Finley says (pp. 22-23), “The true self is not some obscure and hidden identity that we must pull forth from the darkness like a rabbit from a hat. Nor is it some evasive entity running lost in the labyrinths of our minds. The true self is rather our whole self before God. It is the self the Father created us to become. It is the self in Christ. It is the self that breathes, that stands and sits. It is the self that is. The true self, being simple like God, can be realized only in the mode of simple awareness proper to it. This mode of awareness is nothing other than the contemplative awareness referred to [earlier.]”
All contemplative practices can be seen as methods for “simple awareness,” free of the distractions of the world and the false self. In that awareness, we become aware of our true self and, by extension, we become aware of God who is within us. So our search for God and our search for the true self are really the same search; the God who created us is also within us.
Contemplative Practice:
Choose one of the practices we’ve introduced over these few days and practice it again today. They are: the Breath Prayer, Breathing the Name of God, the Jesus Prayer, Centering Prayer, and Journaling.
