Christian Meditation: Weekly Teachings Podcast

The School of Contemplative Life
  • 5.0 (1)
  • Christianity
  • Updated Weekly

Are you seeking a path to peace, or a deeper connection with God? This podcast shares teachings from our Christian meditation gatherings that happen online twice a week. Each episode features a short reflection from Chris Whittington. Chris draws from the rich stream of Christian contemplative wisdom across the centuries — from Jesus and the Desert Mothers and Fathers to Meister Eckhart, Julian of Norwich, the author of The Cloud of Unknowing, and more recent voices such as Thomas Merton, Rowan Williams, Martin Laird, Ruth Burrows and Maggie Ross as well as wisdom from other faiths/traditions. Chris is the Founder of The School of Contemplative Life. He was introduced to meditation at the Benedictine monastery of Prinknash Abbey, England, where he spent time living and studying as part of several years of formation. Following an introduction from the Abbot at Prinknash Abbey, Chris spent time studying at the Dalai Lama’s monastery in Dharamsala, India, deepening his understanding of meditation practice across contemplative traditions. You may also like to know: We warmly invite you to join our online meditation community. Practising with others provides the support and rhythm that helps a meditation practice take root and grow. People join us from many different backgrounds and traditions. Our free online gatherings take place every Saturday morning and Wednesday evening (UK time). Each session includes a live teaching, 20 minutes of silent meditation and some shared reflection. Sign up here: https://schoolofcontemplativelife.com/online-meditation/  To send a question to Chris, or share your thoughts, please email: info@schoolofcontemplativelife.com  Episode transcripts are available here: https://schoolofcontemplativelife.com/teachings-from-contemplative-christianity This podcast is made possible through the generosity of our donors. If this teaching becomes meaningful to you, you’re invited to support the work of The School of Contemplative Life so that it can remain freely available to others. Please click here to donate: https://schoolofcontemplativelife.com/donate/ Thank you!

  1. May 23

    Blessed are the Poor in Spirit - a Contemplative Perspective

    St. John Cassian, who was largely responsible for bringing our tradition of meditation to the West in the fifth century,  linked Jesus' teaching on "poverty of spirit" to simplest form of prayer, repeating a prayer word and letting go of "the abundant riches of thought".

    12 min

  2. May 17

    More from the Cloud of Unknowing - A gentle way of prayer

    The great fourteenth-century work The Cloud of Unknowing was written as a practical guide for a young student and is a text of great importance for the practice of meditation in the Christian tradition, what the anonymous author calls the ‘work’ of contemplation. I’d like to share some of the author’s teaching from Chapters 45 and 46 of The Cloud. What he shares is very important. But how he shares it is equally important. As I read his words, he speaks to me in a way I have valued greatly in my own teachers, a blend of no-nonsense directness, tenderness and humour.

    18 min

  3. May 17

    The Prodigal Son - a contemplative perspective

    In Jesus' story of the Prodigal Son, the younger son squandered his inheritance. However, the word commonly translated as ‘squandered’ (διεσκόρπισεν) can also mean ‘scattered’ or ‘dispersed.’ With this deeper meaning in mind, we might hear the beginning of this Parable as a rich teaching for the practice of meditation and the cultivation of attention.

    9 min

  4. May 17

    Overlooking the flower - the beauty we fail to see

    A beautiful story of a young monk so eager to do his tasks correctly that he was oblivious to what was hiding in plain sight. In meditation we find our sense of wonder deepens.

    8 min

  5. Apr 14

    Jesus, Gandhi and the Work of Peace

    Along with the Bhagavad Gita, Gandhi considered the Sermon on the Mount the greatest writing on nonviolence in history. He read the Sermon nearly every morning and evening for over forty years. Though not a Christian, he said its words went ‘straight to my heart.’ ‘The gentle figure of Christ – so patient, so kind, so loving, so full of forgiveness… I thought this was a beautiful example of the perfect human being.’

    11 min

  6. Apr 10

    Wisdom from the Cloud of Unknowing

    A reflection on "The Cloud of Unknowing" and the power of contemplative prayer - how an ancient tradition leads us beyond thought into love, healing separation and restoring our oneness.

    12 min

  7. Apr 7

    Silence and Resurrection: an Easter reflection

    A contemplative Easter reflection on Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and the resurrection. Discover how silence, surrender, and the practice of meditation open us to God’s presence—where letting go becomes the doorway to love, healing, and new life.

    19 min

  8. Mar 25

    The Marriage of East and West: a vision of global, spiritual friendship

    A reflection on Benedictine Monk, Bede Griffiths, and the meeting of Eastern and Western spiritual traditions, exploring how the journey into silence and the return to the centre reveals a deeper unity beneath all religions and offers a foundation for peace.

    17 min
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Are you seeking a path to peace, or a deeper connection with God? This podcast shares teachings from our Christian meditation gatherings that happen online twice a week. Each episode features a short reflection from Chris Whittington. Chris draws from the rich stream of Christian contemplative wisdom across the centuries — from Jesus and the Desert Mothers and Fathers to Meister Eckhart, Julian of Norwich, the author of The Cloud of Unknowing, and more recent voices such as Thomas Merton, Rowan Williams, Martin Laird, Ruth Burrows and Maggie Ross as well as wisdom from other faiths/traditions. Chris is the Founder of The School of Contemplative Life. He was introduced to meditation at the Benedictine monastery of Prinknash Abbey, England, where he spent time living and studying as part of several years of formation. Following an introduction from the Abbot at Prinknash Abbey, Chris spent time studying at the Dalai Lama’s monastery in Dharamsala, India, deepening his understanding of meditation practice across contemplative traditions. You may also like to know: We warmly invite you to join our online meditation community. Practising with others provides the support and rhythm that helps a meditation practice take root and grow. People join us from many different backgrounds and traditions. Our free online gatherings take place every Saturday morning and Wednesday evening (UK time). Each session includes a live teaching, 20 minutes of silent meditation and some shared reflection. Sign up here: https://schoolofcontemplativelife.com/online-meditation/  To send a question to Chris, or share your thoughts, please email: info@schoolofcontemplativelife.com  Episode transcripts are available here: https://schoolofcontemplativelife.com/teachings-from-contemplative-christianity This podcast is made possible through the generosity of our donors. If this teaching becomes meaningful to you, you’re invited to support the work of The School of Contemplative Life so that it can remain freely available to others. Please click here to donate: https://schoolofcontemplativelife.com/donate/ Thank you!

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