A study group that I am a part of is listening and practicing its way through this lovely book full of spiritual practices such as The Practice of Walking on the Earth: Groundedness, The Practice of Getting Lost: Wilderness, The Practice of Encountering Others: Community. About the practice of paying attention, the author, Barbara Brown Taylor says,
Like all the practices in this book, paying attention requires no equipment, no special clothes, no greens fees or personal trainers. You do not even have to be in particularly good shape. All you need is a body on this earth, willing to notice where it is, trusting that even something as small as a hazelnut can become an altar in the world.
The practice that has captured my heart and attention deeply through this book is the practice of reverence. It resonates with me because it is such an integral part of my inner and outer life and yet, I had never named it as reverence before. I thought of terms such as wonder, awe, and beauty. Those are also present, but the quiet presence of reverence is a near constant companion. I don’t always practice it perfectly, but I very frequently notice it. I frequently notice it when I am listening deeply to any human being’s story but particularly within the practice of spiritual direction, both as a director and a directee. A brief definition of reverence is “a feeling of deep respect, tinged with awe”. Yes. In spiritual direction, in prayer or meditation, in the outdoors, in the presence of another soul, in poetry, art and music. Do you feel the reverence?
Here is a beautiful quote from John O’Donohue:
When we approach with reverence, great things decide to approach us. Our real life comes to the surface and its light awakens the concealed beauty in things. When we walk on the earth with reverence, beauty will decide to trust us. The rushed heart and arrogant mind lack the gentleness and patience to enter that embrace.”
― John O’Donohue, Beauty: The Invisible Embrace
- If you are a spiritual director, what is your sense of reverence in your practice, in your daily life?
- If you are a directee, do you experience reverence for your own inner life and spiritual experiences?
- For all of us: How might we more deeply notice and nurture the experience of reverence in our every day moments?
I would love to hear your thoughts and comments. Please respond below.
Autumn blessings!
Rebecca
4 Comments
By Roy
Reverence (and everything else that practice entails) appear when I sit for meditation, when I feel my breath after a few awkward ‘hello there, breath.’ And definitely, when I walk, when a scene or image calls me, when I sit to draw or paint it, while I am in the act of drawing and painting, and after it, when I look at the result of my communion with Reverence.
As directee, I experience Reverence during an SD session between me and my SD.
The practice of paying attention is what I try to develop and cultivate in me. Drawing helps on that because it helps me see what I do not normally see. I would love to see like Thomas Merton –
“Then it was as if I suddenly saw the secret beauty of their hearts, the depths of their hearts, where neither sin nor desire nor self-knowledge can reach, the core of their reality, the person that each one is in God’s eyes. If only they could all see themselves as they really are. If only we could see each other that way all the time.”
By Brenda
I often sense a ” call to reverence” in my body. My head turns gently for no known reason……
and I am made aware of the Presence of the Sacred. This sensation is almost always wrapped in silence……and I simply sense it is an invitation into reverence.
By Beth Knight
It was a great pleasure to hear this author in person recently. And thankyou Rebecca for a lovely post.
For me – i experience reverence when I am kind and gentle to myself and stop pressing so hard. As a professor at Asbury said recently: God is enough for me and I am enough for God. If I/we “get” this then life becomes more tender and we abide in God in a way that feels more loving and reverent.
By Rebecca Johnson
Thanks all for the beautiful comments and reminders of how to practice reverence. You have blessed me deeply.