The Distant Spire - Music for Christian Meditation and Devotion

Surprised By Joy - Music For Meditation

New music from the Distant Spire. It’s been a while since my last post due to my attention being focused on preparations for a pilgrimage to Europe at the end of September. In addition (and perhaps due to this distraction), creative inspiration has been elusive. I am hoping some time away will re-energise me and provide some time for reflection, and I look forward to providing more music for meditation soon. Meanwhile I plan to jump in on Notes from time to time while I’m away but there will be no Distant Spire music until November. This week’s music for meditation is called Surprised By Joy, so named, and inspired by CS Lewis’ autobiography and his theological understanding of joy. Along with listening to the music and finding some quiet time for prayer, I invite you to read a short explanation below for context as you reflect. (I recommend headphones or full range speakers both for listening quality and to provide some isolation from the noise and business so you can more easily enter into a quiet time with the Lord). CS Lewis And Surprised By Joy Surprised By Joy is about much more than the life of CS Lewis; it is an exploration of essence and belief. I first read his autobiography many years ago and I recently read it again. I was captivated by his vivid recall and how important, central even, the role of imagination was in his formation, and how it became central to his thoughts on meaning and the eternal. For Lewis joy also had a much deeper meaning than the definition we might otherwise apply; joy was not merely happiness but suggested a deep longing for something beyond our grasp, and that this longing signifies our inherent need, and desire, for God. According to Lewis, this sense of longing can take many forms. For example he said that a literary person often will read the same story more than once, because they want to revisit the world that they enter into through the story to reawaken the longing for the real eternal world of heaven. Romantic longing, loneliness and its desperate craving for friendship or at least some social interaction, suggest our inherent need for connection and relationship. Lewis provides a vivid example of this sensation of longing and how it relates to his understanding of joy: “As I stood beside a flowering currant bush on a summer day there suddenly arose in me without warning, and as if from a depth not of years but of centuries, the memory of that earlier morning at the Old House when my brother had brought his toy garden into the nursery. It is difficult or find words strong enough for the sensation which came over me; Milton's 'enormous bliss' of Eden (giving the full, ancient meaning to 'enormous') comes somewhere near it. It was a sensation, of course, of desire; but desire for what?...Before I knew what I desired, the desire itself was gone, the whole glimpse... withdrawn, the world turned commonplace again, or only stirred by a longing for the longing that had just ceased... In a sense the central story of my life is about nothing else... The quality common to the three experiences... is that of an unsatisfied desire which is itself more desirable than any other satisfaction. I call it Joy, which is here a technical term and must be sharply distinguished both from Happiness and Pleasure. Joy (in my sense) has indeed one characteristic, and one only, in common with them; the fact that anyone who has experienced it will want it again... I doubt whether anyone who has tasted it would ever, if both were in his power, exchange it for all the pleasures in the world. But then Joy is never in our power and Pleasure often is.” (pp.16-18) Lewis expressed his idea of joy in numerous other works and it goes some way to giving a framework of meaning to what is sometime a feeling or sense that we know but cannot always explain. Additional Notes In a year that has already been full of blessings and transformation, I will soon be leaving for a twenty three day Carmelite pilgrimage through France, Spain and then onto Rome and the Vatican. My parish is run by Carmelite Friars and two of the priests will be leading our group. We will be visiting important sites in the Carmelite tradition, including the town of Lisieux where St Therese produced her profound and beautiful writings that have been so influential, and the walled city of Avila which holds special significance for St Teresa and St John of the Cross. Please pray for me as go with a number of intentions for family, and also seeking discernment of my future in the Church, namely whether I should become a Benedictine Oblate, or focus on serving the Lord in my local parish. If you want to support The Distant Spire You can help me with my motivation by subscribing to my newsletter, and sharing a link would be the nicest compliment you could give me - it says my work is worthy of not just your time but those that are important to you. 🎵 The Distant Spire is a reader supported project that does not currently receive any financial support and content is free. Music from The Distant Spire is also available through the links below. I highly value your comments and encouragement so please leave a comment if what you enjoy what you hear, and if it resonates with you or helps you in any way. Thanks for being a part of the journey in growing deeper in union with our Heavenly Father through meditation and music. You can read more about The Distant Spire and the concept behind it on my About Page [https://thedistantspire.substack.com/about]. D.A SigleyThe Distant Spire Footnotes and Resources Music written, recorded and produced by Dale Sigley ©2025 Scripture quotes from Revised Stand Version: Catholic Edition ©1989, 1993. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedistantspire.substack.com [https://thedistantspire.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

