For Lent I read James Martin’s new book Come Forth: the promise of Jesus’ greatest miracle. In it he focuses on Lazarus and Jesus’ raising him from the dead. Lazarus and his sisters, Mary and Martha, appear only in John’s Gospel. And the Beloved Disciple appears only in John’s Gospel. Martin theorizes about Lazarus being Read more »

I was five years old when my father returned home from The War. At that time Mom, my sister and I lived with Granny, my aunt and her daughter in downtown Covington. On the day I want to tell you about Dad was working outside, the rest of us inside. It started to rain and Read more »

To accomplish or finish. To bring to completion. The meaning of the word that refers to the last canonical hour of the day, Compline (or Night Prayer). The prayer that assists us in bringing the day to a close. Night Prayer is the mature version of “Now I lay me down to sleep”. Even in Read more »

Recently I came across these two pictures I took on a camping trip several years ago in Tennessee. The angle of the first picture shows the fence as closed, the only way in under or over the rails. The second picture taken a few inches to the side captures the opening. Just a slight change Read more »

There’s a line from a hymn in our Breaking Bread hymnal that keeps repeating itself in my mind like a record stuck in a groove: “Gracious God, you give your life away.”**  As I write this, we are preparing for Holy Week. This makes the text especially poignant, but it is true 365 days a Read more »

An acquaintance and his wife took their eight children to their lake cottage.   Everything went well until they were on their way home. One of the children suddenly called out, “Where’s Maria?”  Sure enough, their youngest was not in the vehicle.  They returned quickly to find a safe but crying little girl. Apparently, as they Read more »

During the Season of Lent and Easter, it is always good to reflect on our baptism.  Many of us were baptized as infants, some of us have been baptized as adults through the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults. (OCIA, formerly the RCIA) Our baptism is the first sacrament we receive.  In baptism we die Read more »

This is Ash Wednesday. On this day, at Evening Prayer, the Prioress reads this chapter of the Holy Rule each year, and gives a reflection, encouraging the community to put themselves to the work of preparing for Easter. (This chapter could guide the instructions of the leader of every household of the faith on this day Read more »

The Center of Spirituality is pleased to announce our spring speaker. Mark your calendars for the morning of March 24, 2024 when Sr. Tonette Sperando, OSB will be here to speak on “Hospitality: A Gospel Way of Living.” Sr. Tonette’s enthusiasm and southern charm will be sure to inspire! Born and raised in Birmingham, Alabama, Read more »

I am always struck by the Gospels that are read after the Resurrection. We find in Luke that the disciples were walking away from Jerusalem to Emmaus when they met Jesus and failed to recognize Him. Jesus opened their recognition of Him by referring to the Scriptures about Him and in the breaking of the bread. Their hope Read more »