4: Contemplative Practice and the Trinity with Robert Jonas

Writer, contemplative teacher, and therapist Robert Jonas, EdD joins us to talk about his book, My Dear FarNearness: The Holy Trinity as a Spiritual Practice. Jonas shares how the Trinity is not a distant theological formulation, but is intimate, practical, and transformative in daily life. Revealing Jesus as a teacher of “non-dual” and trinitarian awareness, Jonas presents fresh ways in which the liberating core of Christianity is available to us all. 

Jonas will be teaching a class this November on contemplative practice and the Trinity, which you can sign up for here.

Robert A. Jonas, EdD (Harvard University), MTS (Weston Jesuit School of Theology) is the author of The Essential Henri Nouwen, (Shambhala Publications), as well as Henri Nouwen (Orbis) and Rebecca (Crossroad). His book, My Dear Far-Nearness: The Holy Trinity as Spiritual Practice, was winner of an award from Illumination Book Awards in 2022. Dr. Jonas is the director of The Empty Bell, a contemplative sanctuary in Northampton, MA, whose website (emptybell.org ) is an extraordinary resource for contemplative Christians and Buddhist-Christian dialogue.  Trained as a psychotherapist, Dr. Jonas is now a retreat leader, author, video artist, musician, and environmental steward. A Christian in the Carmelite tradition, he also received spiritual formation with Buddhist teachers. He has been a guest speaker on many spiritual platforms, including Spirit Matters Talk, The Myth Salon, and Maine Jung Center. Dr. Jonas has been a guest lecturer at the Northwind Seminary since 2020. Jonas is a past Board member of the Henri Nouwen Society and a current member of the Society for Buddhist-Christian Studies and the Eckhart Society. He recently retired as Chair of the Board of the Kestrel Land Trust in Amherst, MA (www.kestreltrust.org). Jonas is a student of Sui-Zen, the Japanese bamboo flute (shakuhachi). He has performed in many secular and spiritual contexts, including three Buddhist-Christian retreats with the Dalai Lama and a performance under the Bodhi Tree in India. Jonas has produced three CDs of shakuhachi music: “Blowing Bamboo,” which is available on iTunes, “New Life from Ruins” and “Many Paths, One Joy.”

Episode links:

You can access the transcript here.