Bridge across Troubled Waters: Centering Prayer and the Theological Divide

“According to Frey, seekers of God are looking at the same phenomenon from two radically different theological points of view. What they see and how they react depend on deeply held belief systems that evaluate faith teachings and spiritual experiences from two different perspectives.... The Good News that Jesus reveals in the Gospel is that God loves us, is present within us always, and seeks to transform us into his own divine light, life, and love. This teaching needs to come first in religious instruction.” 

—Fr. Thomas Keating

Bridge across Troubled Waters is written to clarify a variety of misperceptions and criticisms regarding Centering Prayer. It is also written to explore the intimacy of the divine relationship we all have with God. The aim is to build a healing bridge of mutual understanding and regard across the divide that separates Christians who embrace Centering Prayer from those who doubt or oppose it.

This book is intended for all those who are curious about Centering Prayer and who may have been exposed to criticisms of the prayer, so they may learn about it from a pro-Centering-Prayer perspective and then make an informed assessment. It is also intended for doubters and critics, as an invitation to reconciliation and to considering Centering Prayer from another’s viewpoint. Ultimately, Bridge across Troubled Waters is meant for anyone with interest in these issues and in experiencing a new view of the dynamic two-way relationship we all have with God.

CONTENTS

Foreword by Thomas Keating

Preface

Introduction

Our Common Ground, Human and Spiritual

Bridging the Theological Divide

Far Away so Close: The Divine Relationship

The Gift of Contemplation and Centering Prayer

The Method and Process of Centering Prayer

Affirming and Opposing Centering Prayer

Calming the Troubled Waters

Divides and Their Crossing

Bridging Created Reality to Non-created Reality

Appendix: Silence and Solitude