Talk about your favourite authors, ideas, and whatnot.
Personally I'm searching for recs on prayer/meditation, and how to get into it.
Thanks.
Christian literature
Adam Thomas
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Angel Hill
>Don't believe in God
>Enjoy theology and theological discourse
Anyone else here?
Austin Cooper
>prayer/meditation
Spiritual Exercises of St Ignatius
Connor Turner
I'll look into it, thanks.
Jaxson Lewis
>prayer/meditation
The cloud and unknowing + the book of privy counseling
Theresa of Avila way of perfection
Asher Murphy
The Cloud of Unknowing is a commonly recommended book on Catholic meditation. I liked it. In general though, you don't need a book to guide you for just starting. The rosary or the Jesus prayer are two prayers with extremely high "skill ceilings" (if such a term is even appropriate), and even though they are extremely easy to pick up and start doing, the saints have used them for the greatest of spiritual feats. Once you get comfortable with them and practice one for at least a few months daily, start to read the Philokalia preferably with the help of a priest/monk. The most important thing though is to be simply be collected while you pray, bring your thoughts back to God if they stray, and try to stay in meditative prayer for at least 10 -15 minutes, preferably more. If you just pray once at night for 3 minutes, you will get less out of it. During this time, simply repeat the prayer of your choice, focus your mind on God or perhaps a particular story from the Gospels, and try to give up your attachment to any thoughts that keep you from God. Some Saints have used manipulation of the breath in prayer. This is an option, but you should progress to a fairly high level before starting to implement prayer of this type, and preferably under the guidance of a monk who has done it himself. Of course, simple deep breathing is perfectly fine, it is just trying to sync the breath with certain syllables of the prayer over a long time that can be a bit difficult/dangerous spiritually.
Maybe someone can rec me something on this
I want to be a better practicing Catholic but I get rather obsessive and in some cases, I tend to over think the little things so much that it makes me a worse person overall (too reserved, never take action, self hatred etc). I'm having difficulties splitting the difference and getting a healthy balance of both; I am Catholic and will always be so, but at the same time, I get a bit sad with how the Church has fallen. This is especially after reading a ton of Guenon, an author who plays down the importance of morality and limits it to a rather unimportant realm metaphysically. I don't want to be a degenerate doing whatever I want, but I don't want to be a slave to scruples. Not sure what to do lads. I went to Church today though, so that was good.
Ryan Ross
THAT IS A JUDAIZED DEPICTION OF JESUSCHRIST.
Jacob Allen
Just accept that you are a heretic.
>Guenon
Nice try, larper.
Evan Howard
I'm assuming bait, but I've been a Catholic all my life; not sure how that is larping. It's rather odd you call someone a heretic with that chart anyways.
Jose Martin
That's how I started, yea. And even though I now believe, I still think that everyone has something to gain from Christian theology
Great rec, it's worth contemplating on
Jonathan Russell
I'm a heretic too. But I don't larp. Technically I have been Catholic all my life. If attending private school and receiving all the sacraments count. But in my heart of hearts I know it is false, however. And thus I encourage heresy and free thought rather than sniveling politeness to the eternal lie. Guenon is a larper who cares more about aesthetics than truth. An orientalist fundie who inspires those who seek aesthetics rather than truth. If the Devil is father of lies, than every religion was inspired by the devil...
Hunter Thomas
I just said that I read Guenon and found his views to be interesting. Who said I am a follower of his? You are projecting. If you think Guenon is interesting about aesthetics though, you haven't even read him lmao. He never even wrote a book on aesthetics, only symbolism. He is certainly not like other orientalists either since he was initiated into eastern religion, unlike the academics. However, I have no desire to make this into a Guenon thread. Your argument is nothing but some Reddit-tier interpretation of religion and despite calling everything you don't like a "larp" you post an esoteric chart that is the greatest larp of them all when you are not initiated into any of them. Truly puzzling....
Landon James
Are you a heretic or a hypocrite? Or what the Qur'an calls munafiq - someone who fakes belief to fit in among the community of believers?
I always assumed a heretic is sincere.
Jose Adams
>reddit
Projection
>initiated into eastern religion
I must have forgot that sufism makes one an expert on hinduism.
>esotericism is greatest larp of them all
If you actually believe in it then, yes, it is a larp. But all religions are larps. Your sin is not larping as religious instead of being truly religious -- as if such a thing exists. Your sin is larping as a philosopher interested in truth when you are nothing of the sort. At best you seek pop-philosophy, how to make your life and mind eased.
