Welcome to the ICCD Contemplative Sitting Network
In Alice Walker’s recent collection of poems, The World Will Follow Joy, the poet expresses her yearning for peace in the image of “Turning Madness into Flowers.” She writes: It is my thought that the ugliness of war, of gratuitous violence in all its hideous forms, will cease very soon to appeal to even the most insulated of human beings. It will be seen by all for what it is: a threat to our well-being, to our survival as aspecies, and to our happiness.
Walker looks forward to “a great awakening” she believes has “already begun” that “will turn our madness into flowers….”
ICCD shares Alice Walker’s faith and has been planting the seeds for this hoped-for flowering for almost twenty years through its commitment to communal contemplation.
One of ICCD’s flowerings is our Contemplative Sitting Network. This network originated as part of the follow-up to the one day ICCD program “Transformation in a Time of Uncertainty.” From its beginning in 2013, there are currently over 1, 200 members throughout the world, primarly in North America. They are engaged in contemplative sitting for 20 minutes every morning seeking in the words of Ilia Delio, “new relationships of love that include Earth, all peoples, other religions, all planets and all galaxies.”
If you currently have a contemplative sitting practice in which you engage we invite you to join with us daily, usually between the hours of 6—7:30 AM in your time zone, expanding the intention to be open to the workings of God within to include personal, ecclesial and societal transformation.
If you do not have such a practice, at the conclusion of this letter you will find simple instructions to assist you in beginning such a practice.
As ICCD has been moving in its second decade we have been focused on “Exercising Contemplative Power.” In developing this concept we were reminded of Dorothy Soelle’s words: “Contemplation sees things as God sees them and leads to an active resistance to evil.” We recognized that although we each exercise our own contemplative power, we want to grow in our capacity to exercise it together.
The Contemplative Sitting Network gives us an opportunity to move more deeply into both of these realities.
We are delighted that you are joining with us in your own place as we plant seeds of hope – “turning madness into flowers.”
Sincerely,
Nancy Sylvester, IHM
Margaret Galiardi, OP
References:
Delio, Ilia, The Unbearable Wholeness of Being: God, Evolution and the Power of Love. Maryknoll, NY: Orbis, 2013.
Soelle, Dorothy, quoted in “Exercising Contemplative Power”
Walker, Alice, The World Will Follow Joy: Turning Madness into Flowers. NY: The New Press, 2013.
Commit to s daily practice between the hours of 6:00-7:30 AM in your time zone. Know you are part of a larger network.
How to Begin a Contemplative Sitting Practice
As the intention is to build a contemplative sitting practice into your daily routine, not simply to turn to it on occasion, the following considerations will prove helpful:
Select a time of a day and place in which you will practice every day. There will no doubt be exceptions to this, but generally if your desire is make contemplative sitting a part of your daily routine, it is best to begin with a set time and place until you have established this practice.
Our Contemplative Sitting Network hours are between 6—7:30 AM in your time zone. Again there may be occasions which demand that you practice outside of these hours. It is better to do that than to skip the practice, especially as you begin.
You may wish to light a candle as you begin to signal to yourself that what you are about to embark upon is special.
You posture should be such that your spine is straight and your feet flat on the floor. You want to be both relaxed and alert. If you wish you can open the palms of both your hands on your lap.
As time becomes somewhat illusive during contemplative sitting (sometimes the minutes seem to pass very quickly; at other times the minutes seem to drag), you may wish to use a timer and set it for the desired minutes…for our purposes here 20 minutes. (A digital timer eliminates ticking.)
There’s lot of thinking about eyes open or closed. Do what works for you.
As you begin your contemplative practice first set the intention to access the Divine within you.
Then begin your sitting. Here are some ways to assist you in focusing and letting go of your everyday thoughts opening yourself to this deep presence.
Follow your breath. Turn to God with love and begin by watching your own breath. You can count your breaths if you wish. One being the in-breath and two the out-breath. Slowly keep on counting until you have reached ten. Then return to one and begin again. Or simply follow your breath on the in-breath and then the out-breath. Returning to your breath when your mind starts to wander.
Repeat a phrase or word. Select a phrase or word that you will keep repeating. It is called a mantra. You might wish to select the name of Jesus, or more generally a word such as Love,” or “Peace,” or the Greek word from the New Testament, “Maranatha.,” meaning “Come, Lord Jesus.” Slowly keep repeating this word in synch with your own breath. When you notice you are thinking of something else, gently return to your mantra to refocus your attention.
Begin with a word then let it go. Begin by repeating a sacred word. Then when you are centered, stop saying the word and drop down into the silence. If thoughts come, simply let them float through your mind. You are creating an openness and cultivating a detached attitude toward your thoughts. Go back to your sacred word and refocus your intention when you notice you are thinking of something else.
Do remember not to become upset when you notice you have begun to think about something else. This is very normal.
When the time for contemplative sitting is concluded, take a minute or so to bring your attention back to your immediate surroundings and then begin to go about your daily routine.