Contemplatively-Acting-Contemplatively
 They are not one, but they are not two

I praised you in the day and didn't know it 
I slept with you at night and didn't know it
I thought I was myself, but I was you and didn't know it 
                                                                           Rumi

Jerome Nadal, one of the first Jesuits in the sixteenth century, writes that followers of Ignatius are to be solely contemplatives. In other words, members of CLC are to contemplatively‑act‑contemplatively.

Contemplative of what? God. It is God who is the object of contemplation, God who is the object of ministry, God who is the object of mission. Contemplation is keeping before our eyes first God ‑ in all things.

Contemplation is best understood in terms of relationship. The cosmos and God are always in relationship with each other ‑ always. So when we contemplate God, we are contemplating the cosmos, and when we contemplate the cosmos, we are contemplating God. Our action and our prayer become one. There is no longer any split between the two. It is not a matter of contemplating and then acting. As soon as we separate the two, we end up trying to get them back together again. Our contemplation shines through our acting which manifests our contemplation. They go together. Contemplation is the heat, action is the fire. They are not one, but they are not two.

Contemplation can only happen in the "now," in the present moment. It begins as soon as we are present to the present moment, because when we are present to the present, we are present to the eternal. Contemplation is experiencing God ‑ the Eternal Now ‑ the "I am!"

This is why CLC's mission is always right in front of us ‑ always, because what is right in front of us is God's agenda for us ‑ in this man, in this woman, in this community, in this failure, in this hurt, in this fear. Contemplation can only happen ‑ right here, right now. There is no waiting for it, it is right in front of us. We can't get there, we can only be there. Once we experience it, the love‑affair begins. Contemplating and acting are not one, but they are not two. (Ignatian contemplation)

Larry Gooley, SJ
Guideposts - A Resource Handbook for Christian Life Community, 2006