Christian Meditation, Thursday mornings at 8:30 am in the Sanctuary

“We do not know how to pray, but the Spirit prays within us”
– St. Paul, Rom. 8:26

Meditation is not something new to the Christian experience, but is deeply rooted in Christian tradition, from the teachings of Jesus and St. Paul; through the Christian Desert Fathers and Mothers of fourth century Egypt; including medieval Christian mystics like the anonymous author of the “Cloud of Unknowing;” and on up to the modern day.  However, many western Christians have no knowledge of this ancient tradition of prayer.  Meditation, also known as contemplative prayer, is the prayer of silence, the place where direct contact with Christ can occur once the never ceasing activity of the mind has been stilled.  In meditation we go beyond words, thoughts and images into the presence of God and the indwelling Spirit.

At Coralville United Methodist Church (CUMC), we follow the teachings on Christian meditation of John Main, a Benedictine monk of the 20th century who recovered this ancient form of contemplative prayer for modern people.  In order to support our daily personal commitment to meditation, in 2010 we formed a meditation group that has been meeting weekly since.  Our group is just one of hundreds that meet in over 110 countries around the world to practice meditation, and is part of an international community known as the World Community for Christian Meditation (www.wccm.org).  CUMC’s meditation group meets every Thursday morning from 8:30 - 9:30 AM.  For more information on Christian meditation or CUMC’s weekly group, please feel free to contact either the church office or Corey Houchins-Witt at corey.houchins.witt@gmail.com.