040: Mindfulness in the Christian Tradition with Dr. Amy Oden (author of Right Here, Right Now: The Practice of Christian Mindfulness)

by Swanson

040: Mindfulness in the Christian Tradition with Dr. Amy Oden (author of Right Here, Right Now: The Practice of Christian Mindfulness)

 

“Amy’s words become a litany of invitation into the posture of open-hearted presence to the Presence, right here, right now.”

– Marjorie J. Thompson

Dr. Amy Oden is a Professor of Early Church History and Spirituality at the Saint Paul School of Theology. In her latest book Right Here, Right Now: The Practice of Christian Mindfulness Amy draws upon the roots and connection points of mindfulness found in the Christian Tradition. In this episode, Amy shares what ‘mindfulness’ means to her, her own practices to cultivate mindfulness, and the brilliance of Jesus using mindfulness metaphors such as ‘asleep’ and ‘awake’ in his teaching (and some practical application points of those metaphors in our current technology saturated state).

Learn more about Amy Oden at amyoden.com.

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EPISODE SHOW NOTES

Books by Amy Oden

Resources Mentioned

People

  • Desert Fathers and Mothers
  • St. Augustine
  • Gregory of Nyssa
  • Plato
  • Macrina the Younger
  • Hildegard of Bingen
  • Julian of Norwich
  • Teresa of Avila

Practice

  • Breathing, Body Awareness

Drink Pairing

  • Water

Highlights

  • When you hear the word “contemplative”, how does that moniker relate to you?
  • How does that manifest in your day-to-day life in practice?
  • Do you see a difference in your students since incorporating mindfulness in the classroom?
  • How do you use the term ‘mindfulness’ in your work?
  • What do your conversations with other religions on mindfulness look like?
  • How did you first come to mindfulness or the contemplative path?
  • Who were the ‘ancient’ mentors for you?
  • If someone were going to teach a class on the formation of Amy Oden, what would be the 3 mandatory readings or works that formed you that would definitely be on that syllabus?
  • How did the landscape you grew up in impact your sense of spirituality?
  • In the seminary, are you seeing interest in mindfulness from future church leaders?
  • Can you tease out more about the terms ‘asleep’ and ‘awake’ that Jesus uses?
  • What drink would you pair with this conversation?

 

 

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