How Insignificant Earth Seems (When I Consider Heaven)

New music from the Distant Spire. This week’s music for meditation is called How Insignificant Earth Seems (When I Consider Heaven), so named, and inspired by the quote from St Ignatius. Before finding some quiet time for prayer, I invite you to read below for some context to the music for further reflection. (I recommend headphones or full range speakers both for listening quality and to provide some isolation from the noise and business so you can more easily enter into a quiet time with the Lord). Heaven Is The Ultimate Reality It’s easy to imagine heaven as a place of fluffy clouds and angels with harps, and there are many religious artistic, poetic and theological works that have attempted to capture the grandeur of our heavenly reward. Any image however will fall short for; “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the human heart conceived,what God has prepared for those who love him”(Corinthians 2:9) The Catechism of The Catholic Church, drawing on the Scriptures, articulates what heaven is in a beautiful and succinct way, and I encourage you to read the section on heaven in its entirety. Below are a few quotes: “Heaven is the ultimate end and fulfilment of the deepest human longings, the state of supreme, definitive happiness.” (CCC 1024) “To live in heaven is “to be with Christ. The elect live “in Christ, but they retain, or rather find, their true identity, their own name. For life is to be with Christ; where Christ is, there is life, there is the kingdom.” (CCC 1026) “This mystery of blessed communion with God and all who are in Christ is beyond all understanding and description. Scripture speaks of it in images: life, light, peace, wedding feast, wine of the kingdom, the Father’s house, the heavenly Jerusalem, paradise: “no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived, what God has prepared for those who love him.” (CCC 1027) The ‘mystery of blessed communion…is beyond all understanding and description’, however we can still, as St Ignatius said, consider heaven, as it will help us see that everything the world has to offer is insignificant in comparison. I hope the music for this week helps evoke such consideration, no matter how short it might fall in capturing heaven in its fullness. We see dimly through the mists and vapours;Amid these earthly dampsWhat seems to us but sad, funeral tapersMay be heaven’s distant lamps. Henry Wadsworth Longfellow ‘Resignation’ Additional Notes One of the aspects of the Catholic faith I have grown to really appreciate is the shear number of great teachers, writers and theologians that we can draw inspiration from and continue to learn about. It’s easy to highlight the failures of popes, bishops and priests but I think it’s better to focus on those that have been a powerful witness for Christ, of which there are so many more. Here are a couple that I have recently discovered and I am keen to learn more about: The newly canonised St John Henry Newman was a name I had only come across through quotes until now. I looked him up on Wikipedia and I found his story of conversion from Anglicanism and later influence in the Catholic Church fascinating. I am now on the lookout in my favourite used bookstores for any of his writings, and a biography. Angelus Silesius was a completely new name to me until last week, when I was sent a poem called The Cherubinic Wanderer [https://www.themathesontrust.org/library/cherubinic-wanderer], and it sent me down the rabbit hole of mystical poetry and apophatic theology. It’s interesting to me how it overlaps with other mystical writings such as The Cloud Of Unknowing, The Interior Castle etc, and I hope it will enhance my understanding of Carmelite spirituality, which is prominent in my parish. If you want to support The Distant Spire You can help me with my motivation by subscribing to my newsletter, and sharing a link would be the nicest compliment you could give me - it says my work is worthy of not just your time but those that are important to you. 🎵 The Distant Spire is a reader supported project that does not currently receive any financial support and content is free. Music from The Distant Spire is also available through the links below. I highly value your comments and encouragement so please leave a comment if what you enjoy what you hear, and if it resonates with you or helps you in any way. Thanks for being a part of the journey in growing deeper in union with our Heavenly Father through meditation and music. You can read more about The Distant Spire and the concept behind it on my About Page [https://thedistantspire.substack.com/about]. D.A SigleyThe Distant Spire Footnotes and Resources Music written, recorded and produced by Dale Sigley ©2025 Scripture quotes from Revised Stand Version: Catholic Edition ©1989, 1993. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedistantspire.substack.com [https://thedistantspire.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

