The Spiritual Life, Episode 15: Contemplation Summary

The Spiritual Life, Episode 15: Contemplation Summary In this episode, Father Bernard summarizes the previous two long episodes on Contemplation in order to make the subjects more accessible. This episode begins with establishing that the dark night of the senses comes as the transitional crisis between the stages of beginners to the stage of proficient – the purgative to the illuminative stage respectively. St. John of the Cross said: “The night of sense is common and comes to many: these are the beginners.” Not everyone who experiences a little dryness in prayer is going through the dark night the soul. There are signs, three signs, that St. John of the Cross lists and explains that indicate a soul is passing from meditation to the more simple and spiritual form of prayer called contemplation. When all three signs are present at once, then contemplation is beginning; if not, then its something else. One: The Soul is Unable to Meditate. Two: Lack of consolation in prayer and worldly things. Three: An inclination and peace in spending time in God’s presence with a wordless, quiet, peaceful, loving “gazing” upon God. Contemplation is a supernatural love and knowledge of God, simple and obscure, infused by him into the summit of the soul, giving it a direct and experimental contact with Him. Original Air Date: March 9, 2017 Show Run Time: 38 minutes Show Guest(s): Father Bernard Uttley, O.S.B.