![]() What are the seasons of life and what are the stages of discipleship? A parable might help set the stage: in his autobiography, the renowned writer Nikos Kazantzakis shares a conversation he once had with an old monk named Father Makários. What can be helpful is to have a grasp of the natural seasons of our lives and how these interface with a vision of Christian discipleship and its particular stages. Maturation is a lifelong journey with different phases, human and spiritual. So we need to be patient with one another and with ourselves. But that is a simple cliché, more easily said than done, because as we go through the seasons of our lives the challenges we meet there can just as easily embitter and harden the soul as mellow it. How does it happen? What are the various barrels within which we find ourselves fermenting? How is the soul mellowed within the crucible of struggle? We mature by meeting life, just as God and nature designed it, and accepting there the invitations that beckon us ever deeper into the heart of life itself. But it happens almost despite us, because such is the effect of a conspiracy between God and nature to mellow the soul. ![]() It does not happen easily, without effort and without breakdown. Growing up and maturing is precisely a process of fermentation. And that wisdom is generally learned in the crucible of struggle. The wisdom for this is written everywhere, in nature, in scripture, in spiritual traditions, and in what is best in human science. & Rainer Maria Rilke, & The Man Watching& The Seasons of Our Life and Their Interface with Spirituality The human soul is like a fine wine that needs to ferment in various barrels as it ages and mellows. ![]() "Where do we go once some of the basic questions in our lives have been answered, or at least brought to enough peace that our focus can shift away from ourselves to others? Where do we go once the basic questions in our lives are no longer the restless questions of youthful insecurity and loneliness? Who am I? Who loves me? How will my life turn out? Where do we go once the basic question in life becomes: How can I give my life away more purely, and more meaningfully? How do I live beyond my own heartaches, headaches, and obsessions so as to help make other peoples' lives more meaningful? The intent of this book is to try to address exactly those questions: How can we live less self- centered, more mature lives? What constitutes deep maturity and how do we reach that place? And, not unimportantly, what constitutes a more adult, Christian discipleship? What constitutes a truly mature following of Jesus?"Īs the poet Rainer Maria Rilke suggests, "Live the questions now." In Sacred Fire, Rolheiser's deeply affecting prose urges us on in pursuit of the most holy of all passions-a deep and lasting intimacy with God.Ĭhapter 1 Discipleship and the Stages of Our Lives What we choose to fight is so tiny! What fights with us is so great! If only we would let ourselves be dominated as things do by some immense storm we would become strong too, and not need names. "What lies beyond the essentials, the basics?" Rolheiser writes. But, as Rolheiser explains, when we embrace the struggle and yearning to know God we can experience too a profound re-understanding to our daily lives. Here, we experience the full gamut of human life, pleasure and fervor, disillusionment and boredom. In this new book, Rolheiser takes us on a journey through the dark night of the senses and of the spirit. With his trademark acuity, wit, and thoughtfulness, Rolheiser shows how identifying and embracing discipleship will lead to new heights of spiritual awareness and maturity. ![]() When one reaches the highest degree of human maturity, one has only one question left: How can I be helpful? -TERESA OF ÁVILA Beloved author Ronald Rolheiser continues his search for an accessible and penetrating Christian spirituality in this highly anticipated follow-up to the contemporary classic, The Holy Longing.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |