I went back to read what I wrote last year and found that it expresses pretty well what I want to say on this day we celebrate one of my favorite Saints, so here’s a slightly edited and updated version:
Francis is known for many things, his life of poverty, his commitment to peace, and especially his […]

Posted in Nature and Creativity, Mystics and Saints | 12 Comments »

I have a deep affinity for crows and ravens as they seem to connect two important parts of my life together.  Ravens and crows are a part of the same Corvidae or Crow family with ravens being larger and perferring wilder places.
Saint Benedict (whose Feast Day is today) is often depicted with a raven by his side […]

Posted in Photos, Monastic Spirituality, Nature and Creativity, Mystics and Saints | 5 Comments »

I wrote a few days ago about discovering the theologian Andrew Linzey in an article I was reading.  I was so thrilled to discover someone writing seriously about the place of animals in Christian tradition and spiritual practice that I ordered three of his books:
Animal Gospel, Animal Theology, and Animal Rites: Liturgies of Animal Care
The last […]

Posted in Nature and Creativity, Mystics and Saints | 10 Comments »

Rain has been drizzling and dousing and pouring in fits and starts these last several days here in Seattle. As winter draws nearer I witness the subtle slow waves of velvety moss that spread up tree trunks and across sidewalks. I heard a saying on NPR, that in the Northwest if moss isn’t growing on your […]

Posted in Photos, Monastic Spirituality, Mystics and Saints | 9 Comments »

 
Dharma
The way the dog trots out the front door
every morning
without a hat or an umbrella,
without any money
or the keys to her doghouse
never fails to fill the saucer of my heart
with milky admiration.
Who provides a finer example
of a life without encumbrance -
Thoreau in his curtainless hut
with a single plate, a single spoon?
Gandhi with his staff and […]

Posted in Grief, Mystics and Saints | 17 Comments »

 
 
I went looking for images of Saint Francis in honor of his feast day tomorrow (October 4th) and found some lovely ones above (see below for the links to the artists). 
Francis is known for many things, his life of poverty, his commitment to peace, and especially his great love of animals and all creation. He is often depicted […]

Posted in Nature and Creativity, Mystics and Saints | 5 Comments »