pain and spirituality

[percival]

After Inverness, I was convinced that attending Mass was too painful for me.

But then, four things got me thinking again:

- Jack Kornfield: you should choose a spiritual path and stick to it. Explore it fully, and don't flit from
practice to practice

- Ezra Bayda: you need to face your pain and not run away from it.

- seraphimsigrist's remark that it's the bread that counts, not the paraphernalia

- my parents asking me whether I was still going to mass

So I've decided that I will try to face mass again - in Spain, hopefully an early morning mass.
Some of the most pleasing and spiritually uplifting masses I've attended were masses where it was just the liturgy - no sermon, no music.

I want to recapture that.

Prayers most welcome - I don't want to disconnect from God because I'm afraid of certain forms of worship / meditation.

Comments

[soupytwist.livejournal.com]

I hope that whatever you end up deciding in the end, going to one mass to face it ends up being cathartic for you. Good luck.

[shellebelle93.livejournal.com]

Prayers most welcome - I don't want to disconnect from God because I'm afraid of certain forms of worship / meditation.

You have mine, Perce. *hugs*

[stolensocks.livejournal.com]

Definitely saying prayers and leaving hugs.

Hope all works out well.

Imogen :)

[brightfame.livejournal.com]

(Trying desperately not to sound trite and failing ... bear with me.)

I think it far more positive than negative that you feel pain during mass. Mass is only releasing what is already present in you, and bringing it to the surface for healing.

Like Eustace feeling the Lion's claws tearing off his dragon skin so he could be reborn as a boy.

[perceval.livejournal.com]

You are right. but it is extremely difficult to deal with this without guidance. The problem I have is not so much mass as that spiritual guidance seems to be so much more readily available in my small Sangha than at Mass. I somehow don't conceive of priests as people to talk to when in spiritual distress.

BTW, if you want to participate in the Novel Writing Extravaganza, you should start plotting NOW. We've a forum; I can mail you the details if you like.

[brightfame.livejournal.com]

...spiritual guidance seems to be so much more readily available in my small Sangha than at Mass. I somehow don't conceive of priests as people to talk to when in spiritual distress.

Not every priest is or can be a spiritual director, but I think that if you ask a priest if he can recommend one, he will be able to link you up with someone with the calling, the training, and the experience to help you.

Religious (nuns, monks) as well as laity can be spiritual directors. Parish priests are too often too busy trying to be all things to all men.

Let me know how it goes.

I can mail you the details if you like.

Y'know, I shouldn't do this, I know I shouldn't do this, and yet ... sure, mail me the details. :)

[ducklet.livejournal.com]

There are so many ways to worship God! At Quaker meetings, we worship God through silence: seeking, praying, listening.

A colleague of mine goes to a Catholic mass where they sing glorious Gregorian chants.

I'm not sure I would say Find one path and stick to it -- I would say Keep seeking until you find the path that you can not leave, the right one for you (like a spouse).

I think there are so many different ways to know God, to pray to God, to worship God, and each of us needs to find the way, the community, the style that works for us.

Of course, I'm obviously no expert !! Even so, I pray that God will guide your steps and lead you to the path that's meant for you.

And even if you do all your exploring and end up right back home where you started from, you'll have a wondrous story to tell!

Blessings to you,
ducklet