Tag: The City is my Monastery: A contemporary Rule of Life

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Overcoming Distraction in Contemplative Prayer

The practice of contemplative prayer in the face of distraction


So here in the midst of the world
With all its present pain and madness
You are not the sponge soaking up carbon emissions
Rather you are the channel of God‟s peace
Let that peace arise within you
Deeper than the sea of your own need or desire
Let that peace be a purity
A swept room
A tidied house
A simple order
An inner spaciousness
A forgiven, merciful place
Released from clawing need
Let go of the castles you have dug for yourself in the churned sand
Be washed flat by the beauty of the incoming waves
Let God‟s goodness in
Like a sparkling incoming tide
Smoothing the sand
And leaving a sheen of silver
Now you have cleared your near distance of the debris of your mind

See the expanse
Where heaven and earth meet
And all, all from east to west
From north to south
Is filled with light


Richard Carter
From ‘The City is my Monastery’
published by Canterbury Press ISBN: 9781786222138
© Used with permission. August 2024 Magazine.

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A Sound of Sheer Silence

From the earliest years of Christianity to the present day, the practice of silent prayer is where many have sought, and found, the presence of God. But it is not always as simple as it sounds. In this video The Revd Richard Carter offers a ‘beginner’s guide’ to silence, reflecting on its nature, practice, joys and pitfalls, and how we can find it in our noisy city and busy lives. Richard was for many years a member of the Melanesian Brotherhood in the Solomon Islands where silence was a daily part of the spiritual life of the community. In London he is the founder and leader of the Nazareth Community where contemplative prayer is the basis for their contemporary rule of life. He is Associate Vicar for Mission at St Martin-in-the-Fields in central London, and the author of ‘The City is my Monastery: A contemporary rule of life’.