Sunday January 28: Theosis

To Practice

• Pray these passages again in the manner of Lectio Divina, speaking them out loud to engage your senses and affirm them in your being. Gaze upon the image. What do you hear and see for your journey now?
• Practice allowing recognition energy to work within you as you move through your day. What does this look like – within yourself and with those whom you encounter? What do you learn?

You may re-read the full email reflection here: https://mailchi.mp/coutreach/word-of-the-week-jan28

So, what is theosis, and what is recognition energy? Maybe examples from life or from the language of sciipture or other writers?  Thank you!

“Recognition energy”:  as I age, the invitation and the challenge is to recognize the deeper parts of myself that are not dependent on accomplishments, memberships, mobility or reputation. As my energy for the superficial declines, let my energy for the depths of life increase. May I recognize the divine in me, in others, in this time in history.

Susan, thanks for articulating this. So true… energy for the superficial decreases and energy for the depths of the present moment increases. I could be folding laundry, driving across town or leading a retreat. Doesn’t matter. All that is needed is the recognition that God is in me and around me.

[Kathleen M. Kelly]

Thanks, susan. This morning i am reminding myself of this intention and my dependance on God to give me the will and the way to embody it.
That said, I am reminding myself that it is ok to experience unpleasant sensations and a mind trying to create stories , that in the end , are unhelpful. I commit to holding space for it all,  yet maintaining this “recognition energy”.

• This reply was modified 10 months, 2 weeks ago by Kathleen M. Kelly.

For my journey now I hear “Wonderful…my very self you know…wonderful!” God knows me so much better than I know myself. When I discover some aspect of frustration with an energy center, I can acknowledge and let it go. That is wonderful. <3 linda

I resisted responding to: Who do I say I am? Slowly by into Thursday there was an interior thaw or perhaps scales being removed from my eyes as I gazed into the left side of the image for this week. At age 20 at the time of a heart  wrenching crisis, I consciously left the answer to this the question to God. Consenting to the thaw, the descaling of my vision this week  I saw that all the hints I was giving God through the ensuing years isn’t the me of God’s desire for the real Adeline, me, the one called by my name. I was/am stalled in my tracks of being the one I think I am. What a relief! Resting in lectio Visio on the lop sided golden globe-like flame. The end of January I received my first birthday card for my up-coming February birthday with a big number on it. How did I arrive at this at one time thought of as an impossible number! Today’s Gospel reading(common) lectionary, of Simeon waiting so many years for the Messiah and boldly acknowledging the One long awaited for. What is my Simeon revelation today? I consent to the real shape/shaping of my inner longing  humbly/gratefully. I consent to embracing this now moment as it is, to this very real inner flame not of my choosing, but of my longing.

 

Somebody asked me recenty as i was talking about a painting i did, “are you an artist ?” My answer: I (just ) am. whether or not i am an artist is irrelevent.

at the first of the year , i wrote a reflection on “who I am.” It started out: “i am a force of nature.” Always evolving. I am someone who is always looking for God’s hand in everything. I am always asking:”what does God think about this preoccupation i am focusing on or this expenditure of energy or resources?” (Word salad, excuse me) . I am learning to be aware of myself as i go through things. At one level , i am “losing it” and at the same time i am being there for myself. And learning that when i go inside, deep into my body, if i stay there long enough , whatever is difficult to stay with, becomes a gift and everything is different. Mostly, i believe God and my true self are deep inside, waiting for me to come home.

This morning , in the first reading, there was something about God sifting us, like gold and, the fuller’s lye. Ye gods! That burns.

yup !

There is no “arriving ” . It is always going to be be challenging, this side of heaven.

 

“Deep inside my body … if I stay there long enough … ” Deep wisdom, Kathleen. Thank you. – Pamela

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