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Abbey Newsletter

Abbey of the Arts is a virtual monastery and vibrant global community offering online programs & retreats, reflections, and resources which integrate contemplative practice and creative expression. 

Subscribe to receive regular Abbey soul nourishment by email and join thousands of fellow monks and artists around the world receiving regular reflections on the integration of contemplative practice, creative expression, and the wisdom of the seasons straight to your in-box, as well as updates about new Abbey offerings.

Our Gift for You: Monk in the World 8-day Online Retreat

When you subscribe, we send you this gift inspired by the principles of our Monk Manifesto with daily reflections from Christine Valters Paintner, our online Abbess, in written and audio formats.

It is our way of saying welcome and thank you for joining us in making a commitment to contemplative presence in a world that needs it so much.

You can choose from daily emails to nourish and inspire with a quote and a question for reflection, our weekly love notes with longer reflections, or for more occasional offerings. Our emails also offer updates on upcoming programs. We promise to take great care with your contact information and will never share or sell it to anyone else.  You are free to unsubscribe at any time when your in-box is feeling too full.

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What Being a Monk in the World Means to Me

God is everywhere... church is everywhere... the spiritual world exists all around us. Being a monk in the world allows me to embrace these most basic truths of how I connect with the Divine as an imperfect yet wonderfully holy human.
Jamie Marich
Wisdom Council Member
“Monk” is derived from the Greek word monakhos which means “solitary”. To live a solitary life in a world of 8.2 billion neighbors in a universe expanding 3 times the speed of light might seem like a koan for enlightenment. And while contemplating how to practice this enigmatic life of unconditional love that Christ calls us to emulate, a Monk in the World finds opportunities every moment of every day to share a loving peculiar hospitality that has a single reminder at its core. We all are one with the Divine.
Dena Jennings
Wisdom Council Member
To me, being a monk in the world means living in a boundless monastery where every breath is a prayer and every word is a song. It means being present to my unbreakable connection with the Sacred and with all of life. As a monk in the world, I embrace a slower, softer, and simpler way of being that is aligned with my deeper calling.
Jo-ed Tome
Wisdom Council Member
I'm a Monk in the World! Being part of the Abbey supports my contemplative core. The online courses, the love notes, and the prayer cycle enrich my life. Being a Monk in the World means tending grace, peace, and justice-- in me, across the street, and across the globe. Being a Monk in the World means being connected to hopeful change. The Abbey community energizes my sense of purpose in the world. Being a Monk in the World means being authentic. Which for me means wondering what my soul wants and what the world needs. Being connected to the Abbey helps nurture my contemplative, artistic heart.
Richard Bruxvoort Colligan
Wisdom Council Member
Body and spirit entwine, through stillness and movement. I dance from a central fulcrum around which I pivot. My life pulses, twists and turns, a thread among a golden web. Lifelines that hold me, whispering that I am loved and I belong.
Aisling Richmond
Wisdom Council Member
Being a dancing monk to me means contemplatively beholding the world with a loving gaze as I welcome all as the face of Christ and embody to all the face of Christ. It means to join the Dance of the Trinity and move through life in rhythm with the Beloved’s song.
Amber Andreasen
Wisdom Council Member