… to be a contemplative

To be a contemplative Church means:

• To be deeply rooted in Christ as a branch in the vine, through prayer and worship, word and sacrament;
• To be sustained in joy and hope in the midst of a suffering world;
• To seek the continual grace and renewal of the Holy Spirit in our lives;
• To value deep wisdom and offer meaning;
• To take our theology seriously as dialogue with God as well as talk about God;
• To live in healthy rhythms of prayer and rest and work and be fully human;
• To be good news in an over active and busy world;
• To offer the gift of silence, still places and moments of encounter with the living God;
• To listen deeply to ourselves, to the world in which we live and to one another;
• To discern God’s call to us as individuals and communities;
• To wrestle with God;
• To surrender our doing in order to make space for stillness and dwelling, that God might be free to do and act within us.

Diocese of Oxford