Download Free Creation And Contemplation Book in PDF and EPUB Free Download. You can read online Creation And Contemplation and write the review.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • From one of the world’s most influential spiritual thinkers, a long-awaited book exploring what it means that Jesus was called “Christ,” and how this forgotten truth can restore hope and meaning to our lives. “Anyone who strives to put their faith into action will find encouragement and inspiration in the pages of this book.”—Melinda Gates In his decades as a globally recognized teacher, Richard Rohr has helped millions realize what is at stake in matters of faith and spirituality. Yet Rohr has never written on the most perennially talked about topic in Christianity: Jesus. Most know who Jesus was, but who was Christ? Is the word simply Jesus’s last name? Too often, Rohr writes, our understandings have been limited by culture, religious debate, and the human tendency to put ourselves at the center. Drawing on scripture, history, and spiritual practice, Rohr articulates a transformative view of Jesus Christ as a portrait of God’s constant, unfolding work in the world. “God loves things by becoming them,” he writes, and Jesus’s life was meant to declare that humanity has never been separate from God—except by its own negative choice. When we recover this fundamental truth, faith becomes less about proving Jesus was God, and more about learning to recognize the Creator’s presence all around us, and in everyone we meet. Thought-provoking, practical, and full of deep hope and vision, The Universal Christ is a landmark book from one of our most beloved spiritual writers, and an invitation to contemplate how God liberates and loves all that is.
"Drawing on work of Pierre Teilhard de Chardin and modern science, author offers meditations pointing toward a new understanding of Christianity in terms of evolution"--
As our world has become increasingly dependent on technology, and our Western societies have become woefully “Crackberried”— to use the title of a recent documentary on the emotional and social pitfalls of our too-wired ways—an intriguing phenomenon is occurring: There is an increasing amount of interest in returning to some of the simpler arts that were neglected or left behind with the onslaught of technology. Artisans and everyday crafters are finding a renewed satisfaction in making something with their own hands; some are even communicating about the inherent physical- and mental-health benefits found in handwork—and, even more than that, they are framing their handwork as meditation or spiritual practice. In today’s sophisticated and pluralistic society, people are more aware than ever that spiritual practice can be defined more expansively—and the popularity of books focusing on alternative spiritual practices demonstrate that readers are hungry for new (or ancient) ways of enhancing their inner lives. In Crafting Calm the author will explore these new forms of creative spiritual practice and the benefits they provide. The format of With Shannon's book will itself be creative, a rich “potpourri approach” that weaves together interviews, historical facts, projects for readers to do themselves, quotations, and suggested resources. Crafting Calm will serve as an inspirational resource guide to a broad assortment of spiritual practices gathered from the global arts-and-crafts communities, as well as from people who don’t consider themselves artists but who have adopted creatively expressive forms of spiritual practice. While there have been a few books published focusing on a particular form of creative spiritual practice (Skylight Paths, for example, has published books on beading as a spiritual practice; painting as a spiritual practice; and using clay as a spiritual practice), no one has yet explored the breadth of possibilities for creative spiritual practices contained in Crafting Calm.
The Book of Contemplation is the thirty-ninth of the forty Books of The Revival of the Religious Sciences (Ihya' 'ulum al-din) and the very last to appear in English translation. Abu Hamid al-Ghazali's purpose in this Book is to explain the nature and importance of contemplation, or reflection, as an act that enriches the thinking person with increased knowledge of, and wonder at, the Creator and His creation. In Part 1, he defines and introduces the subject, explaining its importance with reference to the Qur'an, Hadiths, and sayings of wise and pious Muslims. In Part 2, he expounds his own highly original views as to the nature and fruits of contemplation. Part 3 offers detailed guidance on the most appropriate and beneficial subjects for reflection, some relating to human traits and actions and others to Divine Attributes and Actions. In Part 4, he explores in detail aspects of God's creation, which, when viewed with an observant eye and considered with a worshipful heart, are full of wonders and offer an inexhaustible scope for reflection - from the artistry of the spider and bee to the unimaginable vastness of the heavens, which themselves are dwarfed by what lies beyond them.
