by Debbie Stevenson In spring 2018 I was on a personal silent retreat. It was one of the last steps before graduating from a 3 year spiritual direction program. During those 3 days of silence, I discovered a desire for expression. I first began to notice this desire during my spiritual direction training and it […]
by Kevin Eicher Many years ago I was deeply involved in what I will call “the church of my youth”. One day a friend asked me a question about my beliefs. That question lead me to other questions and I soon found myself, as I put it then: “lying on the valley floor” beat up and […]
by Matthew Wright Running through the history of our planet is a current of spiritual awakening. Beginning as a trickle, it flows through the cracks of history, touching at first individuals, now washing out, over and through interconnected circles, building in force, moving to gather up all things in its embrace. The current flowed in […]
A Reflection by Phileena Heuertz Last year, at the invitation of renowned Cistercian monk Fr. Thomas Keating, four of among the most prominent living western Christian contemplative teachers gathered in Snowmass at St. Benedict’s Monastery. In addition to Fr. Keating, three others gathered in respectful friendship: Rev. Dr. Tilden Edwards, Fr. Laurence Freeman, and […]
by Elisabeth Barahona Marriage is a mysterious journey of learning how to consent to God in order to learn how to say “yes” to one’s spouse. It is a delicate interdependence of honoring both the I and the we in this journey towards marital togetherness. Archbishop Desmond Tutu provides a powerful framework called Ubuntu that […]
by Phileena Heuertz Our recent presidential election has exposed and emphasized a great rift in the people who make up our nation. Political, economic, social, and religious ideologies may not have ever been more at odds with one another. Our new millennia has brought with it so much change. It’s as if our world has […]
By George Mekhail I have changed a lot over the past 18 months. I’ve deconstructed much of my worldview and consider the journey as just getting started. I am a heretic, a pirate and a mystic. I used to see things very differently than I see them today, and I hope that this process of […]
Recently, Chris and Phileena visited our team in Ifrane, Morocco. I’m one of about 40 university and post-graduate students offering emergency aid to the thousands of refugees and immigrants desperately making their way through Morocco. I’m very grateful for the opportunity to have participated in the retreat which was focused on integrating contemplation and action—something […]
by Kent Annan When writing my new book, Slow Kingdom Coming, my attention kept getting drawn to themes of contemplative activism and of doing good better—that is, to very Gravity-like themes! My work with Haiti Partners over the years has given me a deep appreciation for values like solidarity with people in poverty, justice […]
by Mindy Durias The alarm rings. It’s 5:00am. I drag myself out of bed, prepare my favorite French pressed coffee, grab my stack of books and settle on the loveseat for the hour or so I have before the rest of the house begins to stir. I read words of wisdom and hope from […]
by Ashton Gustafson It was one of those days where I had simply just had enough. My inbox was overflowing with other people’s agendas, my voicemail was full, the list of to-dos grew every time I looked at it, and the smallest inconveniences were creating an unrecoverable derailment of my peace and purpose for this […]
by Mindy Durias I often think about these words from Jesus, “Let the little children come to me and do not hinder them. For the kingdom of heaven belongs to such as these.” What was so special to Jesus about children, that he would gift them the kingdom of God? I’ve been raising children […]
by Mindy Durias Our world is moving forward at an unprecedented pace. The ability to be so easily connected to one another has made this planet very small indeed. Endless information and people around the world are literally a touch away. Yet, it is quite possible that we have never been more disconnected from our […]