(Munising, Michigan) Rev. Dr. George Cairns of Chesterton, Indiana discusses Centering Prayer and the environmental crisis facing the human race in this series of videos recorded on November 9, 2007 in Munising Michigan. Centering Prayer, Contemplative Prayer and Silent Prayer are basically the same thing with very subtle differences, Cairns explained. A licensed centering prayer instructor, Rev. Cairns learned his techniques from the world's foremost expert on centering prayer, Dr. Thomas Keating. A professor with the Chicago Theological Seminary, Rev. Cairns encourages everyone to experience the benefits of Centering Prayer, and for those who are afraid they won't do it right, he says it's impossible not to do this (Centering Prayer) right. There is no such thing as a bad period of Centering Prayer said Cairns adding one of the difficulties of achieving Centering Prayer is allowing oneself to be distracted by other thoughts. Centering Prayer is very gentle,very quiet, very simple and very difficult, Cairns said. The Scotland-based Iona community is a good example of a group of people "who are unified by a covenant, worship together and who engage in very effective political action to change structural evil." Rev. Cairns said "centering prayer" and "participative consciousness" are techniques of deep meditation he learned from Father Thomas Keating, a Trappist monk and teacher. (Trappist refers to a branch of the Cistercian order of monks known for an austere rule including a vow of silence.) "Silent meditation is a powerful tool to open ourselves to one another and to all creation which is what this participative consciousness is all about," said Cairns, TIP co-founder and board president. Cairns said the intense form of meditation helps eliminate the "internal dialogue" or "chatter that's going on all the time" in people's minds. "I found out how much of my life was consumed by internal dialogue," said Cairns, research professor of theology at the Chicago Theological Seminary. Centering prayer allows "us to open our hearts to a deeper relationship with God and an increased openness to the movement of the Holy Spirit in our lives," said Rev. Cairns, admitting it's an easier technique to teach than for people to learn and practice. "The technique to doing it - is simply to rest with God. It's not easy to do, it's easy to teach, but very difficult to do," Cairns said. In fighting the world's evil, Cairns said "we can't get their with just our hearts - we need our heads and something more." Related websites and information: Celtic Christianity Today http://www.celticchristianitytoday.org Celtic Christianity Today youtube & bliptv: http://celticchristianity.blip.tv http://www.youtube.com/celticchristianity Rev. George Cairns on Spirit Cafe blog, United Church of Christ http://i.ucc.org/FeedYourSpirit/SpiritCafe/CafeBlog/tabid/83/Default.aspx Iona Community, Scotland http://www.iona.org.uk http://www.isle-of-iona.com Iona Community New World Foundation: Iona associates, friends in U.S. http://www.iona-nwf.org/links.htm Turtle Island Project http://www.TurtleIslandProject.org Union Community Church, Valparaiso, IN http://unioncommunitychurchucc.blogspot.com Rev. Gregory Jones, Theology Department at Valparaiso University http://www.valpo.edu/theology/faculty/gregoryjones.php Turtle Island TV (blipTV & youtube) http://turtleislandtv.blip.tv http://www.youtube.com/MunisingWhiteHorse email: TurtleIslandProject@charter.net --- Centering prayer/contemplative prayer & Father Thomas Keating: Photos of Father Thomas Keating in Texas by Marion E. Melchiorre aka marimelch on flickr http://www.flickr.com/photos/marionmelchiorre/1540058606 Marion E. Melchiorre is an artist, living in Los Angeles, who gave Celtic Christianity Today permission to use her photos. http://artist.melchiorre.com Contemplative Prayer/Centering Prayer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Contemplative_prayer http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centering_prayer http://www.contemplativeprayer.net http://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/site/PageServer?pagename=about_practices_centering Photos of Father Thomas Keating in Texas by Marion Melchiorre on flickr: http://www.flickr.com/photos/marionmelchiorre/1540058606 Rev. Dr. George Cairns at Sept. 2007 Conference on Centering Prayer in Munising, MI: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQ3tLA_so_I http://www.gather.com/viewVideo.action?id=11821949021854789

• published: 06 Jul 2009
• views: 6815