Includes bibliographical references (p. 167-168).

The Origins of Centering Prayer -- Attitudes toward God -- The Theological Basis of Centering Prayer -- The Christian Contemplative Tradition -- The Process of Lectio Divina -- Will and Intention in Centering Prayer -- The Sacred Symbol as a Gesture of Consent -- The Deepening Experience of Centering Prayer -- The Spiritual Direction of Contemplatives -- A Contemplative Vision for Our Times -- The Rosary as Contemplative Prayer -- The Charismatic Renewal and Contemplation -- Toward Intimacy with God

God is present to everything like the eye of a camera that sees everything just it is. Yet we, in our turn, may not be present to God. Like the subjects of a casual photograph, we may not perceive that someone sees a marvelous value and beauty in us and is taking our picture. We are summoned into the presence of God by the fact of our birth, but we became present to God only by our consent. As our faculties and capabilities to relate gradually develop and unfold, the capacity to enter into relationship with God increases, and each new depth of presence requires a new consent. Each new awakening to God changes our relationship to ourselves and to everyone and everything else. Growth in faith is growth in the right perception of all reality.