Contemplation

Writing helps to organize what I think I'm learning. The books by Thomas Merton have clarified what I didn't grasp from Catholic grade school and Sunday sermons. Merton died in 1968 at the height of interest in his thoughts. Not all of the interest was supportive. Merton's message resonated with the anti-establishment crowd questioning America's righteous trampling on lives around the globe. The renewed interest in Merton is easily understood in light of history repeating itself.

The Merton Institute for Contemplative Living is a useful resource for insight into Merton's writing. www.Mertoninstitute.org A letter arrived this week with a simple outline of what it means to live contemplatively. In a survey of interested persons, the Institute concluded that most people defined contemplative living as leading a less complicated, less busy, more quiet life, or engaging in prayer, meditation, or yoga. On a lineal plane, contemplative life was achieved by living more like a monk or nun and less like a person outside of religious orders.

Merton explains contemplative living as living in true relationships with oneself, God, others, and nature. That made perfect sense to me. The more effort I've made to be open to other spiritual practices, the more I've seen similarities in core values. Honoring self, God, others, and nature is clear in native American beliefs, Buddhism, and Christianity--three belief systems where I've barely scratched the surface. All agree that we become true when we free ourselves of illusions of being independent of our true self, God, others, and nature.

The challenge of being my true self and knowing that it is enough to be me as I am is the first truth to accomplish. When I focus on being my true self I am open to my responsibilities to the relationships I have with God, others, and nature. By being comfortable with me as God made me enables me to accept that my everyday life, my active life in career, home, and in charity is my spiritual life. Isolating from everyday life is not a way to increase my spiritual being. Being aware of my place in the world and my responsibility, and the affect of my actions is the work of my contemplative life.

To affect change in the world, change myself.