>not initiated
Not an argument. Besides, I am confessed to being a sacramentally initiated catholic in the previous post. And have even engaged with other traditions. In any case, Initiation is overrated and frankly incoherent when used as per Guenon.
Camden Moore
Why? Explain it to me nicely and without yelling please.
Carson Powell
I am not a hypocrite. I make no lies about what I believe. I believe no religion is the truth, and that heretics and atheists were often closer to the truth than those brainwashed by orthodoxy... I try not to blaspheme too much, but I know I am an apostate at least if not a full on heretic.
Evan Sanchez
>Initiation is overrated
Lmao I don't even know how to respond to that
>At best you seek pop-philosophy, how to make your life and mind eased.
Projecting, again.
I'm confused on why you are so convinced of your knowledge of religions and Guenon's work when you reduce them to nothing but "larping." I don't know why you are obsessed with that term. You spam it in every other sentence and provide no definition for what constitutes insincere belief. Surely you must have a better argument than just projecting and assuming my personal beliefs? If you take such a broad definition of the term "larp" to include anything that someone sincerely believes, then you can apply that to literally anything you don't like and invalidate it. Regardless, whether or not a particular individual is "larping" has no pertinence on the teaching itself. These sort of debates just goes to show how ironic the world has become wherein nothing can be affirmed or committed to. I would be interested to see what you consider a true and good life that is not larping, not as a way of attacking you, but just out of genuine curiosity, since the term seems like just a defense mechanism for something you don't like.
Landon Nguyen
1. BECAUSE IT PRESENTS JESUSCHRIST AS A JUDAIC PRIEST —LOOK AT THE ATTIRE —ESPECIALLY AT THE JEWELED BREASTPLATES, AND AT THE LAMP, WHICH IS ORNAMENTED WITH LITTLE HEXAGRAMS.
2. LETTERCASE DOES NOT SIGNIFY VOICE MODULATION —NOONE IS «YELLING» [SIC]; NOONE IS EVEN SPEAKING HERE.
Robert Rivera
Anyone know a good source on the nature of sin or it's corrupting influence? I was thinking about writing an essay on Dracula which I think has a lot to say on the subject when comparing Lucy and Mina. The idea is that Mina is ultimately able to resist the devil symbolized by Dracula and even turn his own powers against him because she's a very pure character who does the right things. In contrast Lucy starts out engaging in a very minor sin of acting flirtatious but because sin has this corrupting and magnifying influence, we see throughout the novel that she gradually becomes a worse person as the devils influence grows on her and by the end she's literally eating children. It's as if sin makes you more susceptible or likely to commit greater sins in the future.
Angel Hernandez
1. Okay, next time I'll use another pic.
2. Uppercase has been used to represent the act of yelling for almost 200 years, if you want to be a contrarian go ahead, but I'm letting you know it's poor netiquette.
Ah, these tripfags, they never change.
Leo Barnes
By the way, are you the guy from obrerismo.mx?
Justin Anderson
Your style is as sloshy as the decadent art you post. You hide your gaze from the beautiful reality of the human nature of christ with your dull colours and muddled linework. Bright colours and strong lines lead to a bright and strong faith.
Anyway here's a picture of a little jew boy.
Parker Sanders
Replying to myself again. I think he is.
Daniel Cooper
>!KNDYYIIins
kndy.carrd.co
Basado y tacopilleado.
Cameron Adams
Are you initiated? Who was the first initiate? What came first; initiation or tradition? If one can initiate before tradition was invented why can't one initiate outside modern traditions? You should know that being a Catholic traditionalist is an incoherent position, moreover, insofar as the notion of a prisca theologia is considered heretical since around the late renaissance and perennialism invalidates all that which makes Christianity unique according to most. Not that I really care. Christianity is a lie. But some food for thought.
Initiation *is* overrated. Everything is initiatic. Even posting on Yea Forums. Guenon uses the term to refer exclusively to mainstream religion and ignores the rich tribal and modern subcultural parallels which can be assumed from a careful reading of Durkheim and Eliade.
Have you ever had a religious experience? I am confused as to how traditions can be true whatwith being conveyed in language to describe an experience beyond language.
>calling things larps is ironic
It is indeed ironic when Guenon essentially accuses all those engaged in spirituality he dislikes as being pseudo-intitiates of a pseudo-tradition. If only he could apply such criticism to his self as well.
>pertinence to the teaching
The teaching may be helpful to some but is non-philosophical. It is ossified dogma that may help improve life slightly when followed, hence why I called it pop philosophy, but should be supplemented by philosophical inquiry and analysis if own seeks to be fully human and a creature of the present rather than a slave to the past.
