Category: Uncategorized

Privileged Communication within the Communion of Saints

Sadly, sometimes there is unfinished business at a person’s death: apologies left unsaid, bitterness that did not get resolved, a task yet to be done. Fortunately, Fr. Ron Rolheiser reminds us, our belief in the Communion of Saints always leaves open a doorway in our relationships.

Read the essay.

About Ron Rolheiser.

This Place That You Belong To

– A poem from Wendell Berry

Found your hope, then, on the ground under your feet.
Your hope of Heaven, let it rest on the ground
underfoot. Be it lighted by the light that falls
freely upon it after the darkness of the nights
and the darkness of our ignorance and madness.
Let it be lighted also by the light that is within you,
which is the light of imagination. 

Read the entire poem.

Found in Daily Good.

Tenderness

A short film from Green Renaissance reminds us to carve out time for quiet and gentleness, toward all of creation and toward ourselves.

Watch the film.

From A Network for Grateful Living.

Learn more about Green Renaissance.

I will not Die an Unlived Life

“When you have the courage to shape your life from the essence of who you are, you ignite, becoming truly alive. This requires letting go of everything that is inauthentic. But how can you even know your truth unless you slow down, in your own quiet company?”

Read a poem and reflection by Dawna Markova. 

Found in Awakin.org. See more readings from the site.  

Where Justice and Charity Meet

Charity and justice are not the same thing, according to this reflection from Richard Rohr. Charity makes us feel good when we give to the poor; but justice is about correcting the system that puts too many people into poverty.

Read the reflection. 

From Center for Action and Contemplation.

What Defines You

In this exquisite film from Green Renaissance, Danielsun Okeyo reflects on no longer being able to count on his own abilities. “I am not Superman,” he says, “and it’s fine. It actually makes it more beautiful that I’m not. The way I am right now is the way it was meant to be, and I’m at peace with that.”

Watch the film.

From Network for Grateful Living with Green Renaissance films.

Touch as Nutrition

Touch is more than skin deep; it’s nourishment for our souls. As adults we often experience touch deficit, especially as COVID drags on.  Our society needs to recover policies that nurture rather than erode us.

Read the article.

From Daily Good.

Faith When Consolation Fails

Warm and fuzzy feelings in prayer comfort us. But for both Samuel and Teresa of Avila, prayer led to a call for prophetic reform.  Not easy lives.

Read the reflection.

From Society of St. John the Evangelist.

Living with Limitations

About one-fourth of adults in the country have a disability that has a major impact on their lives. But each of us can choose how we respond to that. Like Paul’s thorn in the flesh, a disability can bring light into our lives.

Read the reflection.

From Joanna Seibert.

Searching for the Right Fuel

The Prodigal Son’s older brother stayed home and did everything right. But he is resentful, angry, and critical.  His actions are right, says Ron Rolheiser, but his energy is wrong.

Read the reflection.

From the blog of Ron Rolheiser. 

Threshold Choir

“The all-women choirs honor the ancient tradition of singing at the bedsides of people who are struggling: some with living, some with dying. The choirs provide opportunities for women to share the sacred gifts of their voices at life’s thresholds.” Learn about their incredible work in this interview with the founding member. 

Read the story.

Found in Daily Good.

Learn more about Threshold Choir.

A Life on the Ground

When we live at altitude, it’s a long way down when we trip and fall – which we all do. But when you are “grounded,” you fall, get up, dust yourself off, and continue. We need solid ground under our feet, says Parker Palmer.

Read the reflection.

From Awakin.

The Law of Karma

You go through the self-checkout at Target and when you get in your car discover the machine overpaid your change by $20.  Do you go back into the store to return it? Would you cheat, lie, and steal if you never got caught? Fr. Ron Rolheiser proposes that what we sow is what we reap – even if only we ever know.

Read the reflection.

From the blog of Ron Rolheiser. 

Being Instruments of God

Transformation takes us from living as though God is “out there” to living with God “in here.” Richard Rohr calls it “the mystery of participation.” We are characters inside of a story that is being written in cooperation with God. 

Read the reflection.

From Center for Action and Contemplation.

Reviewing our News of the Day

Recovery groups call it the 10th step; St. Ignatius called it the Examen – taking time late in the day to review the day. Like watching the evening new on channel 5, we take time to recall what was, give thanks, make gratitude lists, and pray for all that has come and will come to us.

Read the short reflection.

From Joanna Seibert.

Mother Trees in a Wood Wide Web

It is not only humans who acknowledge and depend on their elders. Scientist Suzanne Simard has found that “mother trees” connect a forest just like human elders connect families across generations.

Read the article. Or listen.

From Awakin.

Salt and Salt Substitutes

We are the salt of the earth. Jesus said so (Matthew 5:13). But what, exactly, does that mean? How do we make sense of that metaphor? SSJE Brother Curtis Almquist looks at the uses of salt and concludes not only that we are each precious and needed, we can also be of value in the lives of others.

Read  or listen to the sermon.

From Society of St. John the Evangelist.

How Do You Be?

