The Contemplative Practices of Jesus & Their Connection to Human Brain Science
The Lenten Season is a fertile time to return to spiritual basics and to pursue opportunities that help renew our faith with the nourishment it needs to deepen and grow. As spiritual seekers, we can engage with the person and practices of Jesus as we recognize the model he offers us in pausing and remembering to be with God in the midst of our days.
With this understanding, you are invited to join us for a delicious lunch and dialogue about Practice the Pause: Jesus’ Contemplative Practice, New Brain Science, and What It Means to Be Fully Human by spiritual director and author, Caroline Oakes. In this refreshing text, she vividly explores recent developments in brain science, which have proven that an intentional practice of pausing for a few minutes of meditation, prayer, or other contemplative practices actually rewires the human brain. This creates ways that make us calmer and less reactive, and our world certainly needs more of this mode of responding to each other. While recognizing that every spiritual tradition values this kind of contemplative pausing, Oakes highlights Jesus’s own centering pause practice as a transformative path for becoming more “God aware,” and sparking both personal and social change.
During the program portion of this offering, participants will have opportunities for engaging in some prayerful pauses, creative and spiritual-oriented exercises around the text, and small and large group dialogue sessions. Prior reading of the text is not mandatory, but may prove beneficial. Please bring a journal for use during the program to participate in journaling prompts. Guided by Gordon Creamer.
Gordon Creamer, creator of the Mission Bridge, currently serves as Program Director at Well For The Journey, a spiritual wellness center in Lutherville, MD. He has also been involved in healthcare programming and operations since 2001 at various Assisted Living, Skilled Nursing, and Hospice communities. He earned an MA in Spiritual & Pastoral Care from Loyola University and an MA in Theology from the Ecumenical Institute of St. Mary’s Seminary & University. He is currently a candidate for the Doctor of Ministry Program at the Ecumenical Institute.
Gordon has facilitated numerous retreats and workshops that focus on creating opportunities for participants to explore and enhance their spirituality and well-being through various media. Uplifting the journey of adults, individuals with memory impairment and members of the LGBTQ+ community is a passion for him, and in the last several years, he has fostered support groups and programs for caregivers and those who are grieving losses. Trained as an end-of-life doula, certified spiritual director, and Reiki Practitioner, Gordon welcomes all in discovering the spiritual life as a means of healing, growing and thriving. www.themissionbridge.com