Tag: elders

Crossing Thresholds

“A threshold is not a simple boundary,” says the Irish poet John O’Donohue. “It is a frontier that divides two different territories, rhythms and atmospheres.” Thresholds bring fear, confusion, excitement, hope, or sadness. We need to see them as not only something ending but also as opportunity for something to begin.

Read more from  our current Wisdom Years online study “Following the Epiphany Light” on our website.

Learn about the entire study.

Jesus the Good Shepherd and His Discovery

Jesus called himself “the good shepherd,” but did he always know that? In his life he was more like a lost sheep, thirsty, hungry, so terribly vulnerable and alone.

Read or listen to the sermon by Br. Curtis Almquist.

From Society of St. John the Evangelist.

Two Types Of Heartbreaks

Violence is what happens when we don’t know what else to do with our suffering, says Parker Palmer. But our hearts can react to sorrow in two ways: they can break apart like shards of glass or open wider, growing into greater capacity for love.

Read the reflection.

From Awakin.

It’s All About the Glass

Whether we are a glass-half-full person or a glass-half-empty person, we are living as grateful people when we are grateful for having a glass at all. “Knowing that our lives are incomprehensibly precious, fragile, and fleeting reminds us to stop in our tracks and take stock, every moment, of what matters, how much is enough, and where wisdom would direct our attention,” says Kristi Nelson.

Read the reflection.

From Grateful Living.

A Call to Awakening

“Saints are those who wake up while in this world, instead of waiting for the next one,” says Richard Rohr. “History is continually graced with people who somehow learned to act beyond and outside their self-interest and for the good of the world, people who clearly operated by a power larger than their own. Consider Gandhi, Oskar Schindler, Martin Luther King Jr. Add to them Rosa Parks, Mother Teresa, Dorothy Day, Óscar Romero, César Chávez, and many unsung leaders.”

Read the reflection.

From Center for Action and Contemplation.

Following the Epiphany Light

The magi of the Epiphany were compelled to follow the strange star that appeared in the night sky, leaving familiar territory for places that were unknown and uncomfortable. Is God calling you to follow a new road? The journey will require humility, letting go, and moving bravely in a new direction. But it may take you to an encounter with Christ. Join us for “Following the Epiphany Light, online from Jan. 9 to 23. Get the details – https://wisdomyears.org/following-the-epiphany-light/.

Sunday Musings

Genuine friendship was one of the greatest losses we’ve suffered from COVID, says Diana Butler Bass. People got out of the habit of going to parties, having lunch with friends, and going to church. With church attendance already in decline, COVID exacerbated the problem.

Read the essay.

From The Cottage.

A Revelation of Heaven on Earth

In the end we will not all go to heaven, heaven will come to us. Not in the great by-and-by, but in our ordinary lives.

Read the reflection.

From Center for Action and Contemplation.

A Blessing for Learning to Let Go and Hold On

“living in the present is nice in theory. except when you are in pain.

so let’s bless that tension, the push pull of wanting to let go, sometimes needing to let go, and also needing to hold on.”

Read the rest of the blessing.

From Kate Bowler.

The Work Of Christmas In Epiphany

Theologian Howard Thurman says that the work of Christmas continues. After all the celebration on December 25, we are reminded that the real opportunity is before us.

Read the short reflection.

From Joanna Seibert.

Following The Epiphany Light

The magi left all that was familiar to follow a strange star, not knowing where it would take them. Their journey’s end revealed the Christ. Or was it a beginning? How is God leading you to leave what is comfortable in order to live into some new calling?

Following the Epiphany Light, the Epiphany offering from The Wisdom Years, begins January 9. Three ways to engage the study: join our Thursday-afternoon Zoom group, use the materials on your own, or gather a small group at your choice of time and location.

Materials will be posted on our website beginning January 9.

For the details.

New Year Transformation: Resources for the Journey

From Gratefulness.org, resources to support you in welcoming the new year with wholehearted curiosity, humility, courage, and a deepening appreciation of the transformative potential of these times.

See the resources.

From Grateful Living.

Staring into the Light

Fr. Ron Rolheiser repeats a story told by medical doctor and writer Rachel Naomi Remen about watching an elderly woman sit and stare into the light. She later saw the same look on the face of a newborn baby. We all, says Rolheiser, will one day be left staring into a very different light. 

Read the reflection.

More about Ron Rolheiser.

The Gerasenes Demoniac

The healing of our own personal demons takes work, grace, and time. There will be tears, there will be frustration, and there will be setbacks; but there will also be glory. That is the lesson in the story of Jesus and the demoniac in Gerasenes.

Read the reflection by Br. Br. Jack Crowley.

From Society of St. John the Evangelist.

Remember

A poem by Joy Harjo

Remember the sky that you were born under,
know each of the star’s stories.

Read the entire poem.

From Emergence Magazine.

Adverbs for Advent

An Advent online study

Nov 27 to Dec 15.

From the Wisdom Years

In the season of Advent, which starts Sunday, Nov. 27, we open ourselves to the birth of something new in our lives. Just as God was incarnated in Jesus, we are assured that God’s Spirit is incarnate in us; we are pregnant with possibility for ourselves and for our world. Join us as we read daily meditations from Adverbs for Advent by Marilyn McEntyre then gather weekly on Zoom for insightful conversation.

To learn more and register.

Giver of All Good Gifts

– A Thanksgiving Prayer

In this profound Thanksgiving prayer, Brother David Steindl-Rast, OSB calls us all to be grateful as we remember that so many have so much less than do we.

Join the prayer by listening to it or watching the video.

From Grateful Living.

Also from Grateful Living,
a collection of Thanksgiving prayers and blessings.

An Attitude of Gratitude

“All the truly great persons I have ever met are characterized by what I would call radical humility and gratitude,” writes Richard Rohr.  “They are deeply convinced that they are drawing from another source; they are instruments. Their genius is not their own; it is borrowed.” The only appropriate response is humility, gratitude, and loving service to others.

Read the reflection.

From the Center for Action and Contemplation.

Agent of Illumination

The New York City bus driver knew what his passengers needed on that cold day during rush hour traffic. He invited them to drop their troubles into the palm of his hand as they exited the bus. He was an agent of illuminations, as we all are invited to be.

Read the story.

Found in Daily Good.

Good Bones, Pushing Water

A water leak that initially went unnoticed turned into a huge and messy repair job.  Fortunately the flooded house had good bones. Writer Carrie Newcomer likens it to ignoring small spiritual issues that have the potential to require major healing. It is then that we must rely on our spiritual “good bones” and get to the hard and messy work of looking to inner and outer resources to repair what is broken.

Read the reflection.

From Awakin.