A 6-part Lenten exploration via examen, the faith practice of looking inward, trusting that God wants the eyes of the heart to be illumined.
Contemplative in Action
Through prayer, meditation, examen, reflection, scripture, poetry, fasting and almsgiving, participants will learn, over six weeks during Lent, to be a contemplative in action, connecting their spiritual lives with their active day-to-day lives.
Examen is the practice of prayerful reflection on how and where God is speaking to us from the events of the day. Through individual reflection and group discussion, participants will grow in the faith practice of examen (pronounced “examine”) as we journey together through Lent. Joined with weekly self-control and loving-kindness exercises, examen is the work we need to do before we can do the work we are called to do.
Format
- A Contemporary Interpretation of a Psalm
- Prayer and Thanksgiving
- Examen Questions and Challenge of the Text ~ examine the events of the day and the attitudes, thoughts, and feelings that color our perception of those events through the lens of scripture
- Poetry or other reading to open the door to self-examination
- Self Reflection
- Group Discussion
- Homework ~ What attitude, thought, feeling are we invited to “fast” from in the coming week? Where are we being called to “give alms” through acts of loving-kindness?
- Closing Prayer
Texts for reflection will follow loosely the Lectionary themes below:Sunday, February 21– Rainbow Covenant / Renewal / Beloved
- Sunday, February 28 – Abram and Sarai / Take Up Your Cross
- Sunday, March 7 – Commandments / Cleansing the Temple
- Sunday, March 14 – Moses and the Serpent / God so loved the world …
- Sunday, March 21– God’s Great Forgetting / A grain of wheat
- Sunday March 28 – The Passion of Christ
Leader Guide Now Available! If you wish to study the spiritual practice of Examen on your own, or convene a group study, Ms. Brown developed A Facilitator’s Guide to Examen for Lent and for Life which provides the structure and the script to create your own program. Ask Spirit in the Desert for a copy of the guide.
All are welcome to this Lenten Examen series facilitated by Sheri Brown at @spiritindesert #spiritinthedesert
Sheri Brown is a retired special education teacher, news reporter, and video producer who has written liturgy, poems, and reflections on scripture for over a decade. Her writings, sent to an email distribution list under the heading, “from the edge of the inside,” reflect both intimate realities and universal truths. Building a blog-site is in progress, significantly delayed by her technological shortcomings. She lives in the desert plateau area near Prescott, AZ, with her spouse, ELCA pastor Kirk Anderson (retired), her garden, and her books. She is an avid walker. The only thing she likes more than thinking about all kinds of things is talking about them with other curious people.
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