The incarnation has made mystics of us all.
What if we read the gospels as if that were true?
"Denizens of the land of silence owe a debt of gratitude to Vincent Pizzuto for the gift of this book. Clearly written and based on solid scholarship, grounded in Scripture itself, the author clarifies the simplest of truths: to become a contemplative is quite simply a matter of becoming fully normal. Paradoxically our becoming natural involves a lifetime of loves soul-sifting.
As Meister Eckhart puts it: `The eye with which I see God is the same eye with which God sees me.' One seeing, one loving, one knowing."
Martin Laird, OSA
Professor of Early Christian Studies
Villanova University
"This book, with a focus on the incarnate Christ, seeks to introduce readers
both to modern methods of interpreting Scripture and to the ancient and integral contemplative tradition within Christianity."
New Testament Abstracts
"Pizzuto demonstrates a wide expanse and great depth of knowledge regarding contemplative spirituality."
Catholic Book Review
"A remarkable book."
Theological Studies
"Until the Christian world begins to read its own sources with the contemplative mind that is offered here, I see little hope for its in depth renewal. The argumentative mind that has dominated so much of our recent past has not served history well. Vincent Pizzuto is offering us both inspiration and
very readable scholarship here.
This is the Great Tradition!"
Fr. Richard Rohr, OFM
Center for Action and Contemplation
Albuquerque, New Mexico
"A magnificent, nutritious book of spiritual counsel, both visionary and compassionate! Contemplating Christ patiently trains us to rethink familiar texts, feelings, and attitudes by recovering the grandeur of the cosmic Christ from the Gospels, the hymn of Colossians 1, and the teachers of ancient Christianity. This work of mystagogy grasps anew the `transgressive' power of the Incarnation that `has made mystics of us all,' and offers practical ways to live into our wondrous `divinized' identity after baptism. At the same time, it performs microsurgery upon our spiritual practices and predilections (its rethinking of asceticism and of demonic power is particularly fine). Like an ancient painting restored, vivid colors burst anew from the countercultural beauty of the Gospel. A feast for the spirit!"
Michael Cameron
Professor of Historical Theology
University of Portland
"General readership will find both gentle scholarly engagement with Christian scripture, contemplative traditions, and mysticism, as well as personal observations about how this way of life has deepened the author's own meditative practices. For readers who wish to take a deeper dive in to the topics Pizzuto introduces, he provides a helpful appendix on the origins of Christian mysticism and an annotated glossary of terms that appear throughout the text."
Reading Religion
Join in a walking meditation with Fr. Vincent, developed for the Contemplative Outreach Circle of Friends Retreat 2021: “Christ in All Things.” Ideally using your headphones or ear buds make your way to your favorite natural landscape and begin. The meditation is designed to open you to the gift of the Divine in Creation. As he draws his reflections to a close, you are invited to continue your walking meditation for as long as you wish, immersing yourself in the Big Book of Scripture: Creation.
Until we realize Christianity is a passionate love affair between God and humanity, we have not begun to fathom the meaning of the incarnation.