The soft staccato of a Celtic harp feels radically different from the bustling Friday night sounds of Davie Street. I sit, remove my shoes and socks and take a deep breath. I walk to the entrance of the labyrinth and center myself before taking short, slow and deliberate steps into the 11 course Labyrinth modeled after the famous Chartres Labyrinth in France. I am happy to be out of the hustle and noise of the city and to let my... Read more
Today I went to Mass as I often do on Sundays. It was an expected ritual, in an expected space. I always leave just a little lighter than when I enter. But two other stops today made me think about the nature of space and how contemporary culture is yearning to reclaim everyday spaces. It is no secret that many in the rising generation have no interest in attending traditional sacred spaces like church. Today I attended two events that... Read more
Weary from a mild stomach bug from the night before, I woke up to an NPR banner on my phone that proclaimed that 50 people had been killed in yet another mass shooting. My heart sunk when I read the name of the killer, and his ties to Islam. Although he was mentally unstable, and clearly homophobic, his supposed allegiance to ISIS is all we need to confirm our Islam=terrorism narratives. It is particularly disturbing that this mass shooting, this... Read more
This weekend I was privileged enough to attend the International Indigenous Leadership Gathering at the invitation of a friend who has attended for the last several years. I and several members of the Salish Sea Spiritual Ecology Alliance (SSSEA) headed up to Lillooet, British Columbia for what promised to be a weekend of inspiring speeches, authentic ceremony and my first ever sweat lodge ritual. The gathering which is now in its 8th (and apparently final) year took place with the... Read more
The power of myth and symbol in the Bible must be rediscovered if Christianity is to survive. However, myth and symbol themselves must also be rediscovered. Read more
Following the tinkling creek up to Whyte Lake, in West Vancouver, BC, I was surrounded by second growth Douglas fir forest once again. The chaos of greens and the enclosed canopy view felt familiar of course, but the naked expanse of red-tan desert cliffs still felt present in my muscle memory. To go from desert to temperate rainforest in such a short time not only captures something of the miracle of modern technology in our lives, and the privilege I... Read more
As soon as I arrived in Sedona, I headed over to the Chamber of Commerce to check out what the place might have to offer. I have arrived earlier than expected, the rest of my family not yet here for my brother’s wedding (I get to officiate!). As I crossed the road, a giant pink SUV turned onto the highway loaded with experience-eager seekers headed for the red rock cliffs on the eastern horizon. I pass a crystal shop, and... Read more
At a recent workshop I gave on Spiritual Ecology in the Salish Sea, the participants had just gone outside for a mindful walk and we were sharing our experiences. The idea of place names came up. A white male lamented that the Euro-American place names did not seem to reflect the deep cultural knowledge of the First Peoples who had dwelled with the land for several thousand years before white settlers arrived. We discussed the importance of naming, and returning to... Read more
It is near sunset at Christ in the Desert Benedictine monastery in Abiquiu, New Mexico. This is the last of four monastic communities I am visiting as part of my PhD dissertation research. I have found a beautiful bend in the Chama River to watch another day pass into silence. A mostly full Sister Moon slowly peaks her face over the eastern yellow mesas to watch in silence as Brother Sun sets beyond the red mesas in the west. I... Read more
I recently read Rory McEntee and Adam Bucko’s The New Monasticism: An Interspiritual Manifesto for Contemplative Living. As a scholar of Spiritual Ecology writing a dissertation on the ways that Catholic monastics manage and relate to land, I have had my eyes on the New Monastics and their claim to be adapting to what many are calling a Second Axial Age—an emerging Inter-spiritual revolution that is resulting from the globalization of consciousness. I have tremendous respect for both authors, their amazing work, commitment... Read more
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