ฝัง
- เผยแพร่เมื่อ 1 ต.ค. 2024
- “It’s not one day at a time, but with every breath you take. You breathe in the Spirit that delights in your being and then breathe it out into the world because the world can use it……Cherishing people isn’t hard but remembering to cherish is really difficult. Link it to your breathing even when you aren’t sitting in your morning prayer.” - Father Greg Boyle
Centering Prayer is a practice that changes the way we see the world from the inside out and is important for our well-being both physically and mentally. To help us reflect on this important principle, we are excited to welcome Fr. Greg Boyle, the founder of Homeboy Industries, the largest gang intervention, rehabilitation, and re-entry program in the world. Fr. Greg was born and raised in Los Angeles and became a Jesuit priest. He served as pastor of Dolores Mission Church, the poorest Catholic parish in Los Angeles that had the highest concentration of gang activity in the city. After witnessing the devastating impact of gang violence on his community, peaking at 1,000 gang-related killings in 1992, he was inspired to adopt a radical approach at the time, treating gang members as human beings. Homeboy Industries employs and trains former gang members in a range of social enterprises, and provides critical services to thousands of individuals who walk through its doors each year seeking a better life.
In this episode:
- Centering Prayer has always been a part of Fr. Greg Boyle’s life during 50 years as a Jesuit. He says “Finding grounding isn't the ground you land on, but the ocean you float in.”
- He encourages us to cherish with every breath we take, not just during the time of Centering Prayer but always, by linking Centering Prayer to your breathing. He says it’s not the words we say or the thing you imagine, but your stance in the world.
- He shares one of their guiding principles at Homeboy Industries - “Everyone is unshakably good, no exceptions and we belong to each other, no exceptions.”
- We explore the idea of therapeutic mysticism. Fr. Greg says that the basic goodness comes from the transformed mind, but when people come to him from prison or the street, they must impart that awareness to them. He shared that the traumatized are inclined to cause trauma but the cherished have to find joy by finding the cherished within themselves. They must see themselves as God sees them.
- Therapeutic mysticism is a way of aligning your way of seeing with how God sees this moment. We must align our hearts with the ground of our being. Fr. Greg says the starting point is - Everyone is good, unshakably good.
- He says the answer to every question is compassion. He challenges us to ask what language we are speaking with our acts and strives to create a community of cherished belonging.
- We must go against our inclination which is to be self absorbed and be attentive to others. He encourages us to receive and greet others, which is the fruit of contemplative practice. He says to “choose to brighten” and practice doesn’t make perfect, it makes habitual, nearly permanent by linking it to our breathing, cherishing and keeping the mantra going all day long, not just during times of prayer.
“All of us are good. Our basic core of goodness is our true self and the center of gravity that is God and the acceptance of our basic core of goodness is a quantum leap in our spiritual journey.” - Father Thomas Keating
For all episodes to date, go to • Contemplative Outreach... .
To learn more about Father Thomas Keating’s guidelines for service and principles visit www.contemplat...
To connect further with Fr. Greg Boyle:
- Visit his website: www.homeboyind...
- Like him on Facebook - / homeboyindustries
- Follow him on Twitter - / homboyind
- Find him on Instagram - / homeboyindustries
- Connect with him on LinkedIn - / homeboy-industries
- Check out his TH-cam Channel - / jobsnotjails
Fr. Boyle is the author of the 2010 New York Times-bestseller "Tattoos on the Heart: The Power of Boundless Compassion." Followed by "Barking to the Choir: The Power of Radical Kinship" (2017) and "The Whole Language: The Power of Extravagant Tenderness" (2021). Most recently, he authored "Forgive Everyone Everything," an anthology of writings accompanied by Fabian Debora’s artwork.
To connect further with us:
- Visit our website: www.contemplat...
- Find us on Instagram: / contemplativeoutreachltd
- Like us on Facebook: / contemplativeoutreach
- Check out our TH-cam channel: / coutreach
This episode of Opening Minds, Opening Hearts produced by Crys & Tiana LLC www.crysandtia...
Wow! So inspirational!