Faith, love and hope in a wounded and wounding world

Fr Philip Carter offers a ministry of spirituality, with a series of meditations on some questions that we may ponder as we consider our life in God.

You will find here his reflections and questions for meditation, images, music and poetry to enrich your life’s journey.

Preparing for meditation

Find a place to sit comfortably. Mobile phone on silent.

Take your time. Breathe in and out a few times, slowing down …

Don't try too hard. Relax. Be open.

Prayer isn't telling what God should be doing but becoming aware of what God is already doing.

"The best prayer is to rest in the goodness of God and to let that goodness reach right down to your lowest place of need." (Julian of Norwich)

When you seem ready, begin.

You don't have to finish the exercise now, or today.

If and when something arrests your attention, stay there. Savour the words. Let them speak to you.

That may be enough for the next few minutes.

In the middle of the fire we are healed and restored – though never taken out of it
Rowan Williams

We need to “listen to the language of our wounds”.
Jim Cotter

In solitude we realize that nothing human is alien to us, that the roots of all conflict, war, injustice, cruelty, hatred, jealousy, and envy are deeply anchored in our heart.
Henri Nouwen

It isn’t simply that we do not know: we do not want to know because, at least subconsciously, we sense that we have all had something to do with bringing about
such a crucified world.
Jon Sobrino

Religion is always the wound, never the bandage.
Dennis Potter

Looking at your personal life history:

Where have you been wounded?
What wounds do you still carry?
Many of us live with an immense need for affection, an immense fear of rejection.
As you touch your inner wounded-ness, can you begin to see your wounds as a gateway to salvation and hope and freedom?

Think about the following:

Faith is about “not ignoring things”- it is about facing reality, realizing that “we live the given life, not the planned”.

So the question is: What are you likely to ignore or deny?

“Love is the reason for my existence, for God is love. Love is my true identity. Selflessness is my true self. Love is my true character. Love is my name”.
Thomas Merton

The life we are called to is a life where we are invited to exchange a “living death” for a “dying life”.

Explore what your “living death” is like, and see if you can see the attractiveness of a “dying life”.

Fr Philip reads The Companion by Kevin Hart

*The Companion*
There is a man who will not let me sleep, each night he comes and trembles by my side; he cannot be touched yet wind disturbs his hair, he cannot touch yet his shadow covers me.	Each night he comes and trembles by my side, I reach towards him and he fades like day. He cannot touch yet his shadow covers me, I hide within myself and he draws close.
I reach towards him and he fades like day, I hear him though he does not speak a word. I hide within myself and he draws close and stretches out both arms as if in pain.	I hear him though he does not speak a word, the sound of something breathing, wind in the trees. He stretches out both arms as if in pain, ‘I come to wound you and to heal the wound’.
	Kevin Hart