Dear Group Leaders and Friends in Christian Meditation,
I’d like to say Happy New Year, but considering we are just about done with the first month of the year this seems late…. However, as meditators we recognize that we are always beginners. It is always a new day, if not a new year. We are always novices on the spiritual path and there are no experts in spiritual life. We travel this way together as a Community of Love, striving, in the words of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., to be the Beloved Community. Or in the way that our teacher, friend and God, Jesus incarnated it, to recognize that the Kingdom of God is within each of us.
It isn’t surprising that spiritual teachers see being a beginner as being a gift. As St. Benedict writes, “Whoever you are then, follow this little rule written for beginners.” We know that every time we sit down to meditate, it is the beginning of something new and no meditation is the same. There are times when we feel calm and collected and other times, we feel our minds are full of rubbish that doesn’t seem to want to stop bothering us. We know what it means to begin again, and again, and again. The beauty is there is no judgment in any of this. We live in a world where it is easy to judge first and ask questions later, if at all. However, as meditators we must remember not to judge our meditation. The more we leave judgment aside, as we leave our thoughts aside, the more that we will leave judgment aside in our daily lives as we strive to build community in a world in need of rebuilding relationships.
Often people have asked me about books to help with growing as a meditator. I always suggest the daily readings of John Main, “Silence & Stillness in Every Season.” The words of Fr. John always encourage me along the way. In the reading on January first, the beginning of the new year, Fr. John gets to the essence of his teaching on meditation. He reminds us of the essential teaching: to sit still, upright as our bodies allow, close our eyes gently and to continually say our mantra. The teaching is incredibly easy to understand, perfect for us beginners. Each of us struggles in our own way with this teaching; stillness and attention can be challenging, but we can always begin again. His teaching is more forgiving than we can be to ourselves. I am sure that you have your own favorites, and I would love to hear about those books that inspire you as you live as a prayerful person in the world.
Many of us gathered last summer in New Harmony, Indiana for the John Main Seminar where the theme was “Widen Your Tent.” This spring, the weekend of April 25-27, 2025, we are planning a national gathering for regional coordinators, group leaders, oblates, and others to help us as we expand our vision as the Christian Meditation community in the United States. More details will arrive soon about this opportunity to grow as a community which will take place in Cleveland, Ohio.
Since we are all beginners and we are still amid the first month of the year, I will say it: Happy New Year!
Much love, Kevin Maksym
