DeepLight

DeepLight: A Memoir of the Soul is a rich narrative of a contemporary woman's spiritual quest. Within the context of her extensive study of religious and mystical traditions, and her experiences as a woman, a monastic, and an Episcopal priest, Susan Creighton weaves a spiral tapestry of memories, journal entries, and poetry. Her search for an authentic practice of contemplative prayer led across cultural, historical, and religious boundaries, but is most significantly shaped and enriched by the teachings of mystics like St. John of the Cross and the ancient tradition of Orthodox ascetical theology and spiritual practice. Now living under vows as an anchorite, her memoir shares with the reader ways in which the Jesus Prayer and other spiritual practices lead to deeper contemplative prayer as well as helping us develop greater discrimination and compassion for ourselves and others.


""Creighton's fascinating memoir, which reminds me of Thomas Merton's Seven-Storey Mountain, explores how a brain disorder can affect--and even intensify--a person's spirituality.""
--Eve LaPlante, author of Seized

""If anyone can speak truly about a personal pilgrimage into an 'anchorhold' of profound faith, it is Susan Creighton. . . . Her story will speak to any seeking soul as it has to mine.""
--Luci Shaw, author of Thumbprint in the Clay

""To write about the soul, you have to know it, yours, and in some deeper ways, the souls of others. When I visited Susan's anchorhold, and sat there with her, I knew I was with someone who did.""
--Gregory H. Rickel, VIII Bishop of Olympia (in Washington)

""This is not a book to be read hastily. It should be savored, wrestled with, and confronted, as the reader walks with [Creighton] the spiral labyrinth to the heart of all being.""
--Linda Maloney, OblSB

""DeepLight is . . . an uncommon invitation to observe a long, rich, and difficult Christian spiritual life. Seldom is such a life uncovered with such brutal honesty, courage, and love.""
--Kathryn Rickert, School of Theology and Ministry, Seattle University

""DeepLight testifies about a lifelong intensive search for the 'essence' of faith in deep prayer and union with God. . . . Reading the book . . . may open up a deep inner response, allowing the gentle voice of one's own soul to be heard in the midst of a hurrying, noisy and violent world.""
--Ingrid Schirmer, University of Hamburg


Susan Creighton is an anchorite in the Episcopal Diocese of Olympia. Ordained a priest in 1981, she has served in monastic, parish, and campus settings. She now fulfills her vocation under vows of silence, solitude, and simplicity, focusing her prayer and study around the ascetical and mystical teachings of the Prayer of the Heart. Her blog may be found at www.holydwelling.com, and she lives in Bellingham, Washington.