I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Veronica Spasaro’s reflection Bread of Life. Early morning and I enter the kitchen. I lift the mason jar off the top of the modem, the heat of which has kept the jar just warm overnight. I inspect the sides of the jar for signs of life. Bubbles have formed in the brownish sludge pressing against the glass sides. They form black holes reminiscent of craters on the moon’s surface and signify that life is indeed thriving within.

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Laura J. Collins’s reflection on practicing biomimicry for spiritual well-being. Janine Benyus, the founder of the Biomimicry Institute, urges individuals, organizations and even governments to pay close attention to how nature works and learn to emulate its genius to enhance our planet and our lives. She applies her work primarily to technology, but listening to her makes me wonder about our theologies and spiritual practices, as well. Are they drawing on the wisdom of nature? I work with

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to the Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for JoRene Byers’s reflection and poem “New Moon, Beloved Darkness”. I wrote this poem after setting aside time to prayfully gather the beautiful symbolic elements, and lighting the candles in a sacred manner for the mandala. Every step is taken with gentle awareness:  asking first, giving thanks, offering the beauty and fragrance of the incense of herbs, spices, flowers, fruit, and flame. The generosity of the more than human world always humbles and comforts me. This gathering returns me to

Christine’s book A Midwinter God: Encountering the Divine in Seasons of Darkness was named A Best Spiritual Book of 2024 by Spirituality & Practice! Jon M. Sweeney of Spirituality & Practice also wrote a lovely review. “No one combines teaching wisdom with spiritual practice quite like Christine Valters Paintner does in her books. This one is designed for anyone who’s grieving a loss and desires to thread that loss through their lives for meaning.” ~ Jon M. Sweeney, Read the full review at Spirituality & Practice

I am delighted to share another beautiful submission to our Monk in the World guest post series from the community. Read on for Abbey Program Coordinator Melinda Thomas’s reflection and poem Synonym. It is my great privilege to serve the Abbey as Program Coordinator and get to know all of you, our dear, dancing monks. One of our guiding principles is a commitment to community. As an introvert and someone who often finds it difficult to reach out, I value the wisdom of how there are different ways to be in community. Whether we gather online or in person, in

Dearest dancing monks, artists, and pilgrims, This Friday we are delighted to welcome Wisdom Council member Cassidhe Hart and her teaching partner Grant Showalter-Swanson for a creative mini-retreat on Earth Psalter: Writing Psalms for the Anthropocene. Read on for their reflection on this spiritual practice. My (Cassidhe’s) family moved frequently as a child, and as a soul who even then longed for a monastic sense of stability, I was often overwhelmed by the constant change in setting. When I was about 11 years old, I remember comforting myself with bible verses such as Genesis 8:22 about the regularity of the seasons