Lectio Divina: Reading Rufus Jones With the Heart

Rufus Jones was a prolific Quaker writer and theologian from the last century. Some of his work can be intellectual and complex. In this course, we will encounter a different side of Rufus Jones, through his essays Why I Enroll with the Mystics (1932) and Recovery of the Lost Radiance (1936). We will focus on his concept of organic mysticism, an embodied spirituality which Jones considered “much more common than highly conscious mysticism.” Together we will read selections from his essays, meditate on them, share our reflections, and practice silent contemplation, in a guided practice of Lectio Divina. The course will be suitable both for those new to Lectio Divina and those who have tried it before.

“The ultimate effect of contact with the central stream of life is a vast increase of both the joy and the power of life. There comes a sense of fusion of the finite and the infinite, a unification of the surface consciousness with the deeps which underlie it and with it an élan vital which dynamizes the life of action…. There comes a fine union of serenity and adventure.” from Rufus Jones, Recovery of the Lost Radiance.

Participants will need a journal or notebook and something to write with, or some way of recording your reflections that works for you.

There will be some material to look at before the first session. We will email you around one week prior to the course with information about accessing the course, including this material, on our online learning platform (Moodle).

*It is not necessary to obtain your own copies of the essays. Electronic copies will be provided to those who register for this course.