A weekly curated collection of essays, poetry, and reflections for your spiritual journey. From The Wisdom Years.
God of peace and justice,
we pray for the people of Ukraine today.
We pray for peace and the laying down of weapons.
We pray for all those who fear for tomorrow,
that your Spirit of comfort would draw near to them.
We pray for those with power over war or peace,
for wisdom, discernment and compassion to guide their decisions.
Above all, we pray for all your precious children, at risk and in fear,
that you would hold and protect them.
We pray in the name of Jesus, the Prince of Peace. Amen.
– Archbishop Justin Welby of Canterbury
and Archbishop Stephen Cottrell of York, Church of England
Spiritual Listening
The way we listen to another is much more important than the words we use. “To listen another’s soul into a condition of disclosure and discovery may be almost the greatest service one human being ever performs for another,” says Quaker writer Douglas Steere. Spiritual listening is the art of becoming a listening presence, a way of being in which stillness and attentiveness provide the space for people to speak authentically and know they are being heard.
From Daily Good.
The Cross as Revealing the Passion
When we are the one who takes cares of everyone else, it is hard to move from that role to being the one who is taken care of, as happens as we age or become ill. However, says Fr. Ron Rolheiser, we have an opportunity in those times to give as much to others in our passivities as in our activities. It is a time when we give our love and ourselves in a very deep way.
More about Ron Rolheiser.
Between Gift And Privilege
In various shamanic traditions, the word medicine is used to describe the unique combination of qualities that a particular living thing embodies. A tree’s “medicine” might include the way it offers shade and shelter. In the same way, humans have medicine to offer. “Each one of us harbors a unique combination of inner gifts, waiting to be discovered, drawn out, and developed,” says Jonathan Harris.
Read or listen to the article.
From Awakin.
Listening for the Path of Life
Brother Sean Glenn of Society of St. John the Evangelist relates that during years of intensive training for a career in music, he began to find pressures that robbed him of the early love he had for his career choice. He eventually was called to a different path. Lent, says Br. Sean, is a time when we can take stock of these dualities—these choices—in our lives. It is a time when we might ask if God is calling us to a different path.
From Society of St. John the Evangelist.
Light a Candle for Ukraine
A Network for Grateful Living invites you to virtually light a candle for the people of Ukraine. During the lighting you may offer thoughts or prayers, joining more than 22 million people from 194 countries.
Gathered Wisdom is an offering of The Wisdom Years, a ministry devoted to the spiritual journey of the last third of our lives.
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