Well-known retreat master and author of the bestselling Centering Prayer,Basil Pennington now demonstrates the spiritually enriching power of that ancient prayer technique when used in conjunction with scripture. Just as a centering prayer involves listening to a call, he explains, so too our encounters with the Word of God are a listeningexperience. This devotional book contains thirty excerpts from Matthew's Gospel with corresponding meditational essays that invite prayerful reflection through "centering." We are guided through such areas as poverty of spirit, self-alienation, the transformation of consciousness, authentic love, abandonment and "letting go," and openness to the Spirit. Equally suites for a personal at-home retreat or in a prayer-group setting, this treasury of Gospel spirituality brings even greater joy to the experience of centering prayer.