Contemplative in the Mud

Seeing Jesus in Others is Contemplation of a Particular Kind

1–2 minutes

Benjamin Embley

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3 comments on Seeing Jesus in Others is Contemplation of a Particular Kind

Jacques Maritain

We listen to them, are ready to be of service, become attentive to all that they are, to their infinite value as people loved by God. That is what a contemplative attitude toward others is. It calls for a dispossession of the self, a true detachment, in which we no longer belong to ourselves. Love for others is as demanding and unmerciful as is the love of God. It demands that we live with others, that we exist with them. It is truly contemplation but of a particular kind. It is contemplation on the roads by which Jesus leads us, following him, going with him towards the little ones, in order to make us discover with them the loving face of God.
Jacques Maritain (1882–1973)

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Benjamin Embley

With backgrounds in engineering (BSc PhD) and philosophy (MA), Ben has lived and worked in England, France, and Thailand and is now back home as a settler in the unceded traditional territory of the Wabanaki peoples in Canada. He is a Laudato Si’ Animator and currently studying an MTS Peace & Justice in Reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples.

3 responses to “Seeing Jesus in Others is Contemplation of a Particular Kind”

  1. circlecitadel Avatar
    circlecitadel

    Which of his writings is this from?

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    1. Contemplative in the Mud Avatar
      Contemplative in the Mud

      To be honest, I’m not sure. I’ve only seen it cited (in French) second-hand, without a reference to the original.

      Reply
    2. Contemplative in the Mud Avatar
      Contemplative in the Mud

      A little more research tells me that this is from notes for a class that Jacques gave in 1950 (the subject of the particular class being Jn 1:4,7–8).

      Reply

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