Life Is a School for Discernment Benedictine spirituality moved from theory to practice again for me this month during the first online School of Discernment. Dr. Kathleen Cahalan taught, accompanied by familiar members of the spiritual direction team, but this time twice as many participants came together as we explored what hope and practical help…
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Discernment Flows From a Deeper Place
Discernment Flows From A Deeper Place During the School of Discernment a few weeks ago, Kathleen Cahalan described discernment in a way that was particularly meaningful. She said discernment can be practiced as a disposition, a way of life, instead of an occasional exercise we take up when we have a big decision to make.…
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Welcome, Feelings
Welcome, Feelings: Praying Through the Full Range of Emotions Like so many people, I have been on an emotional roller coaster since March. Coming to terms with the pandemic and its ripple effects has mirrored aspects of the grieving process: denial, bargaining, acceptance, meaning making. In the United States, more have died from coronavirus than…
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What Crisis Teaches: A Benedictine Perspective
What Crisis Teaches: A Benedictine Perspective The Great Conversation series began several years ago to convene people around pressing issues of the day. The purpose was not simply to describe an issue, but to explore its meaning in light of the Benedictine tradition. This Conversation, which ends the series as the Center pauses its ministry,…
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Writing From the Center
Writing From the Center One of the upsides of COVID is figuring out workarounds. People are getting versatile using online platforms to meet, party, build and sustain relationships. But the itch to be in each other’s presence is strong. There is something about physicality that makes it an irreplaceable variable. Last spring when I was…
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Full of Days
Full of Days: On Retirement and Deserts I’ve always liked my feet. I thought they were quite pretty, at least as feet go. But a few months ago, after a long hike in the mountainous desert, I took off my shoes and socks and someone else’s feet emerged. Far from pretty, they looked like a…
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Praying the Psalms
Praying the Psalms O Lord, our Lord, how awesome is your name through all the earth! My God, I call by day, but you do not answer; by night, but I have no relief. Have mercy on me, God, in accord with your merciful love. I will bless the Lord at all times; his praise…
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For Everything There is a Season
For Everything There is a Season For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven: a time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up what is planted; a time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to…
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A Constant Squeeze on the Heart
A Constant Squeeze on the Heart In her 2018 book, The Magnanimous Heart, the Buddhist teacher Narayan Helen Liebenson writes about the transitory nature of life and the spiritual challenge it brings. The conditions of our particular lives- our jobs, homes, relationships, the bodies we inhabit-are always changing, and with change comes loss. We know…
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Finding Unexpected Treasure in Lectio Divina
Finding Unexpected Treasure in Lectio Divina When I was encouraged to attend the School of Lectio Divina, I was drawn to the idea, but I also had some hesitation. I was somewhat familiar with lectio divina (literally “divine reading”) as an ancient practice of praying with scripture, and I had experienced lectio divina in its…
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