Tag: Ordinary Days in Ordinary Time

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Embracing the questions

On By dpavinatoIn a life of joy, A life worth living, a school of God's service, Benedictine Oblate, Coming home to myself, creative well-being, Every day Catholic, hope and healing, lifelong learning, mental wellbeing, mindfulness, Personal call and vocation, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, seeing beauty around me, Seeing things in a new way, spiritual healing, Spiritual Journey, Trust the journey, visionary faith2 Comments

A couple of years ago while pondering the persistent question, “what am I going to do with my life”, I finally realized I should stop asking and start living. I laughed and told myself, approaching 70 years of age (not nearly as close to it as I am today), it was time to stop trying to figure that out! Maybe there isn’t an “it” to actually discern in life. Over time, and considerable contemplation, the question morphed into “what am I being called to do, right now – this year or this day?” It’s a minor shift in wording but a huge shift in perspective.

It has felt like a shift to embracing the questions, rather than struggling with them. A fiber artist that I follow shared some thoughts on her own questions and reminded me of a quote by poet, Rainer Marie Rilke, “Be patient toward all that is unsolved in your heart and try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms and like books that are written in a very foreign tongue. Do not now seek the answers, which cannot be given to you because you would not be able to live them. And the point is, to live everything. Live the questions now.”

Deanne concluded her own pondering by saying that she thinks we are all “wonderers”, and that she had yet to meet someone who doesn’t ask questions of life. She said, “And we are all a wonder. And that is what life itself is. It is a wonder too. And so now nearly each day I remind myself to ‘Let the mystery be’ and to ‘Love the questions'”.

I couldn’t agree more!

In a movie, “The Gardener”, that I watched this week, the protagonist facing illness and her mortality, begins to open to beauty around her and to seeing life with new eyes. She is mesmerized by a snake that has shed its skin. She gazes on an agave type plant that only blooms once then dies. She mentions to a mysterious teacher that shows up on her journey, that she feels that death looms around her, she questions when the mortal fear stops. He responds, when you are ready for it to.

It’s easy to get caught up in the struggle and miss the mystery unfolding around us each day. If we are ready to release the grip and tight hold on the questions, then perhaps we are able to see things with curiosity instead. We can find wonder and awe in life unfolding around and for us. As I shared some thoughts on the book, The Practice of the Presence of God by Brother Lawrence, last week, it seems more fitting to be present to what we are called to in each moment. That is what brings peace and contentment in life.

The image I selected for today’s post is a tile of the shell marker pilgrims see on the various Camino paths on “the way” toward Santiago de Compostela. The shell serves as a directional guide letting pilgrims know they are on the right path. For medieval pilgrims, a shell would be a purposeful tool, to drink or eat from. For those of us who follow a Christian path, a shell vessel is often used during the sacrament of baptism, to pour water on the infant or individual being baptized. It is a sign of rebirth and divine protection. I purchased this tile, as well as a sterling shell to wear on a necklace while visiting Santiago de Compostela. They both serve as good reminders to watch for “markers” and continue on “the way” each day.

Wishing you abundant peace, wonder, and awe this week. Deena

Note re the movie The Gardener: before you search for the movie directed by Dabney Day, it was a special online release this week. It was a little bit Devil Wears Prada in the beginning, Hallmark throughout but a few lovely spiritual reflections throughout.

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The practice of peace

On By dpavinatoIn #sacredwork, A life worth living, a school of God's service, Benedictine Oblate, Catholic faith, Coming home to myself, contemplation, Every day Catholic, hope and healing, lifelong learning, mindfulness, ora et labora, Our unique call, Pope Leo XIV, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, Saints as Models & Guides, Spiritual Journey, spirituality, Teachers and Guides on the journey, visionary faith1 Comment

Have you found yourself irritated with others, or with life/the world, because events weren’t turning out as you had hoped they would? Maybe it’s more than a hope, but an expectation, that circumstances should be different. We (me!) can stress and worry about situations in life, but frequently find we have little control over it. As a reaction I often retreat, inwardly, or even physically, to my inner being, and home, preferring silence and solitude. My desire is to keep a constant connection with Spirit, throughout the day, focused on the things that really matter instead of the mundane and passing concerns that can consume so much time and energy. Some days are easier than others.

