Time

There are two kinds of time in the spiritual life.  One is called "Chronos" time and the other is called, "Chiros" time.  Chronos is the time on your clock, seconds, minutes, and is sequential.  Chiros time is what you experience in deep prayer when you are unawares of any time passing.  Chiros is not sequential, has no seconds or minutes to it.  Being asleep is something akin to chiros time.  You are in time but deeper than time.  If someone asks how long were you meditating, you could give them clock time, such as "twenty minutes."  But if they ask how long you were in deep prayer, you cannot say because you are beyond time, deeper than time.  So what?  So what is the use of a Catholic asking when does the bread become God?  They are looking for clock time and doctrines try and give clock time answers.  But the change is not in chronos time. God works in chiros time, beyond time.  People who become contemplatives get this.  There is no "when" or "at what moment" or at what priestly words or actions.  That is all chronos-speak.  The reason that I, a Catholic, love to participate in the Eucharist is that I get to enjoy chiros time, the timeless energy of God transforming things.  God happens, but not in your idea of time.  This is why contemplatives don't spend much time in doctrine.  To experience the really real, you have to put down the book at some time and just be.  Stuff happens that your clock cannot know.