AECI Lenten 2025 Reflection : 'Steer Us From Hardness Of Heart'
Week Two, Day 1 - The Influence Of Experience
'We are not human beings having a spiritual experience.
We are spiritual beings having a human experience'
(Pierre Teilhard de Chardin)
One of the key phrases that we shall focus on in this second week of the Lenten Reflection is centred on the potential of our hearts and minds to be over concentrated on aspects of our past history, what we might term 'the burden of our yesteryears'.
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (1881 - 1955) was a French Jesuit priest, whose central theology and philosophy incorporated the theory of evolution and developing stages of human consciousness , highlighting the figure of Christ portrayed in the Gospels and the Letters of St Paul as the high point of Creation, a model of spiritual unity open to us all.
The quotation attributed to him above really can challenge the view we might hold of ourselves and others in the modern world. The many facets of life, from birth to death, including emotions, thoughts, actions, relationships, and everything that makes us human , shaped by internal and external factors , are facets that cannot divert our deepest sense of our true nature.
Within our moments of weakness, of loss, of fear, there is something unchanging and powerful present. Within our moments of strength, of hope, of love, there is too a spiritual dimension that is growing and confirming. In much of Elizabeth of the Trinity's writings we read of the 'movement' of the heart and soul, what Fr. Billy Swan refers to as 'a living in joyful melody with the dynamics of divine love' .
Today, we reflect on our broad experiences, good and bad, pleasing and overwhelming. And we wait 'to be moved' . We listen for the comfort of knowing our spiritual side is indeed attuning our hearts to that 'joyful melody'
Kommentare