His Mercies Are Renewed Every Morning

Let no one mourn that he has fallen again and again; for forgiveness has risen from the grave - St. John Chrysostom New music from the Distant Spire. This week’s music for meditation is called His Mercies Are Renewed Every Morning. Before finding some quiet time for prayer, I invite you to read below for some context to the music for further reflection. I recommend headphones or full range speakers both for listening quality and to provide some isolation from the noise and business so you can more easily enter into a quiet time with the Lord. Please leave a comment if The Distant Spire has been a benefit to you. The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end;they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. Lamentations 3:22-23 Every Day A New Day What a comforting, reassuring truth this is; that every day is a new day in God. The daily rising of the sun is a reminder to us the constant renewal of His mercy and grace. It is a time where we can repent of sin, reach out for forgiveness, and renew our attitude of gratitude; thankfulness for his lovingkindness that leads us to that place. It was “Early on the first day of the week, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and saw that the stone had been removed from the tomb.”. Rather than a time of sorrow the morning is a daily revelation of hope, renewal and opportunity. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: “Interior repentance is a radical reorientation of our whole life, a return, a conversion to God with all our heart, an end of sin, a turning away from evil, with repugnance toward the evil actions we have committed. At the same time it entails the desire and resolution to change one’s life, with hope in God’s mercy and trust in the help of his grace.” Interestingly, according to an article on Catholic Online News [https://catholiconline.news/science/morning-joy-why-science-and-faith-agree-on-the-power-of-a-new-day/], science now confirms what our faith has long taught – that mornings are, indeed, the happiest time of day. I recommend reading out the article in its entirety but include here the following quote: “This scientific perspective aligns beautifully with Catholic teaching. The morning has long been considered a sacred time—an opportunity to start anew with prayer, gratitude, and purpose. The Liturgy of the Hours, particularly Lauds (morning prayer), is designed to begin the day in praise of God. The Psalms frequently speak of morning joy: “O Lord, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch” (Psalm 5:3).” Below is the prayer called the embolism, often inserted into the Lord’s Prayer. It dates back to the first centuries of the church, and is prayed at Lauds (early morning prayer). Deliver us, Lord, from every evil, and grant us peace in our day. In your mercy keep us free from sin and protect us from all anxiety as we wait in joyful hope for the coming of our Savior, Jesus Christ our Lord.Amen. Pray with great confidence, with confidence based upon the goodness and infinite generosity of God and upon the promises of Jesus Christ. God is a spring of living water which flows unceasingly into the hearts of those who pray - St. Louis de Montfort If you want to support The Distant Spire You can help me with my motivation by subscribing to my newsletter, and sharing a link would be the nicest compliment you could give me - it says my work is worthy of not just your time but those that are important to you. 🎵 The Distant Spire is a reader supported project that does not currently receive any financial support and content is free. Music from The Distant Spire is also available through the links below. I highly value your comments and encouragement so please leave a comment if what you enjoy what you hear, and if it resonates with you or helps you in any way. Additional Notes Years before I became Catholic I read that JRR Tolkien (of Lord of the Rings fame), attended Mass each morning. I was intrigued by this idea of attending church every day, as my concept of a church service was largely non-liturgical and sermon focused, and I wondered why someone would want to go to that trouble. I also wondered, “who has the time for that?”. Once I grew to understand and appreciate the liturgy and the sacraments, the Mass became so attractive and invigorating to my faith that I started attending weekday Mass. I now attend when I am able before work and it spiritually prepares me for the day ahead. The daily mass brings to us a fresh reminder of God’s mercy every morning. You can read more about The Distant Spire and the concept behind it on my About Page [https://thedistantspire.substack.com/about]. D.A SigleyThe Distant Spire Footnotes and Resources Music written, recorded and produced by Dale Sigley ©2025 Scripture quotes from Revised Stand Version: Catholic Edition ©1989, 1993. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedistantspire.substack.com [https://thedistantspire.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