>true and good life that is not larping
It looks like the religious life externally but involves more skepticism internally.
Nathaniel Mitchell
>recs on prayer/meditation, and how to get into it.
archive.org
Tanquerey's The spiritual life ; a treatise on ascetical and mystical theology
a classic
Joshua Bennett
>1. Okay, next time I'll use another pic.
GOOD.
>2. Uppercase has been used to represent the act of yelling for almost 200 years...
THAT IS BOTH: FALSE, AND ABSURD.
ALL ALPHABETS HAVE BEEN CREATED IN UPPERCASE LETTERING, AND LOWERCASE LETTERING HAS ALWAYS BEEN A LATTER DERIVATION FROM THE ORIGINAL UPPERCASE, USED IN SCRIPTED WRITING.
ACCORDING TO YOUR ERRONEOUS LOGIC, IF UPPERCASE LETTERING SIGNIFIES «YELLING», LOWERCASE LETTERING SHOULD SIGNIFY «WHISPERING».
THE ONLY WRITTEN SIGNIFICATION OF VOICE MODULATION IS THE EXCLAMATION MARK («!»).
>... but I'm letting you know it's poor netiquette.
LEARN GRAPHEMATICS, AND PUNCTUATION, INSTEAD OF «NETIQUETTE».
Daniel Collins
>rich tribal and modern subcultural parallels which can be assumed from a careful reading of Durkheim and Eliade.
>insofar as the notion of a prisca theologia is considered heretical since around the late renaissance and perennialism invalidates all that which makes Christianity unique according to most
Are you trying to appear like a psued? The way you phrase everything as if you have it all figured out is the most dogmatic thing about this entire discussion. Either way, you still didn't reply to my question. Saying what a truly good life is NOT, is not what I asked. I asked what it IS. Don't beat around the bush. Sounds like you were just using larping as a defense mechanism since you didn't even mention it again. Once again, you will probably just take a part of this point to respond to instead of the actual point of it all.
Additionally, I have said multiple times I am not a Guenonian/Traditionalist Catholic. Can you read? Stop projecting.
Angel Allen
>Once again, you will probably just take a part of this point to respond to instead of the actual point of it all.
Respond to my posts then.
>what is larping?
IMO, larping is believing in something that is untrue or unfalsifiable or unverifiable simply because it makes you feel good or comforts you or improves your life somehow.
>what a truly good life is -- not is not
Can you read?
>It looks like the religious life externally but involves more skepticism internally
Basically a mixture of utilitarian ethics, doing good for community, virtue ethics, doing good for yourself, and a sort of epistemological ethics of living an examined life of curiosity, skepticism, openness to wonder and mystery, and rational and empirical inquiry. It is sad that so few embody all three ethicisms.
Josiah Brown
For meditation, I think "divine intimacy" is frequently recommended. Of course it's only a good starting point, the real meditation is the one you perform.
I was reading "the soul of every apostolate" the other day. Good stuff, but was written for priests and seminarians. I guess most of the ideas can be adapted to lay folks. The mental prayer "method" the author teaches is worth checking out.
For mystical and ascetical theology, I recommand Garrigou-Lagrange's many works, especially "the three ages of the interior life". He manages to make a real synthesis of all the spiritual tradition using Thomas Aquinas and John of the Cross. Familliarity with thomist jargon can be useful.
Nobody seems to have name dropped ss. Theresa of Avila and John of the Cross, but I guess they are well known by all.
Also what this guy said
Now with a question: where do I start with Elisabeth of the Trinity?
Noah Thomas
>Garrigou-Lagrange
Thanks, what a great recommendation
Austin Jenkins
My recommendation for anyone interested in prayer/meditation is attended Holy Hour. The Benediction, adoration of the Eucharist and recitation of the Divine Office with a holy congregation will give you a greater sense of God than any book, although books certainly help. The Imitation of Christ by Thomas a Kempis is perhaps the best work on this topic. It has a whole section on Eucharistic spirituality (which in my view is the most concrete kind, although it is limited to Catholics and Orthodox).
Adrian Mitchell
The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence is a short read that you may find helpful.
Joshua Harris
this might be a dumb question but is there a book on thoughts of what would happen if there was only one or a few christians left and how they'd preserve their beliefs?
or what their finals prayers and writings might be?
Gavin Miller
Research the Old Believers in Russia a bit. They are basically what happens. They thought that all other Christians were heretical and so they retreated deep into Russia without having anyone that could validly ordain their clergy. As a result, they had a lot of interesting practices like Churches with no Eucharist, etc.
Ethan Miller
bump