What good are spiritual practices? Why take time to pray, meditate, journal, or spend time to intentionally develop the spiritual dimension of life? There are some critics who claim that a focus on spirituality is nothing more than self-indulgence. I’ve heard this criticism many times. Some of those who make… Read More »Spiritual Practices: What Good Are They?
Love Dogs A Poem by Rumi, translated by Coleman Barks One night a man was crying Allah! Allah! His lips grew sweet with praising, until a cynic said, “So! I’ve heard you calling out, but have you ever gotten any response?” The man had no answer to that. He quit… Read More »Love Dogs
Dusk had fallen as I drove the residential street and turned into the parking lot. I carefully parked my car between two others. I walked to the front of the building and entered the door that led into the dimly lit church. Around the communion table, 30 or 40 candles… Read More »Sharing in Silence
The group of eight or ten of us sat in a circle. We gathered around a table draped with a colorful cloth. A single candle was lit. A CD player in the corner provided background music of medieval Christian chant. We began to share something from the time we spent… Read More »Thoughts about Meditation
Our actions, emotions, and thoughts are animated in and through the spiritual dimension that makes us human. It’s the vitality of the human spirit that seeks expression in the things we think, do, say, and feel. It’s common sense that the other dimensions of our lives need to be properly… Read More »Spirituality: It’s About the Way We Live
It’s morning. I complete my bathroom ablutions and sip some coffee. Making my way to the study, I pause to light a single candle centered on a small table. Sitting in a large, wooden straight back chair, I begin. Sometimes I start with a chant and other times a favorite… Read More »Self-Transcendence and Sustainable Spirituality
Keep watch! Stay alert! Those are the words Jesus used several times in the gospels attributed to Mark and Matthew. The concept is clear: you don’t know when the realm of God will break into your life, so keep watch and stay alert. Don’t miss it. A very similar concept… Read More »Wake-Up! Stay Alert!
Each spring, the humming bird feeder is washed. A mixture of sugar and water added to the bottle-like container. In an expectant procession, the feeder is taken to the back yard and hung from a pole surrounded by flowering shrubs. Then the wait begins. This year, the feeder hung for… Read More »The Wisdom of Humming Birds