Open Mind, Open Heart 20th Anniversary Edition

This is a marvelous introduction to centering prayer. It answers basic questions and pulls the reader into God's love in a very methodical and reassuring way--reminding the reader that all one needs to do is to say "Yes" to God's grace. Takes a lot of pressure off "making it happen" which is so ingrained in Western society. "Be still and know that I am God" is a central theme. Open Mind Open Heart: The Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel

For those of you who have read the original edition of this book over the last twenty years, I think you will be pleased, as I am, with the reorganization and clarifying language that is in the 20th Anniversary edition. Because this is a book that one reads every year or two, it is well worth the small investment to purchase this refined, fresh organization and clarity of statements. For those of you who were hoping for inclusive language - sorry, at age 84 I can appreciate that inclusive language for God is a stretch too far. However, in his recent talks, Fr. Keating is care-filled to accommodate those for whom masculine pronouns for God are an offense.

As a long term student of contemplative paths for over thirty years and with ten years experience of teaching groups, I found this book the most inspiring and refreshing work I have seen on the subject. My own background has included practical study of contemplation under various spiritual directors, ranging from the traditional Christian approach, to Egyptian Hermetism, Tibetan Dzogchen, Jnana yoga, influences from other Eastern practises and the Toltec Warrior path. The most significant factor when reading something penned from such a great depth of experience culminating in real wisdom, is the absolute authority with which the author writes. His description of the actual states experienced, the practicalities of making real progress and the methods for handling difficulties, make it abundantly clear that he draws on a profound depth of real experience. It is as important a milestone in spiritual literature as the works of Meister Eckhart, the Cloud of Unknowing and The Ascent of Mount Carmel by Saint John of the Cross, but presented in a form that makes it both palatable to and immediately useful for the modern reader. This is a wonderfully inspiring and significant work, of great value to anyone, from any background, who is seriously seeking direct experience of Self Realisation, be they a beginner or an old hand. It succeeds in crossing the apparent divides between different traditions, by focusing on the practicalities, in a delightful and humorous style. Reading this book is like sitting by the fire with an old friend.

I have a checkered spiritual past. Like many people of my generation, I have always felt that modern life was going in the wrong direction, and that the traditional answers we were getting from the government and institutionalized religion just weren't quenching the spiritual drought in the contemporary world. So I went east, to Buddhism, the Sufis, Hinduism, looking for something that might help me fill the void I felt. Then I stumbled upon the Centering Prayer movement. Little did I know that the Christian tradition that I grew up in, would hold the secret to what I was looking for. Centering Prayer is based squarely in the Christian tradition. It is based on forms of prayer that have roots in the earliest Christian monesteries of the 4th century. There are even tantalizing glimpses of it in the writings of St. Paul and even the Gospels, though not spelled out in so many words (which is probably what gives literalists conniptions.) It existed in the Benedictine monasteries of medieval Europe, in the Cloud of Unknowing, the 14th century manual of prayer, and in the writings of St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila. It is not, I repeat, NOT a "new age" spirituality, unless one thinks that all of Christian Spirituality is new age (and the case could be made that it is.) Centering Prayer is a simple method of prayer that is designed to help us consent to the presence and action of God in our lives. Through quite simple guildelines and a few adjustments of attitudes, Centering Prayer helps us to let go of our own ego and expectations and just "wait upon the Lord". For me, it has been key to reawakening my Christian faith. Having been a practicing Buddhist for many years, I can say that readers who equate Centering Prayer with Buddhist practice are mistaken. Without denigrating Buddhist practice, which I learned much from and which I still admire, there is a vast difference between Vipassana and Centering Prayer and that difference is the presence of a personal God. Perhaps some people don't need that personal connection, but I know that it has made a huge difference for me in my prayer life. That, and the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, who prays in us rather than we ourselves doing the praying. This doctrine, which can seem so theological at surface, in fact helps me to take my own ego out of the practice. "I" don't pray, but the Holy Spirit prays through me. It's really quite a difference. Perhaps the problem that some on this page have, is that Cenetering Prayer strikes at the literal certainty that many look for in regards spirituality, particularly Christian spirituality. (All religions have their fundementalists, even the Buddhists. But ours are most vociferous in this culture.) The more I live this teaching, the less I think I know about God, and yet paradoxically the closer I feel to God. It is a personal living out of one of the central mysteries of the faith, that God is both separate of us and imminent within us. It's easy to believe

This is one of the best books I've ever read by any Roman Catholic clergyman. It's engrossing and extremely hard to put down. I love it! It has made a positive impact on my life, learning how to properly engage in contemplative prayer i.e. centering prayer. Before I read this book, I felt there was something missing in my spiritual life. But thanks to Thomas Keating's brilliant ability to write clearly and concisely on a step by step basis, my spiritual life is virtually complete. No other book has influenced me in a way to actively engage in centering prayer on a daily basis as Thomas Keating's book.