Once upon a time, two Buddhist monks, one a senior and the other a novice, went on a journey. Several days into their journey, they approached…

On Friday, the Feast Day of Paul of Thebes, I (Gary Alan) witnessed the solemn profession of monastic vows by my dear friend and spiritual mentor Father Brendan…

At the end of a cold gray day in December 1899, British author Thomas Hardy wrote his most paradoxical poem, The Darkling Thrush. Known for his realistic, if not downright pessimistic…

I guess it’s fitting that on the bleakest day of the year, I’m pausing to reflect on 2020, a year that descended into darkness for all of us living in the shadow of death. For me, things moved from bad to worse…

History provides scant evidence about her, and what we do know seems to be fictionalized. Mariam of Galilee was born during the violent and oppressive reign…

Christmas started extra early in my (Gary Alan’s) neighborhood this year. Several people took down their Halloween decor and immediately replaced…

The last seven days have been quite a year. In many ways they embodied the relentless stress, anxiety, division, and angst that have plagued our nation for years, slowly…

Can you feel it? That twinge in your heart only Autumn can bring. Maybe it’s the changing colors, the muted light, or the smell of burning leaves that at the same time conjures up the nostalgia of…

The natural world, in all its sacred wildness, is the primary revelation of God. Look around. Everything you see is sacred. Consider the lilies of the field, the birds of the air, the…

Recently, members from a local church were canvassing my (Gary Alan’s) neighborhood, handing out tracts and inviting people to church. Under normal circumstances, such uninvited evangelistic tactics feel…

“The Ghent Altarpiece,” completed in 1432 by brothers Hubert and Jan van Eyck, is considered the first if not finest Renaissance masterpiece. Standing before it, the eye is drawn to the painting’s focal point: a mystical…

Life has become strange, different, and, in some ways, unrecognizable since the pandemic struck. Have you felt it? With most of us staying home and telecommuting instead of physically commuting, it almost seems…

In a 13th-century church in the small village of Stinsford in southwest England resides the Hardy Memorial Window, a stained-glass work of art that depicts…

In your spiritual journey, when have you most deeply encountered or felt the divine? How did you know or understand what you were experiencing? For me (Melanie), the times…

In 1638, Gregorio Allegri composed a rendition of Psalm 51 to be sung during Holy Week at Vatican City. The song, Miserere Mei, is arguably the most beautiful piece of music ever written. It was deemed so sacred…

Question: How do you wait? Think about that for a second. When you don’t have that answer you’ve been waiting for or you’re not sure of what to do next, what do you do? Speaking as …

Nestled quietly on a side street in the bustling London borough of Southwark sits the Oratory of St. Alphege, a nondescript monastic community where three…

I no longer believe in the god most of my Christian friends and family worship. You know the one I’m talking about. The god of American civil religion. The god who…

“To ask for forgiveness is to die a small death. Yes. And I suppose humility is a small death too, the death of supremacy. Trust is a small death…”

Dear friends,

Last summer, my wife and I planted a Hawthorn tree in our backyard. When the September heat gave way to October freezes, she shed her leaves in preparation for braving what turned out to be one of…