Heart of Creation: Meditation - A Way of Setting God Free in the World

By John Main and Jody S. Main

Book Overview

We take it for granted that aspects of monastic life can sustain our daily lives in the world, but we owe this understanding to John Main, a Benedictine monk who pioneered the idea that the desert tradition of meditative or contemplative prayer, which had largely been forgotten in the West, was for all Christians. At his monastery in London, he started teaching this way of prayer to lay groups and a network of meditation groups came into being, quickly spreading throughout the world and renewing a sense of the Church as a fellowship rooted in prayer and contemplative action. Bestselling books soon grew out of his talks. This simple, practical guide to 'pure prayer' teaches that by ceasing to struggle to find words and images by which we all too easily try to control God, we give God freedom to be himself in our hearts and we begin to pray with 'the mind of Christ', as St Paul teaches. In a nervous world saturated with image and endless self-commentary, this is a nourishing, life-giving stream of hope and refreshment.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1853118486
• ISBN13: 9781853118487
• Release Date: October 2007
• Publisher: Canterbury Press Norwich
• Length: 128 Pages
• Weight: 0.30 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 5.5" x 8.5"

Customer Reviews

The Heart of Creation

This is a superb book! John Main offers another invaluable contribution to contemporary spirituality with this volume. The Heart of Creation is a work of wisdom, compassion, and brilliant simplicity. Numerous scientific studies provide evidence for the benefits of meditation as a physical and mental discipline - reduction of stress, lowering of blood pressure, strengthening of the immune system, etc. However, for the Christian who takes up the practice of mediation, the journey has an even deeper significance: for, in meditation, we come to realize that the "cosmic power which has driven back our own egotistical darkness, this power of triumphant love, is to be found in our own hearts." With a keen understanding of the Christian mysteries, coupled with a transcendent vision of human potential, John Main offers a much needed breath of fresh air. I daresay his work will be as practical and relevant a hundred years from now as it is today. The Church and the world should be grateful to John Main. This book is a gift and a treasure, and well worth your attention, no matter what faith you follow or do not follow. It may very well change your life forever.