Sacred Time - Print

Sacred Time: Embracing an Intentional Way of Life.

Christine Valters Paintner.

Soft cover
160pp.
ISBN 9781932057225.
Sorin Books (2021).

[Allow 4 weeks].

“Sacred time is time devoted to the heart, to things that matter, to wonder and beauty, to catching glimpses of eternity. Sacred time is not measured in minutes or hours, but in moments and spans, offering us an inner sense of expansiveness.” Christine Valters Paintner

What is your relationship with time? Do you view it as a scarce resource to be carefully guarded? Are you a slave to the hands of the clock as they tick off the hours of the day—the hours of your life? Or do you recognize time as a gift and a blessing, leading you forward into an intentional, reflective way of being?

Christine Valters Paintner invites us into a focused relationship with time that calls us to view it not as scarce, but as rhythmic and spacious, abundant and eternal. Beginning with the breath, and moving outward in concentric circles to cosmic time, Paintner suggests that we learn to create a new time consciousnes - one that understands time as a creative and life-giving force. She calls this sacred time.

Contrasting Chronos, the Greek deity that gives his name to linear or clock time, with Kairos, the deity of sacred time and flow, Paintner leads us on an exploration of the ways time works within our lives.

Each of the eight cycles of time is explored in one chapter making this book useful for small group or congregational study. After some background information is offered, each chapter includes a scripture reflection (NRSV), a practice, a meditation and a creative exploration, followed by a closing blessing. Paintner’s poetry, and illustrations by Alexi Francis, are well suited for contemplative use.