The Eyes of the Heart: Photography as a Christian Contemplative Practice

In this first book to explore photography as a spiritual practice from a Christian perspective, Christine Valters Paintner builds on the process of contemplative creativity she introduced online at Abbey of the Arts and in her book The Artist's Rule. She considers how a camera can help readers open "the eyes of the heart."

More than a book on photographic technique, Eyes of the Heart is about cultivating photography as a spiritual practice. Adapting the monastic practice of lectio divina (sacred reading) into a form of visio divina (sacred seeing), spiritual director and Benedictine oblate Christine Valters Paintner invites readers to a new way of viewing the world--through the lens of a camera. Paintner guides readers through six themes connecting the medium of photography with the Christian spiritual life. Each theme provides a photographic journey in which the reader does not simply take images, but receives images and learns to see with "the eyes of the heart" (Eph 1:18). Photos by the author are included.

• Little Book of Contemplative Photography: Seeing With Wonder, Respect And Humility (Little Books of Justice & Peacebuilding)
• The Artist's Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul with Monastic Wisdom
• The Soul's Slow Ripening: 12 Celtic Practices for Seeking the Sacred
• Water, Wind, Earth, and Fire: The Christian Practice of Praying with the Elements
• The Soul of a Pilgrim: Eight Practices for the Journey Within
• Dreaming of Stones: Poems (Paraclete Poetry)
• Lectio Divina-The Sacred Art: Transforming Words & Images into Heart-Centered Prayer (The Art of Spiritual Living)
• Contemplative Vision: Photography as a Spiritual Practice
• The Wisdom of the Body: A Contemplative Journey to Wholeness for Women
• Illuminating the Way: Embracing the Wisdom of Monks and Mystics