Deep Calls To Deep

“How insignificant Earth seems to me when I consider heaven”. - St Ignatius of Loyola New music from the Distant Spire. This week’s music for meditation is called Deep Unto Deep. Before finding some quiet time for prayer, I invite you to read below for some context to the music for further reflection. I recommend headphones or full range speakers both for listening quality and to provide some isolation from the noise and business so you can more easily enter into a quiet time with the Lord. Please leave a comment if The Distant Spire has been a benefit to you. A Psalm of Longing Deep calls to deep at the thunder of your cataracts;all your waves and your billows have gone over me.By day the Lord commands his steadfast love, and at night his song is with me, a prayer to the God of my life. Psalm 42:7-8 The beautiful poetic imagery of the psalm calls to mind the continual and universal longing of our souls for something greater and deeper beyond this world, which is ultimately a longing for God our Creator. For CS Lewis longing was a central theme throughout much of his writing. He said that we can all relate to a yearning for something more, and this suggests that there is something more. Regarding this universal longing, he says, “Now if we are made for heaven, the desire for our proper place will be already in us, but not yet attached to the true object, and will even appear as the rival of that object … If a trans temporal, transfinite good is our real destiny, then any other good on which our desire fixes must be in some degree fallacious, must bear at best only a symbolical relation to what will truly satisfy.” He says that longing is aroused through an appreciation of nature, films, books, and other sources that excite the imagination, but they are ultimately unfulfilling: “Our commonest expedient is to call it beauty and behave as if that had settled the matter.…The books or the music in which we thought the beauty was located will betray us if we trust to them; it was not in them, it only came through them, and what came through them was longing. These things—the beauty, the memory of our own past—are good images of what we really desire; but if they are mistaken for the thing itself, they turn into dumb idols, breaking the hearts of their worshippers. For they are not the thing itself; they are only the scent of a flower we have not found, the echo of a tune we have not heard, news from a country we have never yet visited. “Feeling and longing are the motive forces behind all human endeavour and human creations.” Albert Einstein Our enchantment with, and creation of, entertainment, arts and other means demonstrate our attempts at fulfilling of this longing, but they are temporal, and the desire remains. Longing is a sense that we are on an incomplete journey and we are yearning for the completion – our eternal home, so we should not see longing as a negative thing, but an innate desire, placed in us by God and part of our very being, that will lead us closer to Him if we pursue this longing with an equal desire for truth. Longing may just be the strongest creative force known, and its aim should lead us heavenward. Additional Notes I continue to seek in prayer to try and discern God’s will in my new found Catholic faith, and I have been greatly helped by regular retreats and day trips to New Norcia Benedictine Monastery [https://www.newnorcia.com.au]. It has been such an integral part of my journey, and the Benedictine spirituality resonates with me so strongly, that I can’t help but sense it will continue to be a part of my Christian life going forward. If you want to support The Distant Spire You can help me with my motivation by subscribing to my newsletter, and sharing a link would be the nicest compliment you could give me - it says my work is worthy of not just your time but those that are important to you. 🎵 The Distant Spire is a reader supported project that does not currently receive any financial support and content is free. Music from The Distant Spire is also available through the links below. I highly value your comments and encouragement so please leave a comment if what you enjoy what you hear, and if it resonates with you or helps you in any way. You can read more about The Distant Spire and the concept behind it on my About Page [https://thedistantspire.substack.com/about]. God bless you and keep you, D.A SigleyThe Distant Spire Footnotes and Resources Music written, recorded and produced by Dale Sigley ©2025 Scripture quotes from Revised Stand Version: Catholic Edition ©1989, 1993. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedistantspire.substack.com [https://thedistantspire.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]

