My vocational job is as a professional listener. People pay me a lot of money to listen to them. This week, I want to reflect on two practices, silence and attention and demonstrate how they co-exist in our spiritual practices. Attention Requires Silence I wrote previously this month on the practice of attention, I want to shift my focus to the practice of silence. Silence, I have found over the years of contemplative work amplifies my ability to pay... Read more
Psalm 82:3 tells us to defend the poor and the orphan. This has been my vocational call since I was in college studying to be a social worker. In the time span between then and now, I have been a social worker, a minister and a therapist. I have been a Benedictine Oblate for 22 years. Peace and justice runs through my veins. Something odd happened last week that seemingly started a long time ago and is a reminder... Read more
In my discernment a couple of weeks back, Romans 5:1-8 came to mind. I am not sure why; God does this sometimes. I want to explore this section from Romans and offer my feeble attempts at exploring this passage. Paul Talks about Suffering I spend a lot of time with suffering souls. I feel that this passage has been used in ways that it was not intended. Well-meaning people thinking that suffering is good for the wrong reasons,... Read more
As I was moving through the discernment process between the ages of 18-20, my formation director had me look at several religious orders. I had zeroed in on the Redemptorists and the Benedictines but had looked at others. A class I now have long forgotten the title for had me write a paper on Ignatius of Loyola and I was introduced to the Jesuits. I only remember reading about the life of Ignatius and some of the spirituality his order... Read more
We are just a few days away from a major election in the United States and there is a lot of noise in our news feeds, our phones and in our emails about who is better than who and who is going to what better than who did it worse or better than the last person. It can all be very exhausting. I am beginning to see some burnout and anxiety around this election cycle, and I must admit, I... Read more
I want to close my October series on change and awareness of death with a discussion on death. I worked in the church in a variety of capacities for twenty years. I was fortunate enough to preach on two funerals during this time and was with several families as they said goodbye to loved ones. My first funeral sermon, however, was a tense one. My first daughter was born in December of 2002. While on our visit home for... Read more
Two weeks ago, I talked about memento mori, but how do we adjust to the reality of impermanence? We are all subjects interacting in a world of objects. These objects and their significance can change overtime. Take for example my childhood stuffed animal. I took it everywhere; I slept with it every night. It had a deep meaning for me from an early age to somewhere around eight or nine. In my office, I see changes in relationships, experiences and all... Read more
One of more memorable experiences I had with my District Committee of Ordained Ministry during seminary was a discussion around my theology. Being a very liberal seminary, I had been exposed to several theological orientations that were outside the normal dead white Europeans that my church was accustomed to. Feminist, Eco, Queer (this was not quite a thing yet), and Open Theism immediately put me at odds with my church and I was called theologically transient. I would argue that... Read more
Considering Different Opinions- A Primer to Open Theism Open theism posits that God is limited in knowledge of the future, particularly when it comes to human free will. This means that God does not have a predetermined plan for every event and can be influenced by our prayers and actions. This begs the question then, what do we talk about when we talk about God? If you have been following my stuff for a while, the notion of Jesus’s God vs.... Read more
Unlocking the Potential of a Spirit Led Life: A Journey of Faith What Does it Mean to Life a Spirit Led Life? As Christians, we are called to live a Holy Spirit-led life, but what does this mean? Let’s start with a well-known scripture verse: Galatians 5:16 (NIV) – “So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.” We may all know this, but what does it mean regarding living a spirit... Read more
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