What is Thomas Keating?
Thomas Keating (March 7, 1923 – October 25, 2018) was an American Trappist priest known as one of the principal developers of centering prayer, a contemplative method that emerged from St. Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts. Centering Prayer emerged from St. Joseph’s Abbey in 1975, developed by Keating along with William Meninger and Basil Pennington, also Trappist monks. Keating’s work revived ancient Christian practices of silent prayer for modern seekers, making interior contemplation accessible outside monastic walls. In 1984, Keating co-founded Contemplative Outreach, Ltd., an international and ecumenical spiritual network that teaches Centering Prayer and Lectio Divina. His foundational text, Open Mind, Open Heart (1986), has sold over half a million copies and remains a standard introduction to Christian contemplative practice.
Origins & Lineage
Keating was born in New York in 1923 and converted to Catholicism while a student at Yale University in the 1940s. After graduating from Deerfield Academy, he studied at Yale from 1940–1942 before transferring to Fordham University, where he received a Bachelor of Arts in December 1943. He entered the Trappist Abbey of Our Lady of the Valley in Valley Falls, Rhode Island in 1944. He professed final vows in 1949 and was ordained a priest that same year. In 1961, Keating was elected abbot of St. Joseph’s Abbey in Spencer, serving for twenty years until he retired in 1981 and returned to Snowmass, Colorado.
During Keating’s term as abbot at St. Joseph’s and in response to the reforms of Vatican II, he invited teachers from the East to the monastery. As a result of this exposure to Eastern spiritual traditions, Keating and several monks at St. Joseph’s were led to develop the modern form of Christian contemplative prayer called Centering Prayer. When the concept was first proposed by Keating, Meninger started teaching a method based on the 14th-century spiritual classic The Cloud of Unknowing. Centering Prayer is influenced by both Buddhist sources as well as ancient Christian practices outlined in texts such as The Cloud of Unknowing. In 1983, Keating presented a two-week intensive Centering Prayer retreat at the Lama Foundation in New Mexico, which proved to be a watershed event. Many of the people prominent in the Centering Prayer movement today attended this retreat.
How It’s Practiced
Centering Prayer is a method of silent consent rather than discursive meditation. The practitioner chooses a sacred word as the symbol of their intention to consent to God’s presence and action within. Sitting comfortably and with eyes closed, they settle briefly and silently introduce the sacred word. When engaged with thoughts, they return ever-so-gently to the sacred word. The recommended practice is a minimum of 20 minutes, twice each day, with the intention of deepening relationship with God. By “returning ever-so-gently to the sacred word,” a minimum effort is indicated. This is the only activity practitioners initiate during Centering Prayer. The practice does not seek to eliminate thoughts but to cultivate detachment from them and openness to divine presence.
Thomas Keating Today
Contemplative Outreach provides a support system for those on the contemplative path through a wide variety of resources, workshops, and retreats. Since Keating’s death in 2018, his teachings continue through Contemplative Outreach chapters worldwide, recorded talks, and his extensive bibliography. Throughout his monastic life, Keating conducted numerous retreats and authored 28 books and practice guides on prayer and the spiritual life, as well as several audio and video series. Seekers encounter his work through introductory workshops, weekly Centering Prayer groups (both in-person and online), intensive ten-day retreats, and his widely available books, particularly the trilogy: Open Mind, Open Heart, Invitation to Love, and The Mystery of Christ.
Common Misconceptions
Centering Prayer is not transcendental meditation rebranded for Christians, though it shares silence as method. Centering Prayer is not without controversy among Catholics, with some arguing the practice is inappropriate and deviates from mainstream views of prayer and God. In 1989, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith issued a letter addressing perceived problems in some modern prayer methods influenced by Eastern religions. However, critics have debated whether this letter applies to Centering Prayer, with Keating maintaining it does not. Another misconception: the practice aims to clear the mind of all thought. In fact, thoughts are a normal part of Centering Prayer. The only way to judge this prayer is by its long-range fruits: whether in daily life you enjoy greater peace, humility and charity. Finally, Centering Prayer is not a substitute for other forms of Christian prayer—petitionary, liturgical, or scriptural—but a complement designed to deepen receptivity.
How to Begin
Start with Open Mind, Open Heart by Thomas Keating, which provides historical context, theological foundation, and step-by-step instruction. Open Mind, Open Heart is designed to initiate readers into a deep, living relationship with God and provides step-by-step guidance in the method of Centering Prayer. Locate a Contemplative Outreach introductory workshop or weekly practice group (searchable at contemplativeoutreach.org). Begin with 20-minute sessions once or twice daily. The organization also offers free mobile apps with timers and guided instructions. For those seeking deeper immersion, consider a multi-day intensive retreat at established centers like St. Benedict’s Monastery in Snowmass, Colorado. The practice requires no special posture or environment—only commitment to interior silence and consent to divine presence.