Welcome to the WCCM California
Welcome to the Website for The Southern California branch of The World Community for Christian Meditation. Here we hope you will find inspirational information, updates on retreats & events, and, of course, links to our worldwide community.
The World Community for Christian Meditation, which is inclusive of all denominations, shares a commitment to the discipline of meditation, inspired by the early Christian Desert Fathers and Mothers, and John Cassian in particular, which was taught and articulated by Fr. John Main, OSB (1926-1982). It transforms our lives in its twice daily practice and creates a community that constitutes a monastery without walls.
The worldwide activities and programs of WCCM, now led by Fr. John’s successor, Fr. Laurence Freeman, OSB can be viewed at www.wccm.org.
Christian Meditation-The all important aim in Christian MeditationMeditation is to allow God’s mysterious presence within us to become,more and more,not only a reality…but the reality which gives meaning, shape, and purpose to everything we do,to everything we are…
How to Meditate
John Main taught that meditation is as natural to the spirit as breathing is to the body. While meditation is common to many religious traditions around the world, the method of practice may differ. The discipline as taught by John Main, based on the teachings of the Desert Fathers and Mothers, is approached for twenty to thirty minutes twice daily in the following way:
Continue repeating the word, gently and faithfully, during the whole time of the meditation. Return to it as soon as you realize you have stopped saying it. Stay with the same word during the meditation and from day to day. Do not evaluate your meditation. Do not be discouraged by distractions. Rather, let them come and go, always keeping your attention on the mantra. In time, the fruits of your meditation will appear in your self, your life, and in all your relationships.