I have to catch myself when the repeated tape of a conversation, or of the behavior of someone else toward me, begins to rewind over and over again. I laughed out loud this morning reading a post by personal development author, life coach, and speaker, Cheryl Richardson, as she described the thoughts going through her mind as she took a shower. She stopped herself and said “Cheryl, come back, there are too many people in this shower with you!” I replied, “Girl, I hear you!” I laughed thinking of the countless times I have been in the same situation.

I have been encouraged in my practice of being in the presence of God, more mindful of Spirit and connection, as an alternative to mindless worry over past or future events, as I have been rereading a book by Brother Lawrence from the 17th century, Practice of the Presence of God. I was encouraged to read this small book in the 1990’s, along with Abandonment to Divine Providence, written in the 18th century, by one of my parish priests. Both have been helpful books on my spiritual journey. Lately, I have been using an updated translation by Ascension Press, which has been much easier than reading the original book I have. The book has gained much popularity after Pope Leo XIV wrote an introduction to a Vatican edition of the book, indicating that this book was one of the books that has shaped his spirituality and awareness of knowing and loving God. Pope Leo has advised that the journey of practicing the presence of God, is an arduous one because we have to renounce all of the other things that seek our attention, so that we can keep our focus centered on God.

And isn’t this the goal of Christian mindfulness, and a practice of centering prayer and contemplation? We desire to turn away from the clamor and noise of the world seeking inner peace and union with the Divine.

Brother Lawrence advises that we turn away from everything that distracts from that union, so that we can be in constant conversation with God. We pause, we turn to and rest in the Divine Presence. Simple but challenging. We seek to empty ourselves of the things of the world, from anything that does not lead to God. Brother Lawrence approached all his duties and responsibilities within the Carmelite monastery in this way, as an opportunity to practice the presence of God.

Just as Brother Lawrence had his tasks to complete, so do we. Practicing the presence of God does not mean we quit work, give up enjoyable hobbies and activities, or retreat to a monastery. I do find it is easier having fewer responsibilities outside of the home, but even those activities become opportunities to serve and be aware of God’s presence as we undergo them and encounter others in the process of doing them. It brings a different perspective to our engagement in them.

While the “practice” Brother Lawrence speaks of reminds me of Ignatian spirituality, finding God in all things and seeking only those things that bring us closer to God, he did not seem to be concerned with guidance from others, except in sacramental confession, or considering consolations and desolations in spirit. He simply returned his gaze to God and to the things that would be pleasing to God, despite any suffering or distraction.

With a similar message, Pope Leo XIV, in his video message to the 50th Summer Youth Conference in Steubenville, Ohio this weekend, encouraged youth to look for peace, for “true and perfect joy”, in the love of God instead of from others, or from social media and other electronics. He pointed to the life of St. Francis, and the peace Francis found, and shared with others, that looked different, and less appealing, to others, until they encountered him. They experienced the peace that he found within, in his relationship with God and a focus on lasting joy and happiness.

I hope that as I continue to practice the presence of God, less concerned with the opinions and actions of others, I will find that same level of peace and joy experienced by Brother Lawrence, Francis, other saints and mystics, and those who have followed them. I pray that this peace is experienced by others who I encounter. It’s a lofty goal to be sure, but one worth remaining committed to.

As always, I wish you abundant peace this week, Deena

Today’s image: a small wall hanging I purchased in Assisi, Italy. Pace e Bene means “peace and all good” or “good peace”.

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Wistful summer memories

On By dpavinatoIn a life of joy, A life worth living, Coming home to myself, contemplation, creative well-being, Doing what we love, Every day Catholic, mental wellbeing, Our unique call, Pause and rest, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, savor the days, Spiritual Journey, Trust the journey6 Comments

Last night I noticed the first firefly (we called them lightening bugs growing up) of the season. I paused and watched, there was another, and another. I moved to a different window, opened it wide and watched them as they moved around the back yard, around the tree and plants in my flower beds. Soon, my cat, Butters, jumped in the screened window and watched them too. His head darted back and forth as each one lit in the landscape below.

I watched in delight. I inhaled the balmy summer evening air with birds still chirping, but more quietly than earlier in the day. The evening was calm, fewer cars and noise than usual. It was a picture perfect summer night.

I began to reflect on summer evenings of my youth. Nights on the front porch, growing up in a neighborhood where it was common to sit outside and visit. On occasion, after our baths, and dressed in pajamas, we would go for