Creation and Completion represents some of the most profound teachings of Jamgon Kongtrul (1813-99), one of the true spiritual and literary giants of Tibetan history. Though brief, it offers a lifetime of advice for all who wish to engage in-and deepen-the practice of tantric Buddhist meditation. The original text, beautifully translated and introduced by Sara Harding, is further brought to life by an in-depth commentary by the contemporary master Thrangu Rinpoche. Key Tibetan Buddhist fundamentals are quickly made clear, so that the reader may confidently enter into tantra's oft-misunderstood "creation" and "completion" stages. In the creation stage, practitioners visualize themselves in the form of buddhas and other enlightened beings in order to break down their ordinary concepts of themselves and the world around them. This meditation practice prepares the mind for engaging in the completion stage, where one has a direct encounter with the ultimate nature of mind and reality.
Darkness will not last forever. Together we can climb toward the light. They were as troubled as we, our ancestors, those who came before us, and all for the very same reasons: fear of illness, a broken heart, fights in the family, the threat of another war. Corrupt politicians walked their stage, and natural disasters appeared without warning. And yet they came through, carrying us within them, through the grief and struggle, through the personal pain and the public chaos, finding their way with love and faith, not giving in to despair but walking upright until their last step was taken. My culture does not honor the ancestors as a quaint spirituality of the past but as a living source of strength for the present. They did it and so will we. In the same voice that has comforted and challenged countless readers through his daily social media posts, Choctaw elder and Episcopal priest Steven Charleston offers words of hard-won hope, rooted in daily conversations with the Spirit and steeped in Indigenous wisdom. Every day Charleston spends time in prayer. Every day he writes down what he hears from the Spirit. In Ladder to the Light he shares what he has heard with the rest of us and adds thoughtful reflection to help guide us to the light Native America knows something about cultivating resilience and resisting darkness. For all who yearn for hope, Ladder to the Light is a book of comfort, truth, and challenge in a time of anguish and fear.
The human race is in crisis and very few of us – if any – are able to understand what is wrong with our lives and the world at large. How did this happen and how did humans become so ‘disconnected’ with humanity? Why are psychological disorders such as depression, anxiety, fear, and suicide on the increase, and why are conventional Western therapies unable to stem the tide? To approach this we must first look inside ourselves – to explore our own purpose in life and extend that principle to the rest of humanity. Despite the advances of modern Western psychology and the development of therapies that do help many, one area that is largely unexplored is that of the ‘human spirit’ and spirituality since it is more convenient to consider the human mind as ‘machine’ that responds to external stimuli. In this powerful exploration into the human mind and its relationship with the human spirit, Malik Badri invites the reader to open the door to self-discovery, purpose and spirituality through the practice of contemplation, reflection and meditation – understanding the true meaning and experience of spirituality as well as one’s own place in Creation. Whilst central to worship in Islam, this will also be of great interest to, and help any reader wishing to explore the notion of spirituality whether as part of worship or simply as part of self development and inner healing.
Argues that theoretical physics and cosmology can provide a key to overcoming race-related problems, explaining how they enable a means for discussing individual and communal quests for fulfillment beyond racial, ethnic, class, and sexual barriers. Original.
In this companion to The Universal Christ, Richard Rohr and Patrick Boland offer forty reflections and practices exploring what it means to live “in Christ.” In his landmark book The Universal Christ, Richard Rohr articulated a transformative view of what it means to recognize Jesus as “Christ”—as a portrait of God’s constant, unfolding work in the world. Now, in partnership with Patrick Boland, a psychotherapist and member of Rohr’s Center for Action and Contemplation community, he invites readers to engage with the themes of the book through spiritual practice. Each reflection in this book draws on a key passage of The Universal Christ, paired with prayers, journal prompts, and embodied exercises that invite readers into a more personal encounter with the truth that the presence and compassion of the Christ are in every thing. Whether read daily for the season of Lent or explored over the course of a year, Every Thing Is Sacred is a hope-filled journey into the love at the heart of all things.
John Chryssavgis explores the sacred dimension of the natural environment, and the significance of creation in the rich theological history and spiritual classics of the Orthodox Church, through the lens of its unique ascetical, liturgical and mystical experience. The global ecological crisis affecting humanity's air, water, and land, as well as the planet's flora and fauna, has resulted in manifest fissures on the image of God in creation. Chryssavgis examines, from an Orthodox Christian perspective, the possibility of restoring that shattered image through the sacramental lenses of cosmic transfiguration, cosmic interconnection, and cosmic reconciliation. The viewpoints of early theologians and contemporary thinkers are extensively explored from a theological and spiritual perspective, including countering those who deny that God's creation is in crisis. Presenting a worldview advanced and championed by the Orthodox Church in the modern world, this book encourages personal and societal transformation in making ethical and economic choices that respect creation as sacrament.