A Future For Men ? An interior journey towards God

i've been receiving Third Way magazine for a few years now and when I take the time I enjoy reading the different articles.

This month's edition has a feature on the future. i was particularly impressed (maybe not the best word to use) by Fr Richard Rohr's contribution entitled 'A Future for men?'.
Richard explains that we (men that is) have lost out on developing an 'inner life' and have been duped by outward success as our life goal. He explains that the church hasn't encouraged an inner life. 'It substitutes belief systems and belonging systems and moral systems for interior journeys towards God.'

As a bloke, I constantly struggle with identity based on outward success rather than developing an inner life, an interior journey towards God.
I was at Greenbelt this year and was encourged by both Fr Richard Rohr & Fr Laurence Freeman and their emphasis on the inner journey.

I was in a seminar where Laurence spoke on Christian meditation and during the session we practiced 'christian meditation'...this was a first time for me. I found it great to centre on the present and to God, using the mantra 'Maranatha'...
I've continued the practice since greenbelt and as a bloke it's easy to think is it worth it? What am I getting out of it? How successful am I at doing it?? etc etc...
But i'm persevering centering on God trying to develop the interior journey towards God.

Take a look at the article 'Boys Don't Cry 'by Richard Rohr taken from Sojourners Magazine (Third Way adapted this article in their publication)
http://www.sojo.net/index.cfm?action=magazine.article&issue=soj1007&article=boys-don-t-cry

NUTS WHOLE HAZELNUTS!

for those that are old enough to remember, the title of this post comes from an old 70s ad for Cadbury's hazelnut chocolate...
we've got a hazelnut tree in our garden and it's given us a huge amount of nuts this year...
what can i do with them???

Pour ceux qui sont assez âgés de se rappeler, le titre de cette poste vient d'un vieux pub des années 70 pour une marque de chocolat (Cadbury's).
on a un noisetier dans notre jardin et il a bien donné cette année...
que faire avec toutes ces noisettes??

GREENBELT 2010

got back yesterday from greenbelt. the first time i'd attended the festival for about 30 years. yes i remember U2 giving a brilliant surprise performance on mainstage (back in 1980)...
enough of the nostalgia...

i had a great time, apart from the severe cold... yes i'm not a weathered camper (i detest tenting in england!)...
the lineup was varied.
i don't know if it's age, but i was more inclined to go to a talk than listen to the music!
again it was cold hanging around mainstage so i found myself in other venues.

seriously, my faith journey has taken some turns and some considerable changes in the way i perceive god & the christian faith. greenbelt was a breath of fresh air for me, i got stimulated and challenged in so many areas...
i was taken back to thinking through social issues in particularly the plight of the palestinians check out:
i was inspired by talks from franciscan monk Richard Rohr and challenged to continue to review my beliefs by dave tomlinson.
the relevance of community and in particular the néo- monastic movement was once again highlighted...

on the whole a fantastic inspiring festival that's a real life-line to a humble pilgrim as myself...

LABYRINTH

just read Brian Draper's little book 'LABYRINTH, illuminating the inner path'.
it took me about 15 minutes to read; a journey to the centre and then out again.
great little book which vividly introduces the reader to god centered spirituality;


je viens de lire LABYRINTH par Brian Draper.
un petit livret qui m'a pris 15 minutes à lire;
un pèlerinage au centre et puis à l'extérieur.
ce livret présente au lecteur une spiritualité centrée sur dieu.

Jesus, the teacher within

i'm enjoying Laurence Freeman's book "Jesus, the teacher within". Freeman is a monk who was a disciple of John Main (who started christian meditiation centres around the world).
I was given the book 8 years ago by a good friend for my 40th b'day. I didn't really understand the book then...
in reading it again i realise that my faith journey has been long and interesting, taking me to new landscapes as i now appreciate the read.
i've just read the chapter on the Gospels and in particular the lectio divina method...
i've been exposed to this for about 3 years now and my walk with Jesus has been more beneficial since.

Laurence is at Greenbelt; i hope to get the chance to hear him.

Je lis "Jésus, le maître intérieur par Laurence Freeman. Freeman est moine bénédictin anglais. Il était disciple de John Main (qui a commencé des centres de méditation chrétiennes).
Une bonne amie à moi m'a offert le livre il y a 8 ans pour mes 40 ans. Je ne l'avais pas bien compris..en le relisant je me rends compte que depuis mon cheminement spirituel m'a emmené ailleurs aux paysages intéressants...car maintenant je comprends beaucoup mieux l'approche de Laurence.
Je viens de lire le chapitre "Que sont les évangiles" (et en particulier il parle de la lectio divina) une méthode de lecture que j'utilise depuis 3 ans. Ma vie avec Jésus a été approfondie grâce à cette approche!

KETSIA FROM THE BOOK OF JOB

Here's a reflection on Kezia (or Ketsia) from the bok of Job.
My youngest daught's called Ketsia.
We chose the name after reading the book of Job.
We have 5 children (4 girls and a boy)...
http://blog.sophianetwork.org.uk/2010/07/reflection-keziah-equal-inheritance.html

MARY & BIRDS

I was at a wedding at Tournai in Belgium saturday.
The ceremony was held in a chapel...

Here's a photo took...

J'étais à un mariage à Tournai en Belgique samedi.
La céremonie a eu lieu dans une chapelle.

Voilà une photo que j'ai prise...