Divine Friendships
Divine Friendships: Exploring Christian Contemplative Classics.
Rolling Ridge is launching Divine Friendships, a new monthly series exploring Christian contemplative and devotional classics.
This series title draws its inspiration from a quote by the great 16th century Spanish mystic, Teresa of Avila, who described contemplative prayer as “a close sharing between friends”.
From the Christian perspective, divine friendships manifest themselves in at least three ways. The first is friendship within God expressed in the Holy Trinity. This is the original divine friendship out of which all the others flow. The second is friendship between God and the individual human person. The third is friendship between and among human persons united to each other through the Holy Spirit.
What can reading from Christian contemplative and devotional classics tell us about divine friendships? First, it can provide examples or templates for divine friendships showing us what they can look like. Second, it can help develop our own friendships with God by feeding our individual, unique practices of contemplative prayer. Third, it can help us to develop divine friendships with each other, grounded in the Holy Spirit.
I no longer speak of you as slaves . . . . Instead I call you friends. Jn15:15
While Alan Dillingham, a former university professor and avid reader of Christian classics for over forty years, helped launch this series, beginning in March 2022, Rolling Ridge is partnering with the Prairie Retreat to bring a 6 part series on Christian Mystics featuring Matthew Fox. We will be shifting from Monday evenings to Thursdays. More information is below with event registration. With registration, you will receive a coupon code for a discount on a Matthew Fox book!
Previous sessions of Divine Friendships with blog and video options:
- Augustine’s Confessions: Blog on Augustine's Confessions. Video on Augustine's Confessions.
- The Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis: Blog on Thomas' The Imitation of Christ. Video on Imitation of Christ by Thomas à Kempis.
- Introduction to the Divine Life by Francis de Sales: Blog on the Introduction to the Divine Life. Video on the Introduction to the Divine Life by Francis de Sales.
- The Cloud of Unknowing by Anonymous: Blog on the Cloud of Knowing. Video on the Cloud of Unknowing.
- The Journey of the Mind to God by St. Bonaventure: Video on the Journey of the Mind to God by St. Bonaventure.
- Julian of Norwich (presented by Matthew Fox)
- Hildegard of Bingen (presented by Matthew Fox)
- Meister Eckhart (presented by Matthew Fox)
- Thomas Merton (presented by Matthew Fox)
- Thomas Aquinas (presented by Matthew Fox)
- One River Many Wells (presented by Matthew Fox)
- The Cosmic Christ (presented by Matthew Fox)
- Original Blessing (presented by Matthew Fox)
- Essential Writings on Creation Spirituality with Matthew Fox (presented by Matthew Fox)
- Christian Mystics with Matthew Fox (presented by Matthew Fox)
Email us for access to the events by Matthew Fox.
Upcoming in the series:
- Thursday, January 19, 2023 = Naming the Unnameable: 89 Wonderful and Useful Names for God--Including the Unnameable God (presented by Matthew Fox, in partnership with the Prairie Retreat)
- Thursday, March 16, 2023 = Reinvention of Work - new Vision of Livelihood for Our Time (presented by Matthew Fox, in partnership with the Prairie Retreat)
- Thursday, April 20, 2023 = Creativity: Where the Divine and the Human Meet (presented by Matthew Fox, in partnership with the Prairie Retreat)
- Thursday, May 18, 2023 = The Physics of Angels - Exploring the Realm Where Science and Angels Meet (presented by Matthew Fox, in partnership with the Prairie Retreat)
- Thursday, June 15, 2023 = The A.W.E. Project: Reinventing Education - Reinventing the Human (presented by Matthew Fox, in partnership with the Prairie Retreat)
With nominal fees for this program, your generous donation to assist Rolling Ridge is greatly appreciated. Thank you.