Remember the 1990 movie Awakenings? It is the story of Dr. Oliver Sacks, who not only discovered a drug that brought patients out of their comas, he also cared deeply for his patients, often asking them, “How do you be?” How can we ask that question as we emerge from the COVID pandemic?

Read the article.

Found in Daily Good.

Embrace the Spiritual Practice of Aging

We really didn’t know what to expect as we aged. But here we are, and many are finding that aging is a spiritual practice, an opportunity to dig deeper into ourselves and move into our interior lives.

Read the article.

Found in the San Antonio Express News.

Spiritual Friends

Each of us, on our spiritual journeys, needs friends. Spiritual friends help us stay on the path not by walking it for us but by walking it with us. A spiritual friend is a person who “knows something of the terrain from having traveled some of it,” says Joanna Seibert in her reflection.

Read the reflection.

From Daily Something by Joanna Seibert.

The Great Wisdom of Autumn

“Living brightly and then letting go at the right moment” . . . that is the wisdom Christine Valters Paintner takes from the arrival of autumn. It is a season of release and moving into stillness.

Read the reflection.

Found in Patheos.

The Case for the Porch

A porch is a jumping off point for both reverie and action, says Charlie Hailey. “Just as it tells stories of joy and urgency—a bright patch of blue sky alongside the undeniable change of climate.”

Read the article.

Found in Daily Good.

Compassion as Steadfast Love

Graciousness, courtesy, compassion – these are part of what we mean by “hesed,” God’s steadfast love. This love is from everlasting to everlasting, and we are to show the same to our neighbors.

Read the reflection by Richard Rohr.

Found at Center for Action and Contemplation Daily Meditation. 

The Unbearable Beauty of – Grandparenting

Writer Courtney Martin offers stories from one of her favorite professors – now in his 80s – on the exquisite bond between grandparents and grandchildren. “I’m blessed by what I don’t understand,” says Dennis Dalton, “yet I know that it’s a beautiful blessing.”

Read the reflection.

From The Examined Family.

Acceptance, Gratitude, and Peace

We can choose to live in the past and obsess over losses and mistakes; we can choose to live in the future and the unknowing it brings; or we can choose to live in the now, giving thanks for each moment that comes to us.

Read the reflection from Joanna Seibert.

Found in Joanna Seibert’s Daily Something.

Today is World Gratitude Day

Diana Butler Bass reflects on how the practice of gratitude got her through the past 18 months. She writes, “Gratitude is resilience of sorts, the defiance of kindness in the face of anger, of connection in the face of division, and of hope in the face of fear. “ 

Read the reflection.

From The Cottage.

Dance with Life

“If we can just take the intelligence we have and temper it with wisdom . . .” In this lovely video from Green Renaissance, Sue Swain dances with trees and reminds us that “we have been blessed with an incredible planetary home.” 

Watch the video.

From A Network for Grateful Living.

How to Age Gracefully

Writing in the New York Times, author Jane Brody makes some decisions about aging. She has stopped dying her gray hair and using makeup. “Wrinkles be damned. I’m proud to have them.”

Read the article.

The New York Times.

Commandments for the Long Haul

Fr. Ron Rolheiser of Oblate Seminary in San Antonio, Texas, offers some practices for living long lives of faithfulness: “Give yourself permission to be inadequate.” “Be sufficiently loving and critical at the same time.”

Read the rest of them.

From the blog of Ron Rolheiser.

“Death Doulas” Provide Aid at the End of Life

While we spend a lot of time preparing for a birth, as a society we shy away from discussing death or preparing for it emotionally and spiritually. Hence the rising interest in end-of-life or “death”doulas who become companions to the dying, sitting with them, listening to them, helping them write their life stories and plan their own end-of-life memorials. 

Read more about “end-of-life” doulas.

Found in Daily Good.

Encountering God in Our Everyday Life

Many of the spiritual disciplines are like taking out the trash, says Joanna Seibert. The disciplines “are simply to clear our minds so we can hear God speak to our lives.” 

Read the rest of the reflection.

Found in  Joanna Seibert’s Daily Something.

When you’re afraid to get into the boat who soothes your fear?

“ I DON’T WANT TO GO” screamed the little boy who really didn’t want to get into the boat. The boy’s dad was beyond coping, but Grandpa could step in calmly with a fresh voice and fresh love. Everybody needs a grandpa.

Read or listen to the reflection from Heather Plett

More about Heather Plett.

How Small Moments of Empathy Affect your Life

On average, a person receives about nine opportunities to empathize with others and about six opportunities to receive empathy in a 12-hour period of daily life. Studies show that people who are empathetic are more likely to be generous and altruistic and less likely to be prejudiced against others. So what does that mean for our everyday lives?

Read the article by Jill Suttie.

Found in Daily Good.

Participating in Original Goodness

Everyone and every thing is created in the “image of God,” says Fr. Richard Rohr. Our part is to participate in this core identity by saying yes to it. Image must become likeness.

Read the full reflection.

Found in Richard Rohr’s Daily Meditation from Center for Action and Contemplation.

Fire

A poem from Judy Brown

What makes a fire burn
is space between the logs,
a breathing space.

Read or listen to the entire poem.

Found in Awakin.