Text: On the way they entered a Samaritan village to prepare for his reception there, 53 but they would not welcome him because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem. 54 When the disciples James and John saw this they asked, "Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven to consume them?" 55 Jesus turned and rebuked them. (Luke 9: 52-55)
Meditation: We do have prejudices and pre-judgment… The challenge of the Gospel is the question whether we can rise above our prejudices and be open to see and begin to understand with a “different eye”… Often we behave like the disciples – always ready to call down fire from heaven to consume those who are “different”…
DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...
Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:
1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…
2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.
3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage…that interprets one’s life NOW…!
It takes a week of remembering (Dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…
Kargador at Dawn
Work in the Vineyard
Friday, June 29, 2007
Many Ways of Remembrance of God...
The first stage of Dhikr is the Remembrance of God in the utterance. This is called as the dhikr of the tongue.
The second stage is the dhikr of the heart. It consists in meditation and reflection on the text that point to God and His attributes.
The Dhikr both in the tongue and the in the heart will lead to the dhikr of the limbs or righteous life and good works. Through the praxis of the dhikr leads to the immersion of the “murid” (disciple) in a life of total abandon to God and his divine will.
It is reported from some of the “Knowers” of God that dhikr has seven aspects:
1. Dhikr of the eyes, which consists in weeping (buka');
2. Dhikr of the ears, which consists in listening (isgha');
3. Dhikr of the tongue, which consists in praise (thana');
4. Dhikr of the hands, which consists in giving (`ata');
5. Dhikr of the body, which consists in loyalty (wafa');
6. Dhikr of the heart, which consists in fear and hope (kawf wa raja');
7. Dhikr of the spirit, which consists of utter submission and acceptance (taslim wa rida')."
The second stage is the dhikr of the heart. It consists in meditation and reflection on the text that point to God and His attributes.
The Dhikr both in the tongue and the in the heart will lead to the dhikr of the limbs or righteous life and good works. Through the praxis of the dhikr leads to the immersion of the “murid” (disciple) in a life of total abandon to God and his divine will.
It is reported from some of the “Knowers” of God that dhikr has seven aspects:
1. Dhikr of the eyes, which consists in weeping (buka');
2. Dhikr of the ears, which consists in listening (isgha');
3. Dhikr of the tongue, which consists in praise (thana');
4. Dhikr of the hands, which consists in giving (`ata');
5. Dhikr of the body, which consists in loyalty (wafa');
6. Dhikr of the heart, which consists in fear and hope (kawf wa raja');
7. Dhikr of the spirit, which consists of utter submission and acceptance (taslim wa rida')."
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
On Temperament...
Temperament does not predestine one person to sanctity and another to reprobation. All temperaments can serve as the material for ruin or for salvation. We must learn to see that our temperament is a gift from God, a talent with which we must trade until he comes.
It does not matter how poor or how difficult a temperament we may be endowed with. If we make good use of what we have, if we make it serve our good desires, we can do better than another who merely serves his/her temperament instead of making it serve him/her. (Thomas Merton)
It does not matter how poor or how difficult a temperament we may be endowed with. If we make good use of what we have, if we make it serve our good desires, we can do better than another who merely serves his/her temperament instead of making it serve him/her. (Thomas Merton)
Tuesday, June 26, 2007
Spirituality & Reality...
There is no greater disaster in the spiritual life than to be immersed in unreality, for life is maintained and nourished in us by our vital relation with realities outside and above us. When our life feeds on unreality, it must starve. It must therefore die. There is no greater misery than to mistake this fruitless death for the true, fruitful and sacrificial "death" by which we enter into life.
The death by which we enter into life is not an escape from reality, but a complete gift of ourselves which involves a total commitment to reality. It begins by renouncing the illusory reality which created things acquire when they are seen only in their relation to our own selfish interest. (Thomas Merton)
The death by which we enter into life is not an escape from reality, but a complete gift of ourselves which involves a total commitment to reality. It begins by renouncing the illusory reality which created things acquire when they are seen only in their relation to our own selfish interest. (Thomas Merton)
Friday, June 22, 2007
Dhikr for the 12th week of the ordinary time (C) & Feast of John the Baptist
Text: “Then he said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" Peter said in reply, The Messiah of God." (Luke 9: 20)
Meditation: The issue at stake is the question: Who Jesus truly is in our life...? Do we truly TRUST GOD? Storm, pains, joy and sorrows do come our way… and as we journey through life we slowly know that God is with us… But in crucial moments of life… do we truly believe and trust…?
Solemnity of the Birth of John the Baptist - Feast
Text: “All who heard these things took them to heart, saying, what, then, this child will be for surely the hand of the Lord was with him.” (Luke 1: 66)
Meditation: We need to live and pray the make sure that the hand of Lord is with us, too…
DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...
Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:
1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…
2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.
3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage…that interprets one’s life NOW…!
It takes a week of remembering (dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…
Meditation: The issue at stake is the question: Who Jesus truly is in our life...? Do we truly TRUST GOD? Storm, pains, joy and sorrows do come our way… and as we journey through life we slowly know that God is with us… But in crucial moments of life… do we truly believe and trust…?
