“There is a story from the Desert Fathers where an Abba says to a seeker, ‘Do not give your heart to that which does not satisfy your heart.’ This can be easier said than done since we are inclined to so many comforts that only serve to numb and distract us from life.”
— Christine Valters Paintner, PhD, The Wisdom of the Body: A Contemplative Journey to Wholeness for Women
How often do you try to satisfy yourself with that which depletes you?
“The highest level of love is that of agape. Agape means nothing sentimental or basically affectionate. It means understanding redeeming good will for all. It is the love of God working in human lives.”—Martin Luther King Jr.
Verse of the day
One night the Lord said to Paul in a vision, “Do not be afraid, but speak and do not be silent.”
– Acts 18:9
Voice of the day
It took me quite a long time to develop a voice, and now that I have it, I am not going to be silent.
– Madeleine Albright
Prayer of the day
May we never be silent about the injustices around us.
This invitation to reflection should be a part of every member of the family of God each and every day. It sure needs to be a significant part of this Padre’s daily reflection and Ignatian Examen
“An important part of the monastic way is to engage the places of our lives that challenge us and even make us bristle.”
— Christine Valters Paintner, PhD, The Artist’s Rule: Nurturing Your Creative Soul with Monastic Wisdom
What challenging places make you bristle and call you to deeper reflection?
“What is going on is very important. I think the most important precept of all is to live in awareness, to know what is going on—not only here but there. What we are, what we do every day, has much to do with world peace. If we are very aware, we will do something to change the course of things.”—Thich Nhat Hahn
Verse of the day
The lover of money will not be satisfied with money; nor the lover of wealth, with gain. This also is vanity.
– Ecclesiastes 5:10
Voice of the day
I want a change from an acquisitive society to a functional society, from a society of gogetters to a society of gogivers.
– Peter Maurin, Catholic Radicalism(1949)
Prayer of the day
Empty us of greed, for it will never satisfy. Fill us with generosity, for it will elevate one another.
The expression “new normal” has increasingly felt like a meaningless phrase. With each new shift in the experience of the novel coronavirus pandemic, what we thought we knew had to be relearned and what served as guidance or best practices often had to be re-scripted. Normalcy suggests consistency and predictability, neither of which has been experienced since March 2020.
— Read on www.ncronline.org/news/opinion/5-christian-virtues-help-us-learn-live-new-new-normal
“[Mary] is the embodiment of the sacred feminine, a window into another understanding of how the presence of the sacred can manifest in the world.”
— Christine Valters Paintner, PhD, Birthing the Holy: Wisdom from Mary to Nurture Creativity and Renewal (due out April 8 from Ave Maria Press. Available for pre-order)
How do you experience the sacred feminine in the world?
Verse of the day
But let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.
– Amos 5:24
Voice of the day
They both listened silently to the water, which to them was not just water, but the voice of life, the voice of Being, the voice of perpetual Becoming.
– Hermann Hesse, Siddhartha (1922)
Prayer of the day
Let us listen to the ever-flowing stream of justice, following its winding journey toward your voice.
Verse of the day
For just as the body without the spirit is dead, so faith without works is also dead.
– James 2:26
Voice of the day
There are just some kind of men who — who’re so busy worrying about the next world they’ve never learned to live in this one, and you can look down the street and see the results.
– Harper Lee, To Kill a Mockingbird (1960)
Prayer of the day
Keep our focus on the streets. May we never ignore the realities of this world.
Pastor Michael Moore's Blog 