Editors Note: Disappointment, disillusion, disenchantment and boredom in life are unpleasant negative experiences, but they are not without positive fruit if they are allowed to teach. This post was adapted […]Read More
Augustinian Contemplation
Discovering the presence of God within.
"Let us leave a little room for reflection in our lives, room too for silence. Let us look within ourselves and see whether there is some delightful hidden place inside where we can be free of noise and argument. Let us hear the Word of God in stillness and perhaps we will then come to understand it."
Augustinian Contemplation
The Constitutions of the Augustinian Order teaches that contemplation (along with common prayer, reading, and study) are indispensable requirements for the apostolate (no. 194). Yet, the Rule of Saint Augustine does not say anything about contemplative prayer.
The short chapter on prayer in the Rule (nos. 10-12) says only the following: In the Oratory no one should do anything other than that for which it was intended and from which it also takes its name. Consequently, if there are some who might wish to pray there during their free time, even outside the hours appointed, they should not be hindered by those who think something else must be done there. And when you pray to God in Psalms and hymns, think over in your hearts the words that come from your lips.
However, as Fr. Allan Fitzgerald, OSA observes, we find a contemplative spirit beneath all of Augustine’s letters, tracts, and homilies. We can therefore turn to Augustine’s Confessions to discover the conversion that slowly prepared him for contemplative prayer. Fr. Allan calls this phenomenon “routes to contemplation.”
Augustine's Routes to Contemplation
What do our life experiences, our life questions, our desires, hope, and our desire for love have to teach us about God? In this series of posts (adapted from a retreat given by Fr. Allan Fitzgerald, OSA) we invite you to reflect with us on this very question.
Contemplation Through Our Desires
This post was adapted from a retreat given by Fr. Allan Fitzgerald, OSA on Augustine's Routes to Contemplation. Let’s us now go to the expression “Return to your heart”. For […]Read More
Contemplation Through Love
This post was adapted from a retreat given by Fr. Allan Fitzgerald, OSA on Augustine's Routes to Contemplation. Another route of contemplation for Augustine was charity or love itself. Charity […]Read More
Contemplation Through Wonder
This post was adapted from a retreat given by Fr. Allan Fitzgerald, OSA on Augustine's Routes to Contemplation. Another route to contemplation was Augustine’s gazing at the world with wonder […]Read More
Contemplation Through Silence
This post was adapted from a retreat given by Fr. Allan Fitzgerald, OSA on Augustine's Routes to Contemplation. Naturally, most important for all the routes is the element of silence […]Read More
Contemplation Through Intellectual Investigation
This post was adapted from a retreat given by Fr. Allan Fitzgerald, OSA on Augustine's Routes to Contemplation. Yet another route of contemplation for Augustine – which is not open […]Read More
More on Augustinian Prayer and Contemplation
Our Hope is in the Lord! (LOH Wednesday Week 3)
The following reflections are provided for individual or communal reflection in preparation for praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Morning Prayer -> Evening Prayer -> How to Pray Morning Prayer […]Read More
God Is Always With Us (LOH Saturday Week 2)
The following reflections are provided for individual or communal reflection in preparation for praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Morning Prayer -> Evening Prayer -> How to Pray Morning Prayer […]Read More
Liturgy of the Word: The Creed
by Jeremy Hiers, OSA This post is part of a series called The Mass: An Augustinian Perspective offered on AugustinianSpirituality.org. Unity is a core value of the Augustinian way of […]Read More
Liturgy of the Word: The Homily
by Jeremy Hiers, OSA This post is part of a series called The Mass: An Augustinian Perspective offered on AugustinianSpirituality.org. The word homily means “explanation” in Greek. The liturgical practice […]Read More
Finding New Hope (LOH Tuesday Week 2)
The following reflections are provided for individual or communal reflection in preparation for praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Morning Prayer -> Evening Prayer -> How to Pray Morning Prayer […]Read More
Victory is Ours (LOH Sunday Week 2)
The following reflections are provided for individual or communal reflection in preparation for praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Morning Prayer -> Evening Prayer -> How to Pray Morning Prayer […]Read More
Renewing Our Trust in God to Lead Us (LOH Saturday Week 1)
The following reflections are provided for individual or communal reflection in preparation for praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Morning Prayer -> Evening Prayer -> How to Pray Morning Prayer […]Read More
Our Hope is in Christ Alone (LOH Thursday Week 1)
The following reflections are provided for individual or communal reflection in preparation for praying the Liturgy of the Hours. Morning Prayer -> Evening Prayer -> How to Pray Morning Prayer […]Read More