"St. Paul’s journey from Jerusalem to Damascus would have taken several days on horseback. It is reasonable to believe that on such a long journey, St. Paul would have spent much of his time in prayer and mediation, particularly at the hour of prayer at which his vision took place. This means that when his vision occurred on that road, as suddenly as it did, knocking him from his horse, this vision lay within his realm of interpretation. Within his spiritual practice, such a vision would have been seen as a gift bestowed upon only a few who were blessed to share the experience of Ezekiel and the other prophets. However, when St. Paul receives his vision, it is not an angelic figure which he sees upon the throne or divine glory, but Jesus Christ, seated on the throne-chariot of Yahweh. St. Paul’s vision on the road to Damascus is not just a vision which informs him that Jesus is the Messiah, it also powerfully showed him that Jesus Christ is God. It is on this basis that St. Paul can proceed in his epistles to speak of Jesus Christ as the incarnate second hypostasis of the God of Israel." - https://blogs.ancientfaith.com/wholecounsel/2018/07/24/st-paul-the-mystic/ #Merkabah #Hesychasm #PrayerOfTheHeart #JesusPrayer #Theosis #Divinization #Prayer

A #CradleCatholic. As a wee lad, I did all the stuff - Baptism, First Communion, Confirmation. I was born here all my life. When I was around four years old, the church kicked out my mom and, by extension, my family. An #ExcludedCatholic? I explored other practices and faiths, #meditation, #yoga, #Buddhism, and all the things. I wanted to not convert to a religion or practice that I had not been born to or wasn't otherwise ancestrally connected. A deep dive into Protestant fellowships lead to immersion into the #EarlyChurch Fathers and early #ChurchHistory. Entering the #OrthodoxChurch, I lived in several monasteries and wandered around the US like the guy in Way of a Pilgrim. I was ultimately drawn to #Theosis and the #PrayerOfTheHeart, sometimes called the #JesusPrayer. Long story short, decades later, a pandemic, and a few ends of the world, here I am. The #2024Election US has me wondering about US Christianities that support social actions and movements that contradict the teachings of Jesus. Shouldn't Christ's Gospel teachings be central?