Ruben Habito Date Change
News Flash! Please note that we have a change in date for our Fall Contemplative Retreat with Ruben Habito. Ruben is not able to come to Monterey for our October date, and has rescheduled to come:
Friday November 12 and Saturday November 13.
I hope that this change works for all of you. The weekend event will take place in the Fellowship hall.
Ruben will give a talk on Friday evening from 7 – 9pm on “Zen as engaged spirituality: toward healing a wounded world”. Our Saturday time together will be from 9am to 4:00pm and will include sitting and walking meditation, talks, and discussion. Lunch will be provided. The suggested donation is $10 for Friday and $35 for Saturday. All are welcome.
These two updated fliers have the new dates and more information: This one, Habito Registration Flier 2010, has a tear-off section with a mail-in registration form, for those who do not wish to register by E-mail. This one, Photo Flier Habito 2010, includes retreat details, a picture of Ruben and a short bio. Please post the photo flier wherever you can, and when someone expresses interest, give them the registration flier. Thanks for reaching out to your community!
Please be sure to discard any out of date fliers that you may have.
Thursday evenings at 1st Presbyterian
We will meet for meditation on all Thursdays in September and October from 7:00 – 9:00 pm. in the fellowship hall. (On September 30 we will be meeting in Room 6, as there will be church directory picture taking place in the fellowship hall.) Our format for the first hour is two 20-minute periods of sitting in silence with a 10 minute walking meditation in between. For the second hour, we are practicing group contemplative listening. We listen to short readings from contemplative authors and poets, sit together for a period of silence, and share our reflections with the group. This is a wonderful way to practice deep listening to each other. All are welcome to join us at any time.
Retreat Day Saturday, September 25, 2010 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
The Neuroscience of Consciousness, Meditation and Healing
September’s retreat will be given by Joseph T. Neary, PhD. Joe is an internationally known neuroscientist who has published over 100 papers in areas of research including learning, memory and brain injury. In retirement, Joe has turned his attention to the neuroscience of consciousness. In the workshop, he will share with us recent findings on how meditation can alter brain structure and function, and how it may be possible to focus our consciousness to aid the body’s natural ability to heal itself. All are welcome. A freewill offering will be available.
Upcoming Events
October 23 MMG Retreat Day, 8:30am – 1:00 pm
Nov 12 and 13 MMG Retreat with Ruben Habito
No MMG retreat day in December
Summary of July’s Retreat
Our retreat day in July was presented by Joseph Cotham. The topic is one of our meditation group’s favorites: Spiritual Poetry. Joseph gathers and prints poems from some of his favorite poets and we take time to read them together and savor them. This year he chose poems by Jane Hirshfield, Mary Oliver, Rumi, Wendell Barry, Joyce Carol Oates, Billy Collins, and others. Those who attend are enriched by the shared words that deepen as we each offer the insights we receive from the readings. One of my favorites from the day is by Mary Oliver entitled
“Thirst”
Another morning and I wake with thirst
for the goodness I do not have. I walk
out to the pond and all the way God has
given us such beautiful lessons. Oh Lord,
I was never a quick scholar but sulked
and hunched over my books past the
hour and the bell; grant me, in your
mercy, a little more time. Love for the
earth and love for you are having such a
long conversation in my heart. Who
knows what will finally happen or
where I will be sent, yet already I have
given a great many things away, expecting
to be told to pack nothing, except the
prayers which, with this thirst, I am
slowly learning.
Monterey Meditation Group 