Commentaries Class

Overview Thursday Class Commentaries Class
Journey Groups Work Partners Oblates Movements

Commentaries Class

The Commentaries Class offers an opportunity for study and practice of Maurice Nicoll’s Psychological Commentaries on the Teachings of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky. This optional class is intended to form a community of practice around one the foundational streams of influence of the Church, facilitating the awakening of Observing I, the practicing of non-identification, and the in-forming of Self-remembering in Christ-consciousness. This is a practical offering including the reading of Commentaries, and updated sources on the subjects at-hand, short, practical weekly assignments, and sharing about experiences of engaging the assignments. Online, Monday evenings, 7:00-8:15 pm CT, beginning February 3rd; pausing during weeks that The Journey School is paused.

Class Resources

+ Getting the Commentaries
The class will begin with Volume 1 of the Commentaries. The Commentaries, however, are currently out of print.
  • Used copies can be found on Amazon and elsewhere. Search for "Psychological Commentaries on the Teaching of Gurdjieff and Ouspensky: Vol. 1" - The author is Maurice Nicoll.
  • A PDF is currently available on archive.org.
  • Complete (used) sets of the Commentaries may become available through the Church at a later date.
+ Foundational Readings
The Commentaries do not provide a linear presentation of the Work ideas. There are other books, however, which are a good place to start to get a grounding in the Work ideas and language. If you are new to the Work, reading one or more of these is highly recommended:
  • The Work (Rebecca Nottingham)
  • Simple Explanation of Work Ideas (Maurice Nicoll)
  • The Gurdjieff Work (Kathleen Speeth)
  • In Search of the Miraculous (P.D. Ouspensky - best to be read after one of the previous books)
+ Tools for Working on oneself
Tools that are particularly useful for self-observation, non-identification and self-remembering are:
  • The Work of Byron Katie. While she calls her system The Work, it is a different approach to self knowledge and waking up than Gurdjieff's. Her system is modern, fresh, approachable, and has worksheets and videos to help you get untangled wherever you're stuck. Good places to start are her 'four questions' exercise and the 'judge your neighbor' worksheet. https://thework.com
  • The Welcoming Prayer. A direct method for three-centered self-observation and self-remembering by welcoming God into the experience of the moment. Nick-named 'Consent on the go', the prayer practice is intended to be used in the moment when we find ourselves reacting to life's circumstance. https://www.contemplativeoutreach.org/welcoming-prayer-method