Happy Birthday to Meister Eckhart

Meister Eckhart: March 27
By Frederic and Mary Ann Brussat

Meister Eckhart (1260-1329) was a Dominican priest and theologian who exerts a hold on many contemporary spiritual writers. Long ago, he made the startling declaration that God and human beings are already bonded together, already in intimate contact. The only obstacle is our consciousness and the dreadful construction of dualism that constricts our ongoing divinization. This mystical understanding got him in trouble with the Catholic church, and in 1326, he was accused of heresy. He responded but the bull of Pope John XXII issued on March 27, 1329, speaks of him as already dead.

On this anniversary of his death, his cogent and soul-stretching quotations are invigorating. They nourish us and challenge us to step into the spiritual adventure with him. Pick one of the quotations — all are by Eckhart, and we note the book where we found it. Make the quote your own by placing it on your desk or carry it in your wallet. Read the quote during the day and let it seep into your consciousness.

God Is Everywhere
"One who truly has God will have Him in all places, in the streets and in the world, no less than in the church."
(Meister Eckhart, from Whom God Hid Nothing)

A Book about God
"Every creature is full of God and a book about God."
(The Reinvention of Work by Matthew Fox)

Spiritual Transformation
"A person works in a stable.
That person has a breakthrough.
What does he do?
He returns to work in the stable."
(Meditations with Meister Eckhart by Matthew Fox)

What God Expects of You
"God expects but one thing of you, and that is that you should come out of yourself in so far as you are a created being and let God be in you."
(The Perennial Philosophy by Aldous Huxley)

Why We Miss God
"God is at home in us, but we are abroad."
(Call to Purpose by Richard Solly)

The Laughter Behind Grace
"God laughed and brought forth Jesus. Jesus laughed and brought forth the Holy Spirit. All three laughed and brought forth us."
(Elder Wisdom by Eugene Bianchi)

The Inward Work
"The outward work can never be small if the inward one is great, and the outward work can never be great or good if the inward is small or of little worth."
(The Reinvention of Work by Matthew Fox)

The Underground River
"God is a great underground river that no one can dam up and no one can stop."
(Wrestling with the Prophets by Matthew Fox)

God Is Still at Work Creating
"God is creating the entire universe, fully and totally, in the present now."
(Wrestling with the Prophets by Matthew Fox)

Do Justice
"If you want to discover who you are, do justice engaging fully in order to change things."
(Earth Story Sacred Story by James Conlon)

Let Go of God
"In order to find God, we must let God go.
There above the mind, God shines."
(Why Not be a Mystic? by Frank Tuoti)

God in the Soul
"God is not found in the soul by adding anything but by a process of subtraction."
(How, Then, Shall We Live? by Wayne Muller)

Everything Praises God
"Everything praises God. Darkness, privations, defects, and evil praise and bless God."
(Sins of the Spirit, Blessings of the Flesh by Matthew Fox)

No Bad Luck
"However, I have never had bad luck. This is because I live with God and always feel that what He does is for the best. Whatever God sends me, be it pleasant or unpleasant, I accept with a grateful heart. That is why I have never had bad luck."
(The Inner Treasure by Jonathan Star)