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The intent of the contemplative is to see oneself having a Purpose in the world, yet, not to become embedded only in this world. The contemplative engages spiritual practice so that she might live fully in the world, while being fully not of the world. This is a paradox, and this paradox is the Christo-form life. With this Christ pattern, the contemplative can be at home anywhere. The contemplative can equally enjoy subtle experiences of the Spirit and the most mundane experiences of daily life. Indeed, I find the most spiritual persons to be the most human-like.
Likewise, the contemplative can experience emotions of joy or suffering that cannot be traced to events within his or her life, for his joy and suffering can arise from embracing the Heart of God. This Heart shares joy and suffering unrelated to the immediate context and temporality of the one who enjoys fellowship in Christ, within her Deepest Self.
The contemplative must admit and be at peace with this profound, universal participation in Christ, though it brings suffering as well as joy. And she must become content with knowing and experiencing that the conventional Christian, as well as conventional religionists, generallly, including those who reduce Christ to the historical-temporal Christianity and nationalistic politics, cannot but be ignorant of the wellsprings of both her elation and pain, as well as her compassionate embrace of persons who seek the living Christ in many historical guises. This Christian knows, transcending even her beloved religion, while still fully devoted to it, that to seek through Grace to love God and the neighbor entails the participation in this Christ who dances in a myriad places.
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However, the deeper the contemplative comes to experience the suffering and joy of Christ, a joy and suffering stripped of self-identification and locality, and knowing her joy and suffering is part of the passion of Christ, then, the more ready she is for either joy or suffering. Indeed, she would rather suffer in Christ than have joy apart from Christ, and, soon, any joy outside Christ is no joy at all. Likewise, she would rather be alone with Christ, than to be among many without Christ. She would rather have no honors in Christ, than to be honored apart from Christ.
When the contemplative is, thereby, surrendered to this Christo-form life, she finds herself unable to effect or sustain it. Then, she finds unspeakable bliss in the most humble abjection in surrender to Grace. This abjection is not the prideful focus on oneself as a sinner. Rather, this surrender is a positive and liberating humiliation through powerlessness, an experience in which one finds Love. She is delighted to say, “I can’t, You can.” She, thereby, needs no reason to justify this mystical union with Love, for she has become Love, in being wedded to Christ, indeed, becoming Christ through Love. This person, then, is deeply in love with this world, but only as this world is aglow with the Grace and Glory of the Mystery.
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