Author: Jay Forrest

John Michael Talbot has pointed out that “the word ‘meditation’ means somewhat different things to different traditions.” He then points out that what a Hindu or Buddhist means by the word meditation is different from what Christians traditionally meant by the word.

Traditionally, in Christianity, meditation has referred to discursive meditation. That means meditation has always referred to thinking about or pondering on something, whether a scripture or an attribute or work of God.

The mosern meaning of meditation is quite different. Wikipedia says it well, “Meditation is a practice in which an individual uses a technique to train attention and awareness and detach from reflexive, “discursive thinking”, achieving a mentally clear and emotionally calm and stable state.”

This detachment from discursive thinking has been referred to as recollection. St. Teresa calls this the prayer of recollection. And when one is recollected, they enter into the prayer of quiet. In Hesychasm this is called stillness, and the Jesus Prayer is used to achieve this.

But as much as we may complain, the Buddhist definition of meditation is the one that is usually best known today. This is because mindfulness meditation has been incorporated into psychotherapy.

At first, I thought I would buck the convention and go with the traditional meaning of meditation. But my second thought has been to go ahead and follow the modern understanding of meditation.

All that to say that from this point on, unless indicated otherwise, by meditation, I’ll be meaning a practice which trains attention and awareness to detach from reflexive, discursive thinking. In this, I’ll be following Benedictine Monk, John Main, who says that “meditation is in essence the art of concentration.”

As Marcus Aurelius says, “You always own the option of having no opinion. There is never any need to get worked up or to trouble your soul about things you can’t control. These things are not asking to be judged by you. Leave them alone.’

Mr. You’re Wrong

When I first became a Christian, I really got into the Bible. I became quite the student of the Bible and was able to quote it from memory. I also was quite sure of my interpretation of it.

In fact, I was so sure of my interpretation of the Bible, and its application to the Christian Life, but I felt it was my duty to correct those around me. My friends would call me Mr. You’re Wrong. I was really quite a jerk.

Much Less Certain

That was over four decades ago. And I’m much less certain on my interpretation of the Bible. And I’m also quite sure that there are many ways to interpret the Bible, and apply it to one’s life. One size doesn’t fit all.

Learning to not have an opinion about everything is a difficult. It’s hard, because we see reality through our worldview. It both allows us to interpret the world, but also blinds us to our misinterpretations of it.

A great practice is to have no opinion on what somebody is saying. Let them say what they say, let them believe what they believe, and let it go. You don’t need to have an opinion on it. You don’t need to share your opinion on it. In fact, most of the time it’s unwelcomed anyway.

Here I’m preaching to myself. I find myself oversharing. Talking too much and giving my perspective. As if anybody really cares about it. Most don’t.

Be Listening

What’s more important is to be listening. And listening means to be open. And to be open it means to have no opinion. Or at least no opinion before. It’s time. It is at the close of a conversation, that one can form an opinion on the subject.

And we have to remember there’s always the third option. Most of the time we accept a claim, or reject a claim. But there is also the possibility of suspending judgment. I’m not making a judgment on the topic until we studied it further. This allows us to be open to learning.