Dearest monks, artists, and pilgrims, It is with great joy that we share our final video podcasts for morning and evening prayer in the Monk in the World prayer cycle. Our last principle of the Monk Manifesto is Creative Joy! This principle is about cultivating our practice of being a dancing monk in the world and allowing wonder and delight to guide our days. If you’ve been enriched by these free resources for prayer, please consider offering a donation to help support our continued development of the prayer cycle. We are grateful for the generosity of this community.  As the season of Advent approaches, we

Earth Monastery Prayer Cycle: Day 7 Morning Prayer from Abbey of the Arts on Vimeo. Day 7 Morning Prayer: Earth Monastery Pray Cycle Audio Podcast Day 7 Morning Prayer: Earth Monastery Prayer Cycle Dearest monks and artists, Happy New Year! We begin our Midwinter God online retreat tomorrow. I offer you this reflection on the spiritual practice of being uncomfortable which is at the heart of the journey of descent: Part of my daily contemplative practice these last several years has been yin yoga. In yin yoga, the poses are held for long periods of time (anywhere from 3-20 minutes).

Dearest monks, artists, and pilgrims, The Feast of Epiphany is celebrated today. It is one of my favorite scripture stories as it offers us a series of powerful invitations. The last few lines of the gospel text, offer us a template for an archetypal journey, that is, one we are all invited to make. We can find ourselves in the text if we have ever longed to follow an inkling into the long night knowing there were gifts awaiting us. 1. Follow the star to where it leads The story begins with the magi calling upon the grace of night

Dearest monks, artists, and pilgrims, All of us here at the Abbey – John, Christine, and the Abbey Wisdom Council – wish you a most wondrous Christmas feast. This is the time for holy birthing to happen in unlikely places, a time to listen to what rises in the stillness, a time to trust in the darkness that seeds are sprouting deep beneath the fertile earth. We live in a world hungry for such truths. What a gift you each are to be a bearer of this wisdom. To support this knowing in your own heart, I offer you a

Dearest Monks, artists, and pilgrims, Today the season of Advent begins and I offer you a brief excerpt from our online retreat Signs in the Sun, Moon, and Stars: In the Celtic tradition, one of the central teachings is the idea that there are two books of revelation – one is the written scriptures and the other is the book of Creation. Both reveal the face of the divine to us, both have profound gifts to offer. The gospel reading for today talks about looking for the “signs in the sun, moon, and stars” which forms the title of this