1. The Merton Prayer
In Thoughts in Solitude, Part Two, Chapter II
consists of fifteen lines that have become
known as "the Merton Prayer."

2. Those who seek a life of prayer will
find this beautiful work of love of
God indispensable.

3. While living contemplatively begins with
one’s self, it invites us to be active
participants in the world around us. We are
led to embrace not only our true self but to
deepen our relationships with God,
humanity, and all of creation.

4. "Contemplation is the highest expression of man's
intellectual and spiritual life. It is that life itself, fully
awake, fully active, fully aware that it is alive. It is
spiritual wonder. It is spontaneous awe at the
sacredness of life, of being. It is gratitude for life,
for awareness, and for being. It is a vivid
realization of the fact that life and being in us
proceed from an invisible, transcendent and
infinitely abundant Source. Contemplation is,
above all, an awareness of the reality of that
Source."
Thomas Merton

5. Contemplative practices facilitate and deepen our
relationship with God. They are an opportunity to
invite the Indwelling Presence into everything we do.
Contemplative practices give us the eyes to see and
the ears to hear God calling us to the banquet.
The intent of Contemplative Outreach is
to foster the process of transformation in
Christ in one another through the
practice of the Centering Prayer