Back at the end of February I gave a public talk at Franciscan Mission Service (FMS) in Washington, DC, titled, “What Does it Mean to ‘Date’ God? Prayer as Relationship in the Franciscan Tradition.” It was part of the regular Souposium series that FMS sponsors throughout the year, which offers a public lecture hosted at the FMS main building and includes a homemade dinner of various soups, breads and desserts. FMS has recently published a few video excerpts from my talk, and you can find earlier videos on the FMS website from other talks. Here is the description of my talk as posted on the FMS website.
The idea of “Dating” God is a rather unusual concept. For many people such an image can be a challenge or even a problem, just as images used to describe God throughout the Christian tradition (“Father,” “Friend,” “Lover,” etc.) assist the spiritual lives of some, while hindering the pilgrimage of prayer and faith for others. In this reflection, Br. Dan shared what he means by this new image for imagining one’s relationship with God as it is presented in his new book, Dating God: Live and Love in the Way of St. Francis (St. Anthony Messenger Press, 2012), and explained how it ties into the rich and inspiring Franciscan tradition. Central to appreciating this different way of viewing spirituality is an embrace of the notion that our prayer can be more than something we simply do, but could be imagined as a more dynamic relationship with the Divine.
Enjoy these videos!
Video Clip One
Video Clip Two
Video Clip Three
