There Are Many Ways to Be Contemplative

“I’ve never, and still don’t really, find myself easily called to sitting in silent centering prayer. I haven’t given up on that! What I have learned […] however, was that there are many ways to be contemplative. That it’s more about the Holy Listening and less about what I may or may not be doing with my body in the moment. Chanting, body prayer, yoga, lectio divina, painting, poetry writing, and more became creative endeavors where I found myself being present to the moment, present to the Holy. […] I found that I was gradually seeing myself more clearly.”

— Michelle Walker, 2024
“Going Deeper: A Spiritual Respite When Needed the Most”

Today’s Invitation

Choose a creative activity (knitting, doodling, building a fire, singing, martial arts) and do it in the spirit of worship.

Query of the Week

What makes you feel close to Spirit?

Author

Maeve Sutherland

Maeve Sutherland is a communications professional who never recovered from her wonderful childhood at a Quaker elementary school. She has spent her career helping nonprofits share their stories, from schools and universities, to museums, to radio stations. As a Thomas J. Watson Fellow, Maeve spent a year living in “Peaceable Kingdoms,” pacifist intentional communities around the world, where she learned that everyone has a role to play in shaping a better world. She worked as a freelance social media manager before joining Thee Quaker Project. After returning to Quakerism as a young adult, Maeve now attends Chestnut Hill Friends Meeting in Philadelphia.
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