Seeking Silence - Arkansas House of Prayer
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Seeking
Silence
The Arkansas House of Prayer
Timothy Hursley
Growing up not particularly religious
or observant in my Jewish faith, it
seemed to me that spiritual practice
Opening to the Light
was primarily a list of dos and do- A Practitioner’s Guide
nots (and definitely more of the
latter). As a teenager I believed that
being “religious” meant being nerdy,
uptight, and repressed. Not interested
in that!
Prayer felt lifeless and listless as
well. Speaking to a God, remote and
angry, simply did not resonate—and
why would it? My spiritual path
of opening to the embrace of the
Beloved has felt long, at times tortuous and convoluted, but at the same time sweet, loving, and so very tender. I wish there
had been an instruction manual on how to open to this Divine light. If only I had known that there is absolutely nothing at
all even remotely comparable, more profound, transformative, and even ecstatic than this Divine light—it never was about
sex, drugs, or rock & roll.
As a practicing psychiatrist for more than 40 years, I have come to appreciate the critical importance of establishing a secure
and firm sense of ego. God forbid we ever tell a child that he or she is absolute emptiness and pure illusion! However, at a
certain stage of maturity and psychospiritual growth, and with God’s help, there presents an invitation toward the gradual
relinquishing and nullification of ego.
Although this dissolution can feel frightening, it is reassuring to know that it is a losing of self (small s) in order to make
contact with our truest and most authentic Self (capital S). Climbing the spiritual ladder can be daunting, but opening to the
Divine light can feel more like a freefall—a not-knowing where you might land. (Happily, there are loving hands always
waiting to catch us.)
The caveat of hubris and clinging to ego is brought down in Deuteronomy 8:17-18: “You may say to yourself, ‘My power
and the strength of my hands have produced this wealth for me.’ But remember the Lord your God, for it is he who gives
you the ability to produce wealth, and so confirms his covenant, which he swore to your ancestors, as it is today.” (A healthy
reminder to all of us, physicians definitely included.) The sense of losing one’s self was put so beautifully by the poet Naomi
Shihab Nye, who wrote that “you must lose things, feel the future dissolve in a moment like salt in a weakened broth.”
Regarding paths of opening to this Divine light, as my teacher Jon Kabat-Zinn would put it: “one room, many doors.”
These doors can be quite broad, and examples might include prayer, meditation, music, sacred movement, a loving holy
relationship, or going to dozens and dozens of Dead shows. It’s all about entering that One Room.
Formal instructions and teachings serve as scaffolding, but ultimately we may wish to fully enter the practice. Tired of
Continued on page two
Spring
2021
Issue #11
Katherine W. Stewart
Editor
The Rev. Cindy Fribourgh
Designer
Dr. Robert Barris
Tina Coffin
G. Richard Smith
Contributing Writers
The Rev. Cindy Fribourgh
Timothy Hursley
Contributing Photographers
Arkansas House of Prayer is an
interfaith haven, set apart in nature,
dedicated to contemplative prayer,
meditation, and quiet where
all are welcome.
Our Board
Cindy Fribourgh
The Rev. Susan Sims Smith
Founder and Life Member Opening to the Light Continued from page one
Chucki Bradbury
President staring at the restaurant menu, we prefer to “taste and see that the Lord is good.”
(Psalms 34:8) Simply sitting still, in presence, conscious of body and breath,
Kate Althoff is one way we may do so. Feel free to let go totally in this moment. We do not
Catherine Crisp just sit; rather, we are sitting and knowing it (i.e., an activation of the prefrontal
Catherine Crews
Dr. Nick Cole
cortex)!
Emily Lewis
Sophia Said Just taking note of the breath, there is really nothing at all that we need to do; the
Dr. G. Richard Smith breath is simply breathing itself. Pure grace and mercy! Following the breath
Ted “Dub” Snider deeper and deeper into the entirety of the body, an awakening of sensation
The Rev. Mary Vano
deep in the chest and belly might present. On exhalation, give yourself over
Our Staff completely. Every exhalation becomes a dress rehearsal for that final exhalation.
Sr. Deborah Troillett, RSM There are those of faith-based traditions who might take things in an added
Executive Director direction: Every inhalation is the spirit, which we take in from God’s exhalation.
