St Mary's Church Almondsbury
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CHRISTIAN MEDITATION			X-plore topics
(A summary of a talk given by Canon John Poarch) The Beatles famously went to India to sit at the feet of a holy man and learn how to meditate. Unfortunately that has given people the impression that meditation is so rarefied and way out that it is not for the likes of them. And yet they probably find themselves meditating every day of the week in some shape or form, even if that is the last name they would dream of giving it. They will call to mind something which happened or a conversation they took part in and then re-live it in their imagination, brooding over it and trying to grasp the deeper significance of what they heard and saw. And Christian meditation is a matter of applying that technique to, say, a passage of scripture or a prayer or a picture. It is a valuable way of praying. Meditation has been described as “listening prayer“, and that is fine provided we remember that actions often speak louder than words and that we can “hear” what people do as well as what they say. The important thing is not to be in a hurry but to take your time and be patient, waiting for your eyes and ears to be opened. If you really want to see and hear, you will. The only condition God imposes on us is a willingness to grasp the truth when it hits us. You might like to do the meditation we tried the other day in church. The passage was John 7:53 - 8:11. You do not need historical knowledge to picture the scene and the people do not need to be in the costumes of the time. What matters are the characters in the drama, their interaction with each other and the things they say and do. Try to picture it. Be there as an observer and listener. Put yourself in the shoes of the different people there. Try to answer the question, “What is God saying to me in all this?” because meditation is above all listening prayer. And if you would like further material to meditate on you might try: Matthew 9:9-13 Mark 10:17-22 Luke 19:1-10
Contact the Church Office Rev. Philip W. Rowe, Vicar of Almondsbury and Olveston with Aust The Vicarage, 3 Sundays Hill, Almondsbury, Bristol, BS32 4DS 01454 613223		Email the Website Administrator