From the Archives: Richard Rohr on “Action and Contemplation” (1987)

To celebrate the Center for Action and Contemplation’s (CAC) 35th Anniversary year, we will be releasing a series of archival recordings of Richard Rohr from the early years of our founding. This first recording is from a series of foundational teachings on “Action and Contemplation” given by Richard in 1987 — our very first year!

In this 90-minute talk, Father Richard lays out his reasoning behind our intentionally chosen name: “Even though it gives us an awfully long title, I think we didn’t want to risk anybody missing what we were about. And even holding ourselves to what we want to be about, to teach at the same time and call ourselves and ask of ourselves a contemplative journey.” He goes on to describe the contemplative life, the relationship between action and contemplation, and offers some advice for those seeking the prophetic path.