Seeing God: An Exhibit of Sacred Art 2021 Enjoy this year's virtual exhibit! We invite you to pause with each image as if you were walking our Gallery at St. Paul’s Monastery and read the artist’s statement about their piece. The rest of the exhibit will be posted on the blog throughout February and March.…
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Seeing God 2021 Virtual Exhibit Preview: Karen Kurka Jensen
Preview of Seeing God: An Exhibit of Sacred Art 2021 Join us for a special sneak peek of our upcoming virtual exhibit! We invite you to pause with each image as if you were walking our Gallery at St. Paul’s Monastery and read the artist’s statement about their piece. We will post the rest of…
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Writing from the Center | Revision: Writing Until You Find Your Meaning
One of the exciting aspects of writing is the process of discovery also known as revision. An idea or image comes to mind, and we sit down to describe it because we want to remember it or share with others. Yet, it often happens that as we write, what seemed so clear and evident at first seems to fade. Or we suddenly find numerous threads of ideas with no pattern. When that happens, just keep writing until you come to whatever feels like the end. At this point you are ready to embrace the process of revision – the nearly magical process of discovery. Like a sculptor standing before a block of marble, you chip away at the mass of words on the paper or screen.
Writing from the Center: Persistence, Not Perfection
Persistence, Not Perfection Kathy Fleming is a talented visual artist (www.kflemingart.com) who serves as the Artist Coordinator for the Benedictine Center of St. Paul's Monastery. Her canvases are captivating both in their craftsmanship and the deep reflection underlying each one. Those who see the exhibits she designs in the Monastery Gallery benefit from her uncanny…
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Ice Break: Annotated Selections from a Book of Poems
Ice Break: Annotated Selections from a Book of Poems Writers too infrequently have the opportunity to witness people in the act of receiving their work. I was recently afforded that privilege as I shared a poetry reading with my friend and colleague Victor Klimoski. The experience encouraged me to annotate a handful of poems for…
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Writing from the Center: In Praise of Mary Oliver and Her Call to Attentiveness
Writing from the Center In Praise of Mary Oliver and Her Call to Attentiveness We recently convened a gathering at the Monastery to celebrate the life and work of poet, Mary Oliver. She died January 17 at the age of 74, leaving behind a body of work that will sustain generations of readers. As a…
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Practice
Practice We all intuitively use the word practice in at least two ways that we don’t even think about anymore. The first is the idea of doing something to improve your performance for a specific task. I had football practice and my daughter has oboe practice. The second way we talk about practice is the…
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How I Walk with Others in Spiritual Companionship
How I Walk with Others in Spiritual Companionship Some of My Questions Thirty-five years ago spiritual direction found me. At a crossroads in my life, I was seeking some answers. What was my relationship with God? Who and what is God? What does Silence have to do with inner awakening? What gifts did I have…
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Art as Spiritual Practice
©Birth of Christ, Luke Frontispiece, Donald Jackson, 2002, The Saint John’s Bible, Saint John’s University, Collegeville, Minnesota, USA. Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible, Catholic Edition, © 1993, 1989 National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Art…
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