“We need a contemplative mind in order to do compassionate action…The first gaze is seldom compassionate. It’s too busy weighing and feeling itself: ‘How will this affect me?’ or ‘What reaction does my self-image demand now?’ or ‘How can I regain control of this situation?’
Let’s admit that we all start there.
Only after God has taught us how to live ‘undefended’.
American Franciscan friar, Richard Rohr, is a globally recognized ecumenical teacher bearing witness to the universal awakening within Christian mysticism. He teaches that religious conversion involves radical transformation – an experiential knowing of God; that our real selves are who we are in God and who God is in us.
He holds that true spiritual knowledge is not cognition, but recognition.
Listen to one of his challenging and inspiring talks at: www.newpilgrimpath.ie.