Book Reviews
Listening Hearts: Retreat Designs and Meditative Exercises
In 1987, a remarkable project began which has in seven years touched the lives of numerous women and men, ordained and members of the laity, concerned about how deepening growth in Christ can result in a deepening sense of ministry. With the publication of Listening Hearts (Morehouse Publishing, 1991), news of the retreats were offered throughout the church. Although rooted in the Episcopal Church, the Christian Vocation Project has drawn on the gifts and resources of the ecumenical church since its inception.
With the recent publication of Listening Hearts Retreat Designs, the Christian Vocation Project has made available a spiritual resource that can be used individually or in groups, with or without a designated leader. The purpose of this guide is to encourage men and women to see the gift of silence and shared reflection as a resource of enormous consequence for the quality of human life. As the Introduction to the Designs states, ".the retreats and meditation exercises herein serve to help individuals and communities integrate the practice of discernment into their daily lives."
The Listening Hearts Retreat Designs is offered as a companion to the previously published, Listening Hearts. It provides exercises and guided meditations for private prayer and group retreats. In addition, it offers guidelines for retreat leaders in making use of the resources with varying size groups of people. The significance of Call, Ministry and Discernment plus exercises and meditations which focus on the nature of Christian Community. Drawing on a wealth of resources both classical and contemporary, the Retreat Designs weave together silence, personal reflection and exercises that involve both the body and creative imagination. Everything about the Designs are invitational. Each retreat design provides options that honor the range of experience and psychological differences that we all bring to the Christian Pilgrimage.
Listening Hearts Retreat Designs is a gift to the church. Its emphasis is deeply rooted in the person of Jesus as the one who calls us and empowers us for ministry. What it offers is an invitation to learn afresh what it means to listen to the voice of God with body, mind and spirit. The designs are presented in a way that allow for a wide variety of usage. Together with Listening Hearts these retreat designs are a resource for anyone interested in the Christian Pilgrimage from those taking their first steps to those who have been walking a long time.
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