Sunday Meditation: A Mini Retreat on Prayer and Contemplation

 Fr. David Torkington is a cancelled priest, driven out for exposing sex abuse in his religious order decades ago. He tells us we must return to the early Christian prayer practices which encompassed four principles.

Into the Silence

I scheduled this post on Monday before I left on my annual five-day silent Ignatian retreat with  Fr. James Buckley of the FSSP. One of the convenient features of blogger is to be able to arrange posts to publish later. And that's what I normally do before I go on retreat. Unfortunately, I didn't have time to schedule any posts except for Part 2 of the Church Militant story, so I'm just leaving this notice. 

I'm on retreat. I won't be publishing any posts or moderating comments. 

So if Susan doesn't post anything, we'll be on silence until I return on Saturday.

This is a totally silent retreat: no screen time, no phones, nothing but an opportunity to encounter the Lord. Just thinking about it fills me with peace. There are always plenty of challenges and this year has been no different. I will be placing all things before the Lord: the good, the bad, and the ugly. 

And listening....... or at least trying to listen. Sometime the interior chatter is worse than the world's noise.

I'll be praying for all our members and visitors to the blog. Many of you are a great consolation to me and I thank God for you.

Please pray for me as well. May God bless us all and pour out His saving grace on our poor world.

Sunday Meditation: Are You a Fair Weather Friend of Christ?

I'm leaving on my annual silent Ignatian retreat tomorrow for five days. [NB: While I'm on retreat I will not be moderating comments. I've scheduled several posts, but will not be reading any responses until I return next Saturday.] It's always a Providential time. I'll be glad to "go away to a quiet place" to rest with the Lord. 

This morning I read this from The Imitation of Christ which reminded me of St. Ignatius' discussion of consolation and desolation. All of us experience both.

Going on Retreat -- No Comment Moderation until I Return.

I leave today for my annual 5-day silent Ignatian retreat so no comments will be posted until I return on Friday. I will be praying for you all and hope you will pray for me as well. Generally I schedule some posts for while I'm gone. I didn't get around to doing much of that this year and probably won't before I leave. But I may put up some links to the Spiritual Exercises.

 God bless you all and have a great week.

The Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius Loyola have changed lives. I urge you to look into whether there is a retreat offered near you!

Sunday Meditation: Back in the Saddle, but moving slowly...

Jesus is always there for you, even in the darkest moments.

Remember when Peter, James, and John were on the mount of the Transfiguration and Peter wanted to make tents for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah and remain there? That's the way I feel after retreat. Five days of silent Communion with the Lord and His Mother was a little bit of heaven, and I confess I wasn't eager to return to the valley of tears or, in the words of the Spiritual Exercises, to the plain around Babylon where Satan and his minions are gathered. All I had to do to see the smoke and smell the sulphur was to turn on my computer and read what's been happening in my absence.

Like Peter, I wish I could plant my tent on the mountain top and stay there.