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Community Lectio Divina: Thomas Merton

With November comes a new invitation for contemplation. This month I invite you into a lectio divina practice with one of my favorite readings from Thomas Merton. I ran across it again this past week as I was contemplating the feast of All Saints and All Souls and what it means to live into our individual call to become saints, our truest deepest selves created by God. How Community Lectio Divina works: Each month there will be a passage selected from scripture, poetry, or other sacred texts (and at some point we will engage in some visio and audio divina as well with art and

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November 3, 2013

A Time of Remembrance (a love note from your online Abbess)

–Henri J. M. Nouwen, Bread for the Journey Dearest monks and artists, This is one of my favorite times of year with the darkening days of autumn and the spreading color across the trees.  I have long loved the wisdom of the Celtic Wheel of the Year, but living here in Ireland I experience the turning points more keenly.  In the Celtic tradition, August 1st was the feast of Lughnasa and the beginning of fall and the harvest season.  Here in Galway I could feel the light beginning its shift and the air grow cooler.  Summer offers endless days as we are

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October 30, 2013

Monk in the World guest post: Paula Huston

I adore Paula Huston’s work and wise spirit.  She is a fellow monastic oblate (Camaldolese Benedictine) and writer of several books on spiritual practice, including my favorites Simplifying the Soul: Lenten Practices to Renew Your Spirit and The Holy Way: Practices for a Simple Life.  I had the gift of participating in a nonfiction writing workshop with her several years ago in New Mexico through the fabulous Glen workshop.  The Glen is a really wonderful gathering of writers and artists wrestling with the questions of meaning and substance in life.  Paula is a gifted teacher and also offers her wisdom

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October 28, 2013

Invitation to Dance: Softening and Yielding

We continue our theme this month of “Softening and Yielding” which arose from our Community Lectio Divina practice with Yehuda Amichai’s poem “The Place Where We Are Right” and continued with this month’s Photo Party and Poetry Party. Dance invites us to soften the armoring of our bodies and yield to the impulse of life moving through us moment by moment.  We spend so much energy trying to control events, dance is an opportunity to practice the deep surrender we are called to as monks in the world I invite you into a movement practice.  Allow yourself just 5 minutes this day

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October 27, 2013

Invitation to Poetry: Softening and Yielding

Welcome to Poetry Party #71! I select an image (*photo above by fellow monk in the world Claudia Gregoire) and suggest a theme/title and invite you to respond with your own poem. Scroll down and add it in the comments section below or join our Holy Disorder of Dancing Monks Facebook group and post there. Feel free to take your poem in any direction and then post the image and invitation on your blog (if you have one), Facebook, or Twitter, and encourage others to come join the party!  (If you repost the photo, please make sure to include the credit

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October 20, 2013

Monk in the World guest post: Kent Ira Groff

I have had the pleasure of getting to know Kent Ira Groff through our mutual attendance at Spiritual Directors International conferences.  We have a shared love of poetry which makes us kindred spirits.  Kent teaches and writes about prayer and poetry in inviting and accessible ways and I am delighted to share his insights into becoming a monk in the world: Behind me as I write this is Vincent van Gogh’s ‘Starry Night’—so anyone meeting with me in person or via Skype sees it. The sky and the village are ablaze with lights, yet the church windows are dark. (The

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October 14, 2013

New Art for 8th Principle of the Monk Manifesto! (plus revised video meditation)

NEW 8th principle of the Monk Manifesto: *I commit to being a dancing monk, cultivating creative joy and letting my body and “heart overflow with the inexpressible delights of love.”* And here is the revised version of the Monk Manifesto video with the 8th principle included: Monk Manifesto Meditation (8 Principles for being a Monk in the World) from Christine Valters Paintner on Vimeo.

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October 13, 2013

Invitation to Photography: Softening and Yielding

Welcome to this month’s Abbey Photo Party! I select a theme and invite you to respond with images. We began this month with a Community Lectio Divina practice (stop by to read the beautiful responses).  As I prayed with the poem by Yehuda Amichai, this phrase kept shimmering for me:  But doubts and loves / Dig up the world. These last few months I have been called more deeply into a journey of softening and yielding, of discovering the profound grace that comes with embracing my own earthiness and the layers beneath all of the armoring I have in my body, my

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October 13, 2013

Monk Manifesto 8th Principle Added! (a love note from your online Abbess)

NEW 8th principle of the Monk Manifesto: *I commit to being a dancing monk, cultivating creative joy and letting my body and “heart overflow with the inexpressible delights of love.”* Dearest monks and artists, The 7th principle of the Monk Manifesto states: “I commit to a lifetime of ongoing conversion and transformation, recognizing that I am always on a journey with both gifts and limitations.” For me, this means, that everything is in process, everything is open to change, especially my own heart and understanding.  So it feels right and true that I would discover a longing to add another principle to

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October 9, 2013

Monk in the World guest post: Lacy Clark Ellman

I first met Lacy when she attended our Awakening the Creative Spirit intensive and then later participated in my Sacred Rhythms Writing Retreat.  Lacy was finishing graduate school and launched into her passion which is pilgrimage.  She has a wonderful website with great articles and guest posts on one of my own favorite topics.  Read on for her reflections on being a monk in the world: Not too long ago, I moved from Missouri to Southern California. The desert landscape that would accompany us on our drive here gave me the chance to contemplate what it is like for monks to

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October 7, 2013

Upcoming Programs

Journey to Joy
Journey to Joy
20 Jun 25
Sustainers Circle 2025-2026
Sustainers Circle 2025-2026
1 Aug 25
Loving into Justice: Pilgrimage through the Body
Loving into Justice: Pilgrimage through the Body
15 Aug 25

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