Finding God In Nature
Saint John of the Cross, a Carmelite priest and a great mystic, taught the monks a humble exercise; to sit and contemplate where they could view the open sky, hills, trees, fields, and growing plants, and to call upon the beauty of these things to praise God. This simple meditation on Nature reminds us of […]
The Spirit of True Healing
We live in a progressively fragmented world, and this fragmentation affects every aspect of our lives. Even natural medicine is not immune to the tendency to view cancer and other serious illnesses with a narrow focus, addressing only one type of treatment or concentrating on only one aspect of health (for example, diet, exercise, or […]
Thoughts At The Winter Solstice
I often feel that there just aren’t enough hours in the day to do all that I want and need to do. I imagine that you sometimes (or often) feel the same way. For most of us, the holiday season adds one more layer of busyness to our already full lives. At times like this, […]
The Practice of Poustinia: Slowing Down and Finding God In Daily Life
For many people, the passion for speed has become an addiction. Our culture and society encourage this addiction; we emphasize doing instead of being, multitasking is considered a desirable skill, and we are generally more focused on quantity instead of quality in all aspects of our lives. Every modern convenience, from cell phones and computers […]
St. Francis of Assisi
I have always felt a deep connection to St. Francis of Assisi, the Christian saint best known for his love of nature, animals, and the poor. In the early 1980’s I lived in Holy Protection monastery, a Byzantine Eastern-Rite Franciscan monastery. This was where I was professed as a 3rd Order, Secular Franciscan. Born at Assisi in […]