Reflection
The vitality of the spiritual life is to be open. Openness is the ability to be receptive to new possibilities without prejudging them. The contrast to openness is narrow-mindedness and a paralyzing rigidity. To be frozen in position and refuse to open ourselves to other possibilities no matter what the situation or evidence may present is to choose intellectual and spiritual stagnation. Reflect on the Gospel stories. How many times do you see Jesus chastising others who are judgmental, rigid and lacking in openness to his message? Change and growth are essential to life.
Prayer
Today if I hear God’s voice, may I not harden my heart.
Psalm 95
Action
How flexible are you? Do you usually think you already have all the answers? Are you open to new information and interpretations?
Suggested Readings
They who have ears to hear, let them hear!
Matthew 11:15
The open-minded see the truth in different things: the narrow-minded see only the differences.
Charles Kettering
We are at times too ready to believe that the present is the only possible state of things.
Marcel Proust
Those who cannot change their minds cannot change anything.
George Bernard Shaw
Being ignorant is not so much a shame, as being unwilling to learn.
Benjamin Franklin
Your assumptions are your windows on the world. Scrub them off every once in a while, or the light won’t come in.
Isaac Asimov
One’s opinion should only be as strong as one’s knowledge on the matter.
Eric Hirzel
Never stop learning and adapting. The world will always be changing. If you limit yourself to what you knew and what you were comfortable with earlier in your life, you will grow increasingly frustrated with your surroundings as you age.
David Niven
Only an open mind still has room for new knowledge. What is outgrown and used up must be discarded to make room for what is yet to be learned. And much of the best thinking is done alone–in deserts, on beaches, in bed, behind closed doors. It is why we say we need to get away–to escape from clutter and busyness–to hear ourselves think.
Robert Fulghum