The Rev. Stephanie Fox
Our exhalation is then taken in directly by God. As with the first breath of life
Associate Director into the nostrils of Adam, so it is with every living, breathing human being: a
moment-by-moment-by-moment unfolding. “I will be what I will be.” (Exodus
arkansashouseofprayer.org 3:14)
Ways to visit Arkansas House of Prayer
We become an empty vessel being breathed by the Divine. Feel the flow of holy
Check out a key fob from energy streaming through your body, coursing through your veins and even into
St. Margaret’s Church Office your marrow. Allow every cell to become permeated and penetrated by this
Monday-Thursday 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. Divine light. Upon the completion of practice, affirm an intention to take this
Saturday-Sunday Noon until 4 p.m. holy inspiration out into the world, serving as a conduit for a life committed to
Using your own key fob for personal use
radical kindness and compassion. May we be granted the strength to persevere
24/7. Keyfob applications available at in practice and our actions until that time when “the earth will be filled with the
arkansashouseofprayer.org knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:19) May that time
arrive speedily in our time.
Visit our grounds and labyrinth during Dr. Robert Barris
daylight hours. Psychiatrist and teacher of meditation
to medical students of various faith traditions
The Challenge and Power of Silence
I grew up in a household where we never felt the need for I have been at the House of Prayer only once, mostly
stillness and silence. They were always there. because of its distance from my house. Our Quaker
Meeting House on Markham Street is much closer, and,
Looking back, that was really amazing. We lived in a big having a key, I can go there whenever I feel the need for
city, Amsterdam, and our family was large. Yet some of the a holy place. But the House of Prayer offers the lovely
loveliest memories of my early years are the sounds coming wooded grounds. It is easier to hear the birds there than
through the open windows on summer days: children on Markham Street.
playing in the quiet, leafy street below, the singing of the
birds, the sound of a far-off propeller plane and the zoom of Birds are my favorite image of God.
a fly lazily circling the room. A sense of peace, beauty, and
the goodness of life filled my young heart.
So when I started, in my mid-thirties, attending a Quaker
meeting for worship, a form of worship based on silent
waiting, I could immediately recapture this sense of peace
and awe. Quaker silence is based on the belief that one does
not need ritual or preaching to be in the presence of God. It
requires an open heart and a willingness to let go of one’s
will and to desire learning where God wants us to be and
what h/she wants us to do.
This form of worship is not always easy, and the silence can
be a challenge for many. But oh, the blessings that come
when we open our hearts to God. In Quaker meeting, people
may rise and speak of the insights they have received. And
it is not unusual for different people to be filled with the From Psalm 91, “ … He shall deliver you from the snare
same message that has just been given by someone else. It of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall
is, we believe, the Spirit knitting us together. cover you with his feathers and under his wings you
shalt find refuge.” Or my favorite from Deuteronomy: “I
I learned early on that I would receive the greatest blessing carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.”
from the corporate, silent waiting when I set time aside for Only someone who has experienced this as a reality could
daily personal meditation. Here I found the deepest sense have written that.
of God’s presence. In that silence it felt as if my chest
expanded. Sometimes it seemed that all of life had changed, I am not someone who finds God easily in nature; peace,
as if I had received a gene transplant. It is hard to describe; yes, beauty, yes. But nature does inspire me in my
a kind of spiritual trembling. personal time of prayer and meditation. I want my life to
be a “tree standing by water,” the living stream which is
Of course, it is not always that way. There are times I don’t my nourishment.
seem to be able to quiet down, to center. One prayer I have Tina Coffin
found to be helpful is, “Please, bless me with the awareness Editor of The Carillion,
of your presence”—a prayer quite often answered. a magazine for Quakers in Arkansas
True silence is the rest of the mind; it is to the spirit what sleep is to the body, nourishment and refreshment.
William Penn, 1699
Endowment Update:
Great News-Almost at Goal!
A group of us have been working for several years to establish an endowment for the Arkansas House of Prayer. Our goal is
a $1,500,000 endowment, which is designed to secure this ministry of silence for future generations. Let’s leave the legacy
of a place that helps people open to receive more Divine light in silence. We currently have $1,425,000 in gifts and pledges.
We are only $75,000 short of our goal! All gifts of any size are needed and welcomed. Please send your check to the House
of Prayer marked for “endowment,” or contact rev.susan.sims.smith@gmail.com for more information. Let’s let the light
keep flowing for many years. Dr. Rick Smith
P.O. Box 7450
Little Rock, AR
72217
Love Thy Neighbor u September 2
Ways to Connect More information to come
arkansashouseofprayer.org
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BCBCBCBCBCBCBC
Arkansas House of Prayer
is a joint ministry
of St. Margaret’s and the
Cindy Fribourgh
Episcopal Diocese of Arkansas.
Bench marking the pathway leading to the labyrinth on the
grounds of the Arkansas House of Prayer
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