The State Of Being

“What matters in life is not great deeds, but great love.” St Thérèse of Lisieux New music from the Distant Spire. This week’s offering is called The State Of Being and calls to mind that we are firstly called to be and then do, not the other way around, remembering the immeasurable love that God has for us, and of our place in God as His image bearers and sharers in the divine life. Before finding some quiet time for prayer, I invite you to read below for some context to the music for further reflection. I recommend headphones or full range speakers both for listening quality and to provide some isolation from the noise and business so you can more easily enter into a quiet time with the Lord. Please leave a comment if The Distant Spire has been a benefit to you. Doing should come out of being It was this off-hand remark a friend made to me many years ago that inspired this piece of music. I had recently left a church that placed a heavy emphasis on church involvement and evangelism, having grown weary of the constant berating that we weren’t good enough. As I chatted to my friend and tried to make sense of how I had tried to conform to unrealistic expectations and been left feeling unworthy, he simply said, “doing should come out of being, not being out of doing”. Thomas Merton framed this truth in terms of the life of action and the life of contemplation in his best selling autobiography The Seven Storey Mountain. He prefaces this view with the following from Saint Thomas Aquinas: “Saint Thomas taught that there were three vocations: that to the active life, that to the contemplative, and a third to a mixture of both, and that this last is superior to the other two.” He explains that the contemplative life is chiefly concerned with the love of God, and that there is no act “more perfect or more meritorious”. Merton says that the active life can be more perfect only if it is the result of an overflow of our love for God. However, “it does not dispense us from contemplation”. The active life comes first (practice of virtues, self-discipline and charity) and prepares us for contemplation, where we learn to rest, reflect and listen to God in quietness. “Meditation is where love is set in order, so that we love our neighbour as ourselves, and God above everything. He who loves God loves prayer.” St Alphonsos Ligouri Merton points out that without exception, all of the saints known for their mystical, contemplative life such as St Thérèse, St John of the Cross, Saint Gregory and many others, their marriage of the soul with God gave them a “miraculous power, a smooth and tireless energy in working for God and for souls” and as a result changed the course of religion and secular history. The life of contemplation and prayer is of the highest value, for the outflow will be not only a desire to act in the pure love of God, but those actions will result in a fruitfulness and effectiveness far beyond what we may accomplish without it. If we only find our identity in God through action, whether that be mission or other ministry it will lead to distorted thinking about our value, the value of our ministry and our motivation becomes selfish. Doing should come out of being, not being out of doing. “The soul that loves intensely cannot remain inactive”. - St Thérèse of Lisieux Additional Notes I continue to seek in prayer to try and discern God’s will in my new found Catholic faith, and I have been greatly helped by regular retreats and day trips to New Norcia Benedictine Monastery [https://www.newnorcia.com.au]. It has been such an integral part of my journey, and the Benedictine spirituality resonates with me so strongly, that I can’t help but sense it will continue to be a part of my Christian life going forward. A Major Music Update You will begin to see The Distant Spire tracks disappear over the next few weeks from Spotify, Apple Music, iHeartRadio etc. This decision comes after careful consideration over what direction I want to take in regard to this creative project and service to the Christian community. Going forward, music from The Distant Spire will be available in podcast format and Soundcloud as well as here on Substack (see links below). I believe these services provide the best way to access music for devotion like The Distant Spire. It has never been my intention to monetise The Distant Spire so the loss of (meagre) income from streaming services does not bother me at all. I am however exploring options for listeners to support The Distant Spire financially if they would like to. If you want to support The Distant Spire You can help me with my motivation by subscribing to my newsletter, and sharing a link would be the nicest compliment you could give me - it says my work is worthy of not just your time but those that are important to you. 🎵 The Distant Spire is a reader supported project that does not currently receive any financial support and content is free. Music from The Distant Spire is also available through the links below. I highly value your comments and encouragement so please leave a comment if what you enjoy what you hear, and if it resonates with you or helps you in any way. You can read more about The Distant Spire and the concept behind it on my About Page [https://thedistantspire.substack.com/about]. God bless you and keep you, D.A SigleyThe Distant Spire Footnotes and Resources Music written, recorded and produced by Dale Sigley ©2025 Scripture quotes from Revised Stand Version: Catholic Edition ©1989, 1993. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit thedistantspire.substack.com [https://thedistantspire.substack.com?utm_medium=podcast&utm_campaign=CTA_1]