Q: Theravada monks from Thailand are marching for peace from Texas to Washington DC. Where are our own spiritual and faith leaders during this [chaotic] time? Where are the members of Contemplative Outreach? Time is not waiting.
A: The first response to the questioner was offered by Mary Dwyer:
Thanks for reaching out. Please know that many of us are deeply engaged in standing up for what we believe in our own cities/towns. I believe a fruit of our practice is learning to speak truth to power in love. Personally my husband and I are very active in the local activist community and on the phones with elected officials.
But one of Contemplative Outreach administrative principles states the following:
9. To remain accessible to everyone, Contemplative Outreach does not endorse particular causes or take part in public controversies, whether religious, political, or social. As private individuals, we act according to our conscience. We avoid taking part in particular causes or engaging in public controversies because these might alienate from Contemplative Outreach persons committed to one side or the other. Our purpose is to make Centering Prayer available to everyone without taking sides. As private individuals, we act according to our conscience.
Our vision and service guidelines are Fr. Thomas’ parting gift to us. He worked so diligently for almost two years wordsmithing each one. It parallels the Tradition within 12-Step programs stating, “we take no position on outside issues.”
Again, this does NOT mean “we” aren’t actively involved as individuals. However, it does mean that we attempt to keep the teachings of Contemplative Outreach free of political partisanship.
So I salute your clarity in seeing and naming what is happening in Washington, and I encourage you to get involved locally. Who knows we may be side to side at the next march. As the old saying goes, “Think globally and act locally.”
In peace,
Mary Dwyer
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A2: The second response was offered by Carol Quest:
You raise a question that has come up again and again in my Centering Prayer journey. How do we “seek justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God”? When the answer to a particular situation is not starkly clear, I return to the Contemplative Outreach vision statement for a discernment starting point.
In this question Guideline for Service #9 is helpful: To remain accessible to everyone, Contemplative Outreach does not endorse particular causes or take part in public controversies, whether religious, political, or social. As private individuals, we act according to our conscience. We avoid taking part in particular causes or engaging in public controversies because these might alienate from Contemplative Outreach persons committed to one side or the other. Our purpose is to make Centering Prayer available to everyone without taking sides. As private individuals, we act according to our conscience.
As I prayerfully consider this guideline, three ideas speak to me:
- Remain accessible to everyone seeking intimacy with God
- Contemplative Outreach avoids taking part in particular causes or public controversies
- As individual we act according to our conscience.
Since I live in Minnesota, this guideline helped me face the dilemma of the violent death of George Floyd. My heart broke that such an incident could happen in my city. As I fell down in prayer, I remembered Thomas Keating’s response to the 9/11 tragedy. When asked what we should do, he said, “Add five minutes to your prayer.” I stood up and contacted the leadership of Minnesota Contemplative Outreach (MNCO). I asked permission to use MNCO’s Zoom site to host Centering Prayer at 7 AM every morning for one week. I asked MNCO to email the community inviting people to gather together for Centering Prayer with the intention of pleading for justice and peace in our city. The leadership responded by making that request permanent. Today more than five years later up to 55 people gather every morning at 7 AM with the intention of praying for peace and justice, not just in our city, but throughout all human society.
That foundation of coming together in silence with open hearts and seeking grace to get up and take action has been a blessing for me. I have marched in demonstrations on freezing cold days. I have sent petitions to government representatives at all levels, I have called my friends and relatives to join me in these endeavors. At one demonstration, I ran into another person from the 7 AM Centering Prayer group—this time we were face-to-face in person. We had never met each other inn person before, but with great joy we gave each other a hug and kept on demonstrating. The Holy Spirit has ways of guiding us beyond our expectations. For me the first step was to pray. Then from this prayer, I discerned my next step.
I am grateful to Father Thomas for the wisdom he has given us in our vision statement. It helps me decide what is Contemplative Outreach’s role and what is my role as an individual. In our chapter in Minnesota Contemplative Outreach, we continue to have discussions. We do not always agree on how to implement this wisdom. At the same time, we do agree to begin in prayer and to work step-by-step toward consensus.
I invite you to join other members of our Contemplative Outreach community as we continue to pray for discernment not only for this particular question, but also for discernment of how the Holy Spirit is prompting Contemplative Outreach to evolve in its presence throughout the world. Also, let us join together as individuals in speaking out for justice, mercy, and the reign of God.
Come Holy Spirit, guide us according to your unimaginable wisdom,
Carol Quest
