Talking About The Faith Path

I Was Feeling Very Unsettled, In A Very Bad Mood One day I was in the retreat house doing dishes. This was 30 years ago. I was feeling very unsettled, in a very bad mood, and struggling not to take it out on anyone. As I was fuming, doing dishes, one of the young monks came up to me and said...

The Deeper the Trust, Greater the Depth “You understand—in Me you can find everything: all the love you need to help you. So don’t be afraid of making use of the one who loves you so. Unfold your trust like silk to clothe your request, and you will vanquish Me. My heart is easily taken captive...

We are not to judge, we are to heal, lift up and love “When God comes, he always calls us out of our house. We are visited so that we can visit others; we are encountered so as to encounter others; we receive love in order to give love.” --Pope Francis When Jesus healed it was always a call...

A fragment of our October 2021 Newsletter for the Monastery Retreat House Hello everyone, I am not in the best of moods as I write our October Newsletter. It almost seems like we are back at square one in the ongoing saga of the present pandemic. The reality of the times is becoming more real...

Beauty is where you find it (the joy of little things) A couple of days ago I had the joy of seeing our cloistered turtle. She was in her usual place, where she is looking for some treats from one of the monks. Usually, Br. Michael takes care of her, but this was later than usual. So I went...

In my own life, I have found that I am the problem “Don’t you come to Me with more confidence than to any friend on earth? Aren’t you at home in My heart? It should be that way too, since for each soul I am the unique, the incomparable one. Bossis, Gabrielle. He and I (Kindle Locations...

Getting Through a Bad Day (Internal Mind Storm) One of the benefits of being older is that consistency over how time is spent becomes easier. At least that is for me. When younger, I could be quite restless and would often have a hard time settling down for private meditation/prayer. I used my...

Aridity in our walk with God "Therefore I am now going to allure her; I will lead her into the wilderness and speak tenderly to her. (Hosea 2:14) The soul is made for the ‘Living Water’, that which allows our souls to flourish and grow. Yet the desert is also a reality that dwells within...

The woman who did not love God (Written September 15, 2015) "I don’t love God" the woman informed me. "All my life I have suffered, been abused, abandoned and now the only love of my life is gone". She started to cry and then looked at me and said “why me?”, then she became so quiet that it...

An interesting encounter (Written in September 2014) Working in a retreat house that is in close proximity to a large city has it benefits as well as challenges. People come here for spiritual rest and renewal and from time to time there are those who arrive who are looking for a safe place...

Forgiveness: Finding freedom of heart There is a saying that is often used about the need for the military. It goes like this; “freedom isn’t free”. This concept can be used for many areas of our lives if we wish to un-clutter both our outer and inner selves. Many people struggle with...

It is difficult to exist If we do not face our fears and develop inner strength, then our weakness will take over;we will respond with implosion or explosion. It becomes part of the ongoing destructive situation. It is difficult to exist, to stand out, and to be self-aware. Within our...

Struggling with Inner Barriers A few years ago, my good friend Gail, as she was walking in the woods near where our green cemetery is, found a stone in the form of a heart. It was large covering much of the palm of my hand when held. She wanted me to have it. I have it on my prayer altar in my...

The Path of Celibacy and Marriage (We all carry the monk archetype in our souls) What does it mean to be alone before God? The human situation I believe is one of deep aloneness. Perhaps one of the reasons that solitude is avoided is because this self-evident truth has to be faced. Even if one...

Beauty and fragility (Written September 2016) Insects are a problem for us. I guess you could say we are at war with them, a war we can’t win, but can only hold them back. We have ‘people’ come in and spray around certain areas of the retreat house in order to keep insects out. Or if they come...

Photo of Br. Justin OCSO September Retreat House Newsletter Hello Friends, I wanted to share with you the latest news from the monastery. As you all know we were hoping to reopen in September, now with the virus surging we find we will have to wait once again. It is with a heavy heart, I...

A woman on Meth (Written Sept 2017) On Tuesday of this week, one of the brothers mentioned to me that there was a woman out front who seemed to be in distress. He told me that she was sitting in one of the red chairs at the end of the walkway in front of the retreat house. I looked out the...

To See Things in a Calmer Vein You can pretty much find anything you want on the internet, on YouTube especially, that one can find all kinds of ‘experts’ giving their take on just about any subject. With Covid it is no different. Way too much information, it is becoming a true tower of...

Eye to Eye with a Spider (Remembering some other critters ) I was on duty in our Infirmary from the 3:30-7:00 AM shift. It has its busy moments but there are stretches where I can sit down and do some reading. It was about 6 AM when I got my book and started to read. I was going along happily...

Remembrance of the dead (and other things…of course) There are many things about the Catholic faith that trouble many Protestants. We have devotion to the saints, and especially towards the Blessed Mother. We ask them to accompany us in our lives to pray for us and with us to bring us into...