Between Two Realms: Reclaiming the Presence in Christ

It seems that we inhabit two realms. One is the domain of science and mechanics, where everything can be measured, quantified, and explained. The other is our lived experience—the world of beauty, meaning, love, and spiritual reality. When we let the scientific orientation dominate we lose contact with the other. We are able to grasp how things function but often lose sight of their deeper significance and forfeit our experience of spiritual realities. It’s crucial that we integrate these realms, otherwise our perception of reality will remain impoverished. The result will be that our connection with God will seem distant and relegated to only an intellectual understanding.

The lack of integration between these two realms affects the quality of our spiritual lives.. Our mind will be kept busy with all kinds of worldly thoughts. For example, during Divine Liturgy, our thoughts may wander away from the sacredness of the service to mundane worldly things. When we sit for personal prayer, reading the Psalter or other daily prayers, our concentration on the words of the prayer are often interrupted by similar worldly concerns. It's as if these thoughts form a veil between us and God, one that seems impossible to pierce. We may seek God but He seems unattainable. 

The remedy lies in learning to control these intrusive thoughts that are caused when the scientific orientation dominates. When we are able to do this we begin to nurture an awareness of the Spirit working in us. This opens us to the spiritual realm and a deeper meaning in all we experience. To open ourselves to the spiritual realm requires a mind tranquil without the interruption of worldly thoughts, one in which God can speak through silence and reveal His spiritual realities to us. This worldly veil needs to be removed. We must cultivate attentiveness, or watchfulness, to truly encounter deeper spiritual truths.

Confronting Distraction and Doubt

Why do these worldly concerns persist even in time of prayer? It seems that our mind is programmed by our culture to encourage a relentless focus on worldly matters, drawing our attention away from God. This makes God feel distant, even unattainable. Our minds replay old wounds and mundane tasks, as if an inner force is trying to obstructs our spiritual clarity.

However, as Gerondissa Makrina teaches, Christ draws nearer when we call upon Him persistently. It is through prayer, such as the Jesus Prayer, repeated over and over with focus on the words, that we can develop attentiveness and control unwanted thoughts. Through this practice, we can train our minds to ignore these distracting thoughts.

To live in Christ as Paul proclaims we are called to do, we must focus solely on Christ, ignoring opinions, regrets, or parish shortcomings. Invoking His name pours forth grace, giving us greater strength to ignore these thoughts, illuminating our path to a direct experience of God.

Even if our parish life seems consumed with social events and devoid of collective spiritual practices like fasting, confession, and participation in the sacraments, we must not focus on these issues but turn our attention inward. We must remember the Church's core teachings: repentance, prayer, and sacramental life. To do the will of Christ we must integrate these two realms and rid our constant bombardment of worldly thoughts. We must unite these two ways by rejecting distracting thoughts in prayer, using it as a training ground to learn how to pay attention to the spiritual realm, so we are able to fully focus on Christ all the time, surrendering in obedience to His Church and way of life. Remember our aim is not worldly success but to attain eternal life in God’s Kingdom. We must engage in a spiritual war to overcome the forces our culture imposes on us. Our salvation depends on this.

"Lord, open my heart to Your love. Give me the strength to reject worldly thought in prayer. Fill me with the warmth of Your Spirit."