Jamie has a perceptive C.S. Lewis-inspired post up. She considers Lewis' distinction between contemplation of a thing and direct experience of that thing. They can't both happen at the same time, can they? (No, of course not.) So what does this imply about our relation to God? (Big things.) Surprising application for navel-gazers: We can't contemplate our way to salvation.
Saturday, March 31, 2007
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2 comments:
This is interesting, because you seem to have taken a slightly different approach to the topic than I did. Your angle seems to be that "merely thinking about God is not enough to gain us salvation," whereas I was approaching it from the reverse point of view that "thinking about God too much can cost us salvation" (by depriving us of the ability to believe). Either way, the point is basically the same, but yours is a different--and good--angle that I had missed.
Apparently mentioning C.S. Lewis is what one needs to do to get mentioned on your blog. Will have to keep this in mind... ;-)
You're right, Jamie, I took the topic in a slightly different direction. I've been reading some Thomas Merton in the last several days, and he is such an advocate of contemplative prayer, asceticism, and Thoughts in Solitude (the title of the book) that C.S. Lewis' distinction was a timely balance.
I think biblical "meditation" is the overlapping of thought and experience as our prayerful reflection on God's words and character lead us into his presence. "Meditation" that stops short of actual communion with the trinity is a cheap knock-off.
Apparently mentioning C.S. Lewis is what one needs to do to get mentioned on your blog.
Well, it's not quite that cut and dried, but you may be onto something. ;)
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