Open Mind, Open Heart: The Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel [Paperback]

Thomas, O.C.S.O. Keating (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1, 1994

This book is designed to initiate the reader into a deep, living relationship with God. Written by an acknowledged spiritual master, the book moves beyond "discursive meditation and particular acts to the intuitive level of contemplation." Keating gives an overview of the history of contemplative prayer in the Christian tradition, and step-by-step guidance in the method of centering prayer. Special attention is paid to the role of the Sacred Word, Christian growth and transformation, and active prayer. The book ends with an explicit treatment of the contemplative dimension of the gospel. Open Mind, Open Heart will take readers into a world where God can do anything, into a realm of the greatest adventure--"Where one is open to the Infinite and hence to infinite possibilities.">

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

First published in 1986 and in print--and immensely popular--ever since, Open Mind, Open Heart, by the Trappist Monk Thomas Keating, remains one of the best introductions to a specifically Christian form of meditation. Father Keating gives the reader an overview of what contemplative prayer both is and isn't; he discusses the history of contemplative prayer in the Christian tradition and then explores step by step the process of Centering Prayer, briefly exploring its origins in the ancient church and then demonstrating its use as "a sign of one's intention" to surrender to God. Each chapter concludes with questions and answers that provide useful information in an informal context. Here in particular we get a sense of Keating's clarity--and his sense of humor. For example, in response to a question about the sudden experience of happiness in prayer, Keating responds, "You should not take prayer too seriously. There is something playful about God. You only have to look at a penguin ... to realize that He likes to play little jokes on creatures." --Doug Thorpe

Review

"The leader within the Catholic world in the task of recovering our Christian contemplative heritage."
--Ewert Cousins, General Editor, World Spirituality: An Encyclopedic History of the Religious Quest

"We started going to St. Benedict's Monastery in Snowmass when I was 7 years old. Several years later, Keating became a St. Benedict's monk. He developed centering prayer, which is a lot like meditation and what this book is about. He says that meditation (or centering prayer) is a way of reducing the obstacles to the development of grace. I can sit for only five to ten minutes. It's very hard for me. Still, when I get in trouble, it shifts my perspective. As they say, we don't pray to change our circumstances; we pray to change ourselves."- Books from O, the Oprah Magazine, May 2005

"We started going to St. Benedict’s Monastery in Snowmass when I was 7 years old. Several years later, Keating became a St. Benedict’s monk. He developed centering prayer, which is a lot like meditation and what this book is about. He says that meditation (or centering prayer) is a way of reducing the obstacles to the development of grace. I can sit for only five to ten minutes. It’s very hard for me. Still, when I get in trouble, it shifts my perspective. As they say, we don’t pray to change our circumstances; we pray to change ourselves."- Books from O, the Oprah Magazine, May 2005

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 160 pages
• Publisher: Continuum (June 1, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0826406963
• ISBN-13: 978-0826406965
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (38 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #96,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Thomas Keating, founder of the centering prayer movement, is an author, teacher, and monk who has worked for many years to foster understanding among the world's religions. A member of the Cistercian Order in the Benedictine tradition, Father Keating has served at monasteries in Colorado and Massachusetts. He currently directs retreats in the practice of Centering Prayer, a cornerstone of contemporary Christian contemplative practice. He is the author of the best-selling Open Mind, Open Heart, Fruits and Gifts of the Spirit, St. Therese of Lisieux, Manifesting God, and The Transformation of Suffering, Divine Therapy and Addiction, among many other books. He lives at St. Benedict's Monastery in Snowmass, Colorado.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

118 of 123 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Journey Back Into the True Heart of Christianity, January 21, 2003

By 

Christopher Forbes "weirdears" (Brooklyn,, NY) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Open Mind, Open Heart: The Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel (Paperback)

I have a checkered spiritual past. Like many people of my generation, I have always felt that modern life was going in the wrong direction, and that the traditional answers we were getting from the government and institutionalized religion just weren't quenching the spiritual drought in the contemporary world. So I went east, to Buddhism, the Sufis, Hinduism, looking for something that might help me fill the void I felt. Then I stumbled upon the Centering Prayer movement. Little did I know that the Christian tradition that I grew up in, would hold the secret to what I was looking for.

