Visio Divina for women: Thursday, Feb 18

Published by CN Admin2 at February 18, 2021

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Today we feature Tammy Arneaud a 34 year old, married nail technician who hails from the parish of St Anthony’s in Petit Valley. Tammy confesses that she only started painting on canvas about two year ago. “ It was a funny year for us, first we did a Life in the sprit seminar and while doing that we heard about Life in the spirit for couples and whilst doing that we heard about Original Pain Therapy which we started doing. We did OPT because we were preparing to be the best parents that we could be not realizing we had unresolved issued of our own!”. During one of her sessions with the OPT Counselor her desire to paint on canvas poured out. “ Around that same time I was sharing thoughts on my journey with my cousin and we started speaking about Visio Divina and how I could use my art as part of my spiritual journey and just like that I started creating these great paintings. It was like something that was inside of me all this time and I never knew”.

A few weeks ago Tammy participated in an exhibition and Fr. Harold Imamshah was in attendance. He was so bowled over by this piece that she did of the cathedral, he bought it for himself. I present this piece for your meditation today.

As always we would love to get your feedback on this Visio Divina piece;.

Visio Divina (Latin for “divine seeing”) is a method for praying with images. Through Visio Divina we invite you to see beyond first and second impressions, and even beyond your initial ideas, judgments, or understandings. Our hope is to create a connection to the divine through local art.

So here is how we are going to do it.

1. Set aside 10 minutes in the day for the guided prayer experience

2. As you begin to prayer take a few minutes to open your heart and mind to God.

3. When you are ready, slowly look and notice the image, taking your time to let feelings and thoughts come to you as you take in forms, figures, colors, lines, textures, and shapes. What does it look like, or remind you of? What are your initial thoughts? What feelings are evoked?

4. Now, return to the image with an open heart and mind again. You may now experience new thoughts, meanings, and feelings. Start, exploring new meanings and feeling that come to you associated with the image. Be aware of any assumptions or expectations that you bring to the image. Regardless of your response to the image — delight, disgust, indifference, and confusion — contemplate prayerfully the reason for your response and what these responses might mean for and about you.

5. As you go deeper in this prayer, open yourself to what the image might reveal to you. What does the Spirit want to say, evoke, make known, or express to you in quiet

meditation? What are your feelings, thoughts, desires, and meanings evoked by the image and how they are directly connected to your life?

6. Now, take the time to respond to God. Jot down in a journal the insights you want to remember, actions you are invited to take, wisdom you hope to embody, or any feelings or thoughts you wish to express. Bring your prayer to a close by resting in God’s grace and love.