"Dear Timorese Friends," | July 2006

The Australian meditation community has been working to bring meditation to East Timor. The 2004-2005 outreach trips to East Timor are summarized below. Recently, the community sent the following letter of support to its contacts in East Timor after violence again broke out there.

Dear Timorese friends,

We know that you are going through difficult times again. We all feel your sorrow as we hear of the renewed violence in East Timor. It is particularly saddening to hear of so many needing to seek refuge at Don Bosco in Comoro which the three of us, who visited last year, know so well from having stayed there.

Our prayers are with you a hundredfold at this troubled time. We hope to be with you again later this year to share your experience at first hand. Also, we hope to be with you again to encourage the growth of the practice of meditation. We know from the call that Andrew McNaughten made to us to bring Christian meditation to Timor Leste that meditation is a great hope for healing and inner peace even from these terrible traumas. The promise of meditation is the spread of strength through the healing of the Spirit. We know from our own experience that a good response to the hurts and losses that we feel (though small compared to yours) is through meditation.

Thank you for what you tell us about your meditation practice. It is our hope that you are able to persist in these difficult times and see the importance of being regular in the practice. The next step is to spread this among those close to you and encourage them to teach it widely. We want to encourage you to see it as a way to give others the opportunity to experience the inner peace which meditation brings. There is nothing more natural really than wanting to share the gifts that we receive. If you can invite even one other person to share a time of meditation with you it is powerful and sure to grow. The words of Jesus “where two or three are gathered in my name then I am in the midst of them” have so much meaning for both you and us.

We hope that you are aware of being gifted. Please feel confident that you are able to pass this gift to others. We have confidence in you. Not only will it be a blessing for them but the practice will spread and deepen more naturally amongst yourselves in your own unique way.

Please know that we hold you in our hearts as you commit yourself to this daily opening of your heart. The whole Christian community of meditators is united by this practice.

From Australia we are with you in all your sorrows as we hold you in our hearts when we meditate each day.

Fr Michael Kelly, OSB
Angela Finnigan
Richard Cogswell

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