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| Two Catholic Men & a Blog Reading Chair/Time Machine |
Reading The Interior Castle by St. Therese of
Avila (AD 1577), The Compendium of
Theology by St. Thomas Aquinas (AD 1273) and Confessions by St. Augustine (AD 397) are examples of when I’ve had
this sense of learning right at the feet of the masters, especially when
stumbling upon a paragraph like this one from Confessions Book I. “To whom am I narrating this? Not to you, my
God, but to my own kind in your presence
– to that small part of the human race who may chance to come upon these
writings. And to what end? That I and all who read them may understand what
depths there are from which we are to cry to you.” Think about it; reading Confessions from AD 397 in the year 2012
is like someone reading this post in the year 3627! It boggles the mind!
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| Star Date 3627.0 |
No book could
give a more direct communication from the past than the very first sentence of
a book called The Cloud of Unknowing;
a contemplative classic written by an anonymous English monk during the late
1300’s. The Cloud of Unknowing is a metaphor for a privation of knowing that
stands between us and God. The monk speaks of “the exercise” which can help one
to “smite upon that thick cloud of unknowing with a sharp dart of longing
love.” In modern Catholic language I think one could interpret “the exercise”
as Centering Prayer.
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| The Cloud of Unknowing |
Here is the
opening sentence that immediately got my attention (to say the least) “To you, whoever you are, who may have this
book in your possession, whether as owner or custodian or barrow: I lay this
charge upon you and implore you with all the power and force that the bond of
charity can command.” He goes on to basically say that the book is only for
those who are sincere about following Christ in BOTH the active and contemplative
life.
This brings
me to what I actually would like to share. The unknown mystic from the past speaks
of our spiritual life in terms of two parts, the active life and the
contemplative life, both of which have two levels, a high and a low. The low
active life consists of good & honest corporal works mercy and charity. The
high active life AND the low contemplative life both involve spiritual
meditations. The high contemplative life happens in the cloud of unknowing with
a loving impulse and gaze into the simple being of God. All of this is described in three levels of
good, better and best. Whenever a “best” is proclaimed it normally demands that
at least two things precede it, a “good” and a “better”.
A visual
would be most helpful at this point:
It would be
wrong and a hindrance for someone engaged in contemplative life to turn their
mind to outward corporal works during meditation. This may sound dismissive of
outward corporal works, but the 14th century monk reminds his reader
that only one thing is necessary. It is
the “one thing” spoken of at the house of Mary & Martha (see Luke
10:38-42). Martha might think that she or Mary could love and praise God above
all other business and at the same time be busy about the many things of this
life, but Jesus made it clear to her that she could not serve both perfectly; imperfectly
she could, but not perfectly.
It is the
nature of the active life to begin and end in our lifetime. Not so, however, of
the contemplative life; it begins in this life, but lasts without end. The “best”
is truly yet to come. As The Lord said to Martha, it is the part that shall
NEVER be taken away, because that perfect moment of love which begins here shall
last without end in the bliss of heaven.
I’ll close with the monks own words in
the book’s last paragraph:
“Farewell, spiritual friend, in God’s
blessing and mine. And I beseech almighty God that true peace, sane counsel,
and spiritual comfort in God with abundance of grace always be with you, and
all those who on earth love God. Amen”
Excellent post!
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