FEAR AND FATIGUE
What a time we have all been having! What a challenging, difficult, demanding year! As if the pandemic were not enough, we’ve suffered through some of the worst fires in history in the West, and pummeling, unremitting hurricanes in the South and East. With all of this fatigue, and all of these fears, we may fall prey to a deep sense of helplessness.
Forgetfulness seems to be a regular part of my life these days. I’ve simply forgotten that deeper, more important reality in the midst of the daily work and responsibilities. Mindfulness, or remembering, is a major understanding in the Benedictine tradition, and in early Christianity, as well as in Buddhism and other religions. Fall 2022 Newsletter…
CHANGE “The more things change, the more they stay the same,” runs an old folk wisdom saying. This saying has never seemed so profoundly true as today. So many things change today: a new president in the White House, the seasons, the death of Pope Francis, and the new pope, Leo XIV. Is there anything…
DIFFERENCES Lately it seems that all we hear about is how divided we are in this country, and how different our opinions are on all sorts of things. With such deep differences and divisions, how are we able to hold together? Winter 2025 newsletter in PDF (1.7 MB)
Download our Summer 2018 Newsletter
RELAXING When we think about trying to follow the Gospel directives, or in old-fashioned terms, the practice of virtue, we normally associate this with a lot of effort. Suppose that what is needed is not more will power, or muscle power, or major inner strategies? Suppose we might need to relax. Relax? Summer 2021 Newsletter…
WATCHING One of my favorite times is very early morning, shortly after I awake, when I sit in my ‘cell’ (monastic term for my room) and watch the clouds go by. My moods and emotions may not only reflect the weather outside, they are in fact the face of the weather inside. Spring 2021 Newsletter…