Centering Prayer is based squarely in the Christian tradition. It is based on forms of prayer that have roots in the earliest Christian monesteries of the 4th century. There are even tantalizing glimpses of it in the writings of St. Paul and even the Gospels, though not spelled out in so many words (which is probably what gives literalists conniptions.) It existed in the Benedictine monasteries of medieval Europe, in the Cloud of Unknowing, the 14th century manual of prayer, and in the writings of St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila. It is not, I repeat, NOT a "new age" spirituality, unless one thinks that all of Christian Spirituality is new age (and the case could be made that it is.) Centering Prayer is a simple method of prayer that is designed to help us consent to the presence and action of God in our lives. Through quite simple guildelines and a few adjustments of attitudes, Centering Prayer helps us to let go of our own ego and expectations and just "wait upon the Lord". For me, it has been key to reawakening my Christian faith.

Having been a practicing Buddhist for many years, I can say that readers who equate Centering Prayer with Buddhist practice are mistaken. Without denigrating Buddhist practice, which I learned much from and which I still admire, there is a vast difference between Vipassana and Centering Prayer and that difference is the presence of a personal God. Perhaps some people don't need that personal connection, but I know that it has made a huge difference for me in my prayer life. That, and the doctrine of the Holy Spirit, who prays in us rather than we ourselves doing the praying. This doctrine, which can seem so theological at surface, in fact helps me to take my own ego out of the practice. "I" don't pray, but the Holy Spirit prays through me. It's really quite a difference.

Perhaps the problem that some on this page have, is that Cenetering Prayer strikes at the literal certainty that many look for in regards spirituality, particularly Christian spirituality. (All religions have their fundementalists, even the Buddhists. But ours are most vociferous in this culture.) The more I live this teaching, the less I think I know about God, and yet paradoxically the closer I feel to God. It is a personal living out of one of the central mysteries of the faith, that God is both separate of us and imminent within us. It's easy to believe that God is completely divorced from creation (traditional Protestant theology). It's also easy to believe that God is creation (pantheism). But to believe that God is both at the same time requires a leap that logic, literalism and all other right brained operations just can't make. Centering Prayer makes that leap. It allows me to live, centered (sometimes) in the uncertainty of modern life, and connected to God in a real way. This book has changed my life. And it can change yours as well if you are open to it.

73 of 78 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Guide for Contemplative Prayer, May 31, 2000

By 

Steven K. Szmutko (EWING, NJ USA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Open Mind, Open Heart: The Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel (Paperback)

The concepts of "centering prayer" and "contemplative prayer" are difficult for many of us who are used to activity and busy-ness in our daily lives. Thomas Keating, a Cistercian, outlines the traditions and gives a practical (if that is possible) guide to the benefits and the methods of integrating this into our daily lives.

Following a brief discussion of the history of this type of prayer, the author lucidly explains the nature of contemplative prayer and concludes with an understanding of the contemplative nature of the Gospels. Allowing oneself to free the mind of distractions and "rest in God's presence" is a difficult and ongoing process, however Keating offers words of encouragement and understanding so that we realize that this type of prayer, like all types of prayer is not an end in itself, but is a journey.

As one attempts to develop a deeper more significant relationship with God, this book is an invaluable resource. It is worth reading and referring to repeatedly as a guide in prayer, but also in reading Scripture.

33 of 33 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Practical Inspiraton, December 11, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Open Mind, Open Heart: The Contemplative Dimension of the Gospel (Paperback)

I have been reading books on contemplation and attempting the practice for some time now--always with disappointing results. Father Keating's book is the most practical book on the subject I have ever encountered. Not only does he lead the reader through the process step by step, his encouraging words have cast an entirely new light on the "failures" of my own practice. Thanks to Father Keating, I have found the courage to persevere.