The wonderful folks at Englewood Review of Books have featured a marvelous review of my latest book.  Here are some excerpts: Truly, Paintner offers the commentary not of a learned academic—which she undoubted is—but of an amma who herself wants to speak a word to her readers. The result is a book that you will not want to put down and that you will no doubt revisit often for Paintner’s wisdom as much as the mothers’ and fathers’ wisdom. . . Paintner has offered a succinct introduction to and a lively commentary on the desert mothers and fathers. There are

If you have been following the Abbey for a while, you know that I consider ancestral work vital to the healing and vibrancy of our souls.  I believe that the stories of our mothers and fathers, and the generations before them, live on in our blood and shape our own gifts and wounds. I have experienced profound healing on this path.  I have even moved to the city of Vienna because of an ancestral call, and here each day I discover new dimensions to my father’s story, and so my own as well.  I consider my journey an essential dimension

. . . Alizabeth Rasmusen.  Liz will receive a space in my upcoming online retreat – Honoring Saints and Ancestors: Peering through the Veil. Deep bows of gratitude to each of you who participated in the Poetry Party.  Truly it is one of the great joys of leading this community to have such generous and creative souls be a part of it.

This month’s theme at the Abbey is hospitality. You can find more reflections here, here and here. There are lots of wondrous resources to share and upcoming classes to consider in support of your own journey of inner hospitality: Live it to Give it If you are a soul care practitioner in need of some support in practicing generous hospitality to your own beautiful self, please consider joining Kayce Stevens Hughlett for her upcoming online Soul Care Institute class Live it to Give it: Essential Practices of Soul Nourishment and Self-Care which begins November 5th and offers a wise and generous space for you

. . . Nancy Flowers!  Congratulations Nancy – you won a space in my upcoming online retreat – Honoring Saints and Ancestors: Peering through the Veil. Thank you to eveyone who shared images of hospitality at the Photo Party.   Some beautiful images over at Flickr, stop by to take a look. Our next Poetry Party will start on Monday, October 15th!

Forgive my delay in posting the winner of the drawing from this past week’s Poetry Party on the theme of silence. . . I have been teaching in Ireland all weekend and arrived back yesterday trying to catch up with myself. I just spent some reflective time with the beautiful poems offered and my heart is, as always, full of gratitude for all my fellow monks and poets willing to share their heart’s expression with this community.  Pour some tea and linger there for a while and really experience the depth of silence’s gifts. The name I pulled in my