Solemnity of the Birth of John the Baptist - Feast
Text: “All who heard these things took them to heart, saying, what, then, this child will be for surely the hand of the Lord was with him.” (Luke 1: 66)
Meditation: We need to live and pray the make sure that the hand of Lord is with us, too…
DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...
Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:
1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…
2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.
3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage…that interprets one’s life NOW…!
It takes a week of remembering (dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…
Saturday, June 16, 2007
Dhikr for the 11th week in ordinary time (C)
Text: “So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven; hence, she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little." (Luke 7: 47)
Meditation: The experience of God’s generosity, often, becomes the measure of our love and generosity… The woman in the Gospel is a witness of that great compassion of God and response of great LOVE!
DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...
Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:
1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…
2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.
3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage that interprets one’s life.
It takes a week of remembering (dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…
Meditation: The experience of God’s generosity, often, becomes the measure of our love and generosity… The woman in the Gospel is a witness of that great compassion of God and response of great LOVE!
DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...
Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:
1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…
2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.
3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage that interprets one’s life.
It takes a week of remembering (dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…
Tuesday, June 12, 2007
Meister Eckhart (1260-1329)
APPREHEND GOD in all things,
for God is in all things.
Every single creature is full of God
and is a book about God.
Every creature is a word of God.
If I spent enough time with the tiniest creature--
even a caterpillar--
I would never have to prepare a sermon.
So full of God is every creature.
for God is in all things.
Every single creature is full of God
and is a book about God.
Every creature is a word of God.
If I spent enough time with the tiniest creature--
even a caterpillar--
I would never have to prepare a sermon.
So full of God is every creature.
Monday, June 11, 2007
Exploring the Meaning of Compassion in our Lives...
The theme of "compassion" is central to Massignon's understanding of the Badaliyya and substitution as a call to intercessory prayer, action and inter-religious relationship. In his twenties, in 1908, Massignon had a profound experience of what he later described as "God breaking into his life" and as his "conversion experience". From this beginning he recognized the compassionate caring and prayer for him by others, including Charles de Foucauld and the Muslim Alussy family in Baghdad. Deeply affected by his correspondence with Foucauld, his understanding of compassion became a center piece of his spirituality and a vital component of his experience of authentic relationship with God and others. As we explore the meaning of compassion in our lives, and pray with and for those suffering in our world, hear the words of Louis Massignon:
"As long as God leaves us absorbed in our own suffering we remain sterile, nailed to ourselves. As soon as compassion brings us beyond, to another's suffering other than our own, we enter into the science of compassion experientially, we discover wisdom in it; in the immortal company of all creatures purified by angelic and human trial we glimpse the joy of tomorrow through the pain of today".
"As long as God leaves us absorbed in our own suffering we remain sterile, nailed to ourselves. As soon as compassion brings us beyond, to another's suffering other than our own, we enter into the science of compassion experientially, we discover wisdom in it; in the immortal company of all creatures purified by angelic and human trial we glimpse the joy of tomorrow through the pain of today".
Thursday, June 07, 2007
Dhikr for Corpus Christi Sunday (C)
“Then taking the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up to heaven, he said the blessing over them, broke them, and gave them to the disciples to set before the crowd. They all ate and were satisfied. And when the leftover fragments were picked up, they filled twelve wicker baskets.” (Luke 9:16-17)
The miracle of the Eucharist is the call and the empowerment to break bread with people who have none… there is enough and in fact MORE…. only if we learn to share and make our table more inclusive!
Visit
www.badaliyya.blogspot.com
www.omigen.org/ipid
http:scbrc.net
DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...
Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:
1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…
2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.
3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage…that interprets one’s life NOW…!
It takes a week of remembering (dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…
The miracle of the Eucharist is the call and the empowerment to break bread with people who have none… there is enough and in fact MORE…. only if we learn to share and make our table more inclusive!
Visit
www.badaliyya.blogspot.com
www.omigen.org/ipid
http:scbrc.net
DHIKR SIMPLE METHOD...
Dhikr is an Arabic word for remembrance. In the “tariqa” (the way) movement, dhikr developed into a form of prayer… It is a prayer of the heart… following three simple steps:
1. Write in one’s heart a certain passage of the Holy Writ…
2. Make the same passage ever present in one’s lips.
3. Then wait for God’s disclosure on the meaning of the passage…that interprets one’s life NOW…!
It takes a week of remembering (dhikr)…or even more days to relish the beauty of this method…
Saturday, June 02, 2007
Badaliyya Prayer Circle based on the Tradition of Fr. Louis Massignon...
Ciao Friends and Partners!
Peace! There are six elements that are of crucial importance in the Badaliyya Circle. These are: CHARITY, FIGURE OF ABRAHAM, RANSOM/SUBSTITUTION,WITNESS, HOSPITALITY and DHIKR.
