McQuiston: Finding Time

McQuiston: Finding Time

“That’s when I stumbled across a quote from Rabbi Harold Kushner: ‘for the religious mind and soul, the issue has never been the existence of God but the importance of God, the difference God makes in the way we live.’” —John McQuiston II in Finding Time for the Timeless: Spirituality in the Workweek (Skylight Paths, 2004).

Memphis lawyer, John McQuiston II, is best known for his modern translation of The Rule of Benedict, Always we Begin Again. This third book by the author is a collection of real-life examples of spiritual practices of forty-two people from varied religious and ethnic backgrounds who try to bring their spirituality to their workweek. The quote above is from his story about a Memphis religious writer of a column called “Faith Matters, or as he explains, it is not Religion Matters or Church Matters or Christianity Matters, but Faith Matters.” This became so meaningful for McQuiston that he has it taped to his keyboard to remind him that he is not writing about religion per se, but about how God works in our lives.

A Jewish engineer makes a gratitude list each morning in his thirty-minute drive to work. His office computer is programmed to ask him: “What are you thankful for today?” The founding of an accounting firm develops a “mental peace” each morning by walking to work. A Greek Orthodox dentist wears a cross under his shirt so he can constantly feel God’s presence. He frequently says the Jesus Prayer and has icons in his office.

Interspersed also in the book are five short essays by McQuiston, in which he discusses how spiritual practices increase the quality of the rest of his life, encouraging readers to find a practice that brings them joy.

There is also an annotated reading list, as well as an excellent concluding summary or menu of the different practices described. The book is like a visit to a five-star restaurant, where we experience a little taste of spiritual practices from many modern and varied sources. We are then invited to make a selection to experience our own life-changing diet.

Purchase a copy of A Spiritual Rx for Lent and Easter from me, joannaseibert@me.com, from Wordsworth Books in Little Rock, or from Amazon.

Difference Between Therapy and Spiritual Direction

The Difference Between Therapy and Spiritual Direction

“Converted anxiety is hope. Anxiety is dreadful expectation; hope is expectant desire. They are like cousins to each other. Pray for the conversion of your fretful anxiety into promising hope. If you are anxious just now, you are almost already hopeful.” —Br. Curtis Almquist, SSJE, from “Brother, Give Us a Word,” Society of Saint John the Evangelist.

There is sometimes confusion between the ministries of a therapist and a spiritual director. We learn early in spiritual direction training that a therapist helps people deal with life on life’s terms.

A spiritual director is a caretaker of the soul, one’s connection to God. Sometimes leading people to realize their connection to God can help them deal with life on life’s terms; and often learning to live with life can reconnect us to God in a new way. Becoming the person God created us to be—living a connected life—can sometimes make our path even more difficult, more challenging.

A spiritual director will listen to what is going on in a person’s life; but he or she will be looking for the God connection at every pause. A therapist will be looking at every pause for ways to lead the person to find a solution or to deal with pain. A spiritual director focuses on one thing: seeing God at work in that person’s life.

My favorite part of being a pediatric radiologist was caring for babies. When I meet with someone for spiritual direction, I like to imagine that person’s soul as a newborn they have offered over to me for a brief time, to be cared for and nurtured and then gently returned to them wrapped in a warm blanket—resting and smiling in peace as they leave.

Purchase a copy of A Spiritual Rx for Lent and Easter from me, joannaseibert@me.com, from Wordsworth Books in Little Rock, or from Amazon.

Peterson: Prayer

Peterson: Prayer

“I began to comprehend the obvious: that the central and shaping language of the church’s life has always been its prayer language. Out of that recognition a conviction grew: that my primary educational task as pastor was to teach people to pray.” —Eugene Peterson, “What Is My Educational Task?” in The Contemplative Pastor: Returning to the Art of Spiritual Direction (Eerdmans, 1993).

The well-known author of the popular modern Bible translation, The Message, reveals that his interpretation of the most important ministry of a pastor is being a spiritual director, teaching others how to pray. He is not downgrading teaching about faith or biblical writings or the history of God’s people; but he calls pastors to be spiritual directors, returning to the wisdom of ancient spiritual leaders who spent time training people to connect to God and God’s love through various forms of prayer.

Peterson introduces us to making friends with our ancient forebears, beginning with Gregory of Nyssa and Teresa of Avila. He challenges us to learn the language of intimacy, love, and relationship.

He reminds us of two great mystical traditions of prayer, the kataphatic and the apophatic, one praying with our eyes open, the second praying with our eyes shut. Kataphatic prayer turns to icons, symbols, ritual, and incense, affirming the gifts of creation as a way to the Creator. Apophatic prayer calls for emptiness—a mind that is cleared of thoughts and images until one experiences the silence and the nearness of God. The two ways of prayer can be mixed, and we will find one or the other more meaningful at different times in our lives.

This former professor of spiritual theology, however, reminds us that the Psalms were written by people of God with their eyes open.

Joanna joannseibert.com

Purchase a copy of A Spiritual Rx for Lent and Easter from me, joannaseibert@me.com, from Wordsworth Books in Little Rock, or from Amazon.