The practice of witnessing
On witnessing our humanity, a Welcoming Prayer meditation, and something for your walls
In prayer, we sit in our emptiness, doing something at which we cannot succeed, and let God’s faithfulness be our only success.
~ Richard Rohr
Welcome, welcome, welcome dear friends! I pray this Welcoming Prayer series will nourish your souls and guide you into a deeper connection with yourself and ultimately with the Divine who dwells in you and as you. If you haven’t first read the newsletter on The Welcoming Prayer, I would encourage you to do so. As you begin this new practice keep in mind, this spiritual practice (along with any spiritual practice) is not something you can fail at because it’s not something you can succeed at. It’s simply a practice of being present and inviting Presence.
As I continue to learn about the Welcoming Prayer, I realize it’s not really a prayer but a practice. Even more, it’s an embodied practice. Cynthia Bourgeault describes this practice as sensational and not situational. We are not welcoming certain situations such as a job loss, conflicts, or trauma but we are welcoming the emotion that surrounds the situations and which primarily reveals itself in our body. Essentially, the welcoming prayer is our consent to witness our own humanity.
Let me unpack that a bit:
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