Gigi Ross: Spiritual Life is All About Relationship
Oct 29, 2023
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Gigi Ross, a spiritual director and manager at the Center for Action and Contemplation, shares her profound journey with Centering Prayer. She emphasizes the transformative effects of spiritual direction and community, illustrating how deep listening and presence can deepen one's faith. The conversation highlights the interplay between personal struggles and the divine, alongside the importance of navigating cultural barriers in spiritual growth. Gigi also underscores the communal nature of spirituality, advocating for interdependence over the individualistic approach in modern faith practices.
Centering Prayer fosters a transformative personal relationship with spirituality, heavily emphasizing the importance of community engagement and support during the journey.
Spiritual direction plays a crucial role in guiding individuals through their inner lives, allowing for deeper understanding and fostering meaningful connections in faith.
Deep dives
The Origins and Personal Journey into Centering Prayer
Centering Prayer is introduced as a personal and relational practice that deeply connects individuals to their spirituality. A personal account highlights how the guest, Gigi Ross, was first drawn to Centering Prayer after attending an introductory workshop in 1998, which transformed her meditation experience. Initially apprehensive about practicing alone, Gigi sought community, ultimately leading her to explore both church services and Centering Prayer groups, which enriched her spiritual journey. As she engaged with the practice, Gigi found that participating in retreats further deepened her understanding and connection, highlighting the importance of community in contemplative practices.
The Role of Spiritual Direction in Deepening Practice
Spiritual direction plays a crucial role in enhancing the experience of Centering Prayer by providing guidance and companionship on the spiritual journey. Gigi emphasizes that spiritual directors can help individuals navigate their inner lives, offering a reflective space where they can identify and understand unconscious motivations. This relationship helps individuals confront challenges and encourages a deeper understanding of their spiritual practices. The collaborative relationship between the practitioner and the director fosters growth and facilitates the practice of letting go, which is essential in cultivating a more meaningful connection to one's faith.
Centering Prayer as a Tool for Unloading the False Self
Centering Prayer serves as a method for recognizing and dismantling personal ego agendas, leading to a profound process of self-emptying and transformation. The conversation elaborates on the distinction between merely having thoughts during prayer and engaging with those thoughts, emphasizing that the latter can disrupt the practice. Gigi speaks to how thoughts arise during prayer sessions, but true engagement with those thoughts is what needs to be relinquished, allowing for a deeper connection with God. As practitioners learn to embrace their thoughts without attachment, they develop a more authentic relationship with themselves and their spirituality.
The Transformative Power of Community in Spiritual Practices
Engagement in spiritual communities is portrayed as vital for personal and collective growth in contemplative practices like Centering Prayer. Gigi describes how her experiences in the Living School reveal that most students found the communal aspect of their spiritual journey to be transformative, often more so than the academic content. These small groups foster an environment where individuals can practice implementing contemplative teachings in real-life situations, allowing them to grow together in faith. By nurturing relationships that go beyond individualism, participants create a supportive atmosphere that encourages vulnerability and deeper connection to God and to each other.
On today’s episode, we speak with Gigi Ross, who began practicing Centering Prayer after attending an introductory workshop in 1998. Gigi has been a Spiritual Director since 2000 and worked as an Associate Director at the Shalem Institute for Spiritual Foundation. She also served on the leadership team for Contemplative Outreach of Maryland and Washington from 2003 to 2005. She is currently working at the Center for Action and Contemplation (CAC) as the Living School Student Experience Manager. We are so grateful for our long-standing partnership with CAC and the tremendous work she is doing there.
Season 2 of Opening Minds, Opening Hearts was made possible by a grant from the Trust for the Meditation Process, a charitable foundation encouraging meditation, mindfulness, and contemplative prayer.
This episode of Opening Minds, Opening Hearts is produced by Crys & Tiana LLC www.crysandtiana.com
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