on the RCMR mission: Centering Prayer, New Monasticism, Christian Mysticism, Jesus Paradox, Nonviolence. (I also publish these meditations from my site Silence Teaches.)

Silence Teaches

I launched Silence Teaches in July of 2016.  Silence Teaches has three main purposes:

Centering Prayer

Centering at the Norbertine Community of Santa Maria De La Vid Abbey

Centering Prayer has changed my life.  It is the first thing I do as I begin my day.  I practice it two-three times per day.  I love to share it with others who want to learn more.  I teach centering prayer in my local community at churches and colleges/universities.

Invite me to your church or community. Here is more information on what to expect from my visit.  I would love to meet with your community.

I am currently taking on Centering Prayer One on One clients. Learn more here.

Please visit my Start Here and Resource pages to learn more about centering prayer.

Weekly Meditation

I publish a Monday morning weekly meditation that is sent to both subscribers of Silence Teaches and Recover Christianity’s Mystic Roots.  I also will publish other short and longer pieces from time to time as the Spirit moves me.

Here are a few popular meditations:

 

Book Reviews

I receive review books from various publishers.  In some instances, I interview the author.  Here are my interviews with popular authors:

I hope you find these interviews helpful.  I always look forward to the opportunity to speak directly with the author.

You can find my favorite books on my Resource Page.  Many of my favorite books have review links if you wish to learn why I liked these books.

Here are a few popular book reviews:

Thank You

If you have enjoyed Silence Teaches, my weekly meditations and my book reviews, please share with others.  That will mean a lot to me!

I love to receive emails.  Feel free to contact me to let me know what you like about Silence Teaches or what you wish to see me cover in the future.

THANK YOU!

One on One Coaching with Rich

Does this sound like you?

“I am bored with my life?”

“I am not doing the things that I want to do in all areas of my life:”

-career, personal, family, community.

I feel unfulfilled, like I am just going through the motions everyday.

I have dreams and goals, but I am afraid to show up and take action on them.

I don’t want years to pass and be disappointed when I look back on my life.

Integrating Centering Prayer practice with your everyday life addresses all of these thoughts.

Do you want to obtain the freedom to become your true self,  the person I’m created to be?

How do I create a long lasting and sustainable centering prayer practice?

I am currently taking on clients for Centering Prayer One on One Coaching sessions.

I will work with you to setup a program designed to meet your specific needs.

2 thoughts on “What is Silence Teaches?”

  2. Elizabeth – thanks for your message. I agree! Prayer, mindfulness and meditation do changes lives. They have changed mine and I am still much work in progress:)

    I am enjoying your recent posts! Thanks for sharing.

    Reply

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