Sojourners of the Heart
To “sojourn” means to take up a temporary residence somewhere while waiting for a better place. As followers of Jesus, we are called to see and live out a new and better Kingdom even while we still walk in a broken world. Ever since the birth of the Church believers have shared and encouraged one another in how to thrive and grow despite the troubles of this world. The Sojourners ministry is a modern Contemplative community that seeks to apply these ancient spiritual formation practices used by the Church throughout history and apply this in a communal context for mutual growth and encouragement.
When many people hear about the contemplative practices it is not uncommon to imagine an old monk sitting alone somewhere in quiet meditation. It can sound like something more conducive to introverts and hermits, than regular people trying to live in the “real world.” While the contemplative Christian tradition does emphasize the quiet examination of one’s own heart, a Contemplative community is not passive. It requires active participants who will both examine their own motives while applying the words of Jesus in life with others. A Contemplative community balances deep inner transformation with a life of active faith lived out with and for the sake of others.
The contemplative tradition
While many traditions teach the importance of contemplation as a spiritual practice, St. Anthony and the early Desert Father and Mothers in the 3rd and 4th centuries helped develop these into what many recognize as the Christian contemplative tradition. The first few centuries of Christians identified their faith through literal suffering and death in Christ’s name. However, by the time of Constantine, the Church was the officially mandated state institution and dying for one’s faith was no longer a primary sign of complete devotion to Jesus Christ. Suddenly anyone could be called a Christian without having made any personal sacrifice or act of faithful devotion to Jesus Christ as Lord. In fleeing the nominalism of this new imperial Christianity, these early believers sought a way of faith that would shape not merely outer practices, but a deep inner transformation of the heart toward God and others. Although they practiced significant time alone in silence and prayer, they welcomed ardent seekers from the world over in search of a vibrant spiritual community model that they could take back to their cities.
Contemplative Communities in History
Various religious communities and monastic traditions have practiced the contemplative path together for centuries – from the early Jewish people (including Jesus and his own disciples), all the way through both the Catholic and Orthodox traditions, and into the present day. Jewish rabbis would train their students up in common practices as they lived and worked together – chanting the Psalms, reciting the Scriptures (Torah), musing on the teachings of Moses and the Prophets (Midrash) . Jesus gave his disciples a common template of prayer to train them in how to talk to God and approach daily living.
The early Church continued these traditions and developed their own didactic hymns and creeds to bring the early Christian community together in the work of spiritual formation. Many of the Catholic and Orthodox saints were known not only for their lives and teaching, but also their work in forming communities of faith in common spiritual formation practices that endure to this day (St. Ignatius, St. Benedict, St. Francis, etc.). In the Protestant tradition, numerous intentional communities of faith formed around a common set of values and practices meant to sustain them through tumultuous times (the Anabaptists, the Moravians, the Quakers, the Puritans, etc.) . Each of these movements were founded on both prayer and devotion in a close and active community.
Relevance for Today
It does not take much imagination to draw parallels to our own age. We live in a time of great spiritual upheaval where identifying as a Christian has become harder and harder to put a firm finger on. This era of pervasive consumer marketing and ever-present smartphones has created a nominal culture of constant distraction and compulsivity. We are increasingly losing touch with the most important things in life, and find ourselves unable to stop and pay attention to what God is doing in and around us. When Covid hit, it exposed just how fragile and disconnected our lives had become in the 21st century, even within Christian circles. Many have become disillusioned with the role of the Church in faith and community, and have either dived deeper in search of God or have given up altogether. In this vacuum of loneliness and despair, even long-time Christians are turning to alternative forms of community including political tribalism and religious nationalism. How can the Church stand apart as a community of light in an ever darkening world?
The resulting spiritual crisis is frightening, but it is also a powerful catalyst that is launching the spiritually hungry in search of deeper lives that will sustain in times of trouble. If history has taught us anything, it is that the serious Christ follower must both flee the hold of this world, while also finding fellow pilgrims to travel the arduous and lonely path of faith together. The saints who have come before us were simple men and women who gathered or found others to join them in stoking the flames within. They learned, grew and encouraged one another into a long obedience in the same direction.
An All-Consuming Fire
It is important to note however that spiritual disciplines alone do not a contemplative make. Tapping into our deepest spiritual hunger and need must ground our spiritual practices in the heart, just like a horse leads a cart. Many have put the “cart before the horse” and tried a Rule of Life as yet another list of “should’s” and “have to’s” in vain hopes of generating some kind of spiritual passion. For the true contemplative, desire must precede will-power . For the contemplative Christian, we are always working within the gap between our own desire and the experience we long for with God. It becomes the quiet obsession that fuels and propels us forward in search of what would seem like madness to others. Likewise, without the sustaining contributions of other “burning coals” in our lives, we will only burn out and fade in our passion. Whether it is learning from the great saints of history, or sitting with a seasoned brother or sister in the faith, we will only keep the fire burning with the help of others.
For the earliest Christian contemplatives and mystics, God was seen as an “all consuming fire” in which the fire represents the passionate and limitless love of God . In the fires of God’s love, all things that are not of Love’s kind are burned away and purified from our lives. And when we emerge from the flames, we are not consumed, but are made whole and “without even the scent of smoke” upon us . This is the driving desire that is at the core of all true Christian mystics and contemplatives, and it propels them into a world on fire with their hope intact. Consumed by God’s unending love, the contemplative throws all their hopes and dreams upon Jesus and walks a slow and steady beat at His side. It is the path that runs down the center of the gospel message and its call to let go of the frantic hold this world has upon our lives, and to take up our cross and follow Him to a better place. And those who can gather together with one heart and one mind on this grand expedition will arrive at their desired destination with a shared joy in their hearts upon the fulfillment of their greatest desire.