What is online meditation?
Meditation is the practice of quieting your mind. Many practices of meditation encourage group practice, which means that at least some of the times you are meditating you are doing so in a group. Online group meditation simply means that the group you are meditating with is meeting online, rather than physically.
How does online meditation work?
Online meditation makes use of a video conferencing tool called Zoom to meet together. Each of our chapels links to a Zoom conference room. You will go to your chapel at the appropriate meeting time for your group (your porter will give you the URL for the chapel.) You will see a link to “Enter the Chapel”. You will press that link. That will put you into a Zoom conference where you will see each of the other meditators who are meeting in that group. You will be able to see and hear each other.
What are the advantages of online meditation?
Some of the advantages of online meditation include these:
- You can meditate with people from all over the world.
- You can find a group that meets at a time convenient to you.
- You don’t need to drive or find parking.
- You can continue meeting with your group(s) even when traveling.
- You can experience meditating with groups other than your own faith tradition.
What do I need?
All you need for online meditation is the following:
- A computer, tablet, or smart phone with a camera and microphone (most systems today include these.)
- A headset is helpful, but not absolutely necessary.
- An internet connection. You can use a data plan but online meditation uses a lot of data. You are better off with an internet connection.
- If you are using a tablet or a smart phone, you need to install the Zoom application. If you are using a computer, this will be installed automatically the first time you enter a group.
- An interest in trying meditation.
How do I join an online group?
The first thing you need to do is read the Getting Started Page. This lays out the steps you will follow to become part of our community. In Step 1, you will make sure you agree with the site rules. In Step 2, you will register with Meditation Chapel. Once you register, you will receive an email with a link to the Welcome Page. Be sure to read the Welcome Page and bookmark it. This page contains important information you will need to participate in Meditation Chapel.
If you have any problems or questions, contact one of our Online Porters. These are volunteers who will make sure your machine is set up correctly, explain the conventions we follow in online meditation, and generally make sure you are comfortable and feel welcomed into our community. Just drop an email to one of our Porters, and they will introduce you into our practice. For a subject, please use “Online Meditation” so that they can quickly pick out your email in their email stream.
Our Porters are:
- Roger Sessions (roger.sessions@gmail.com)
What does it cost to participate?
There is no cost to joining one of our online meditation groups. Once a year we do a fundraising, but contributing is entirely voluntary.
When do the groups meet?
The easiest way to see which groups meet when is by looking at the online group calendar. The calendar will show the groups in your local time zone. Most groups are open to all, but a few have restrictions that are noted in the calendar.
Most groups meet weekly at the same time and in the same chapel.
How do I find the online chapels?
At this time, we have four online chapels, The John Main Chapel, The Thomas Keating Chapel, The Peace Chapel, and the Wisdom Chapel. Each of these chapels is an online video conferencing room. The online group calendar will tell you which chapel each group meets in.
Your welcome page includes the links to the chapel(s) your group(s) use. You will receive a link to this page once you register. Please read it and save it.
I’m confused
We were all confused when we started this. But don’t worry, just reach out to one of our Porters (see, How do I join…). They will make sure you are comfortable and will answer any questions you may have.