1. Charity. It is an active and sensitive charity. Solidarity understood as the ability to suffer with those who suffer injustice. It is an attempt to liberate … at least to know how to protest with sorrow. It is to accompany the poor with help and sympathy. Charity is shown with great delicate respect to a person before many and varied religious option.
2. The Figure of Abraham. The figure of Abraham is a mystery of election and exclusion. Is it also a mystery of acceptance and a mystery of rejection? Ismael vs. Israel, David and Paul… Hadith has it: “No one is truly a believer until one prefers not for his brother what one prefers for himself.”
3. The reality of being a Badal – Substitution. Louis Massignon had “discovered” the reality of BADAL – Substitution for the reparation of injustices and for witnessing to the poor and victims of injustices. Substitution demands an offer of the total self – similar to the test of fire. The witness “par excellence” is the one who does complete or offered as a total ransom that which is lacking in truth that God knows… Massignon found this in the life and martyrdom of Husayn at Kerbala in the Shi’a Theology. Husayn is the vivification of the mystery of redemption.
• The Ram in place of Isaac
• The Paschal Lamb for the first born of Israel
• The tribe of Levi for the nation of Israel
• Jesus for humanity.
Examples used by Fr. Louis Massignon…
• The demand on the part of Christians at Najran
• The offer of St. Francis of Assisi at Damietta
• The Desire of St. Raymund of Lull
• The acceptance of Louis Massignon & Charles de Foucauld, mystically; to become Badal…
5. Hospitality as the Value Lived by Badal… Louis Massignon discovered hospitality when wounded in battle and cared for by Muslims. “I had been saved in the Muslim land by the virtue of the obligation of sanctuary lived heroically by my Muslim hosts notwithstanding the espionage and betrayal that they denounced before me.” He discovered that in Islam the priority of sanctuary is over the obligation of the just war. The praxis of hospitality made Massignon understand the sense of Abrahamic faith – communicated not by logic but by living intuition emerging from a life lived in their midst. “I share the trust of the Muslims in the God of hospitality.” The hospitality of Abraham is the sign that announces the final end of gathering all nations. The host is God’s envoy. He is the witness – person that welcomes strangers, heals the sick, clothes the naked…
6. The Person in Prayer (through Remembrance - DHIKR). To live in God's presence by remembering him always through our lips, mind, hands and heart.
Eliseo “Jun” Mercado, OMI
Badaliyya – Philippines
Jun.mercado@gmail.com
Peace! There are six elements that are of crucial importance in the Badaliyya Circle. These are: CHARITY, FIGURE OF ABRAHAM, RANSOM/SUBSTITUTION,WITNESS, HOSPITALITY and DHIKR.
1. Charity. It is an active and sensitive charity. Solidarity understood as the ability to suffer with those who suffer injustice. It is an attempt to liberate … at least to know how to protest with sorrow. It is to accompany the poor with help and sympathy. Charity is shown with great delicate respect to a person before many and varied religious option.
2. The Figure of Abraham. The figure of Abraham is a mystery of election and exclusion. Is it also a mystery of acceptance and a mystery of rejection? Ismael vs. Israel, David and Paul… Hadith has it: “No one is truly a believer until one prefers not for his brother what one prefers for himself.”
3. The reality of being a Badal – Substitution. Louis Massignon had “discovered” the reality of BADAL – Substitution for the reparation of injustices and for witnessing to the poor and victims of injustices. Substitution demands an offer of the total self – similar to the test of fire. The witness “par excellence” is the one who does complete or offered as a total ransom that which is lacking in truth that God knows… Massignon found this in the life and martyrdom of Husayn at Kerbala in the Shi’a Theology. Husayn is the vivification of the mystery of redemption.
• The Ram in place of Isaac
• The Paschal Lamb for the first born of Israel
• The tribe of Levi for the nation of Israel
• Jesus for humanity.
Examples used by Fr. Louis Massignon…
• The demand on the part of Christians at Najran
• The offer of St. Francis of Assisi at Damietta
• The Desire of St. Raymund of Lull
• The acceptance of Louis Massignon & Charles de Foucauld, mystically; to become Badal…
5. Hospitality as the Value Lived by Badal… Louis Massignon discovered hospitality when wounded in battle and cared for by Muslims. “I had been saved in the Muslim land by the virtue of the obligation of sanctuary lived heroically by my Muslim hosts notwithstanding the espionage and betrayal that they denounced before me.” He discovered that in Islam the priority of sanctuary is over the obligation of the just war. The praxis of hospitality made Massignon understand the sense of Abrahamic faith – communicated not by logic but by living intuition emerging from a life lived in their midst. “I share the trust of the Muslims in the God of hospitality.” The hospitality of Abraham is the sign that announces the final end of gathering all nations. The host is God’s envoy. He is the witness – person that welcomes strangers, heals the sick, clothes the naked…
6. The Person in Prayer (through Remembrance - DHIKR). To live in God's presence by remembering him always through our lips, mind, hands and heart.
Eliseo “Jun” Mercado, OMI
Badaliyya – Philippines
Jun.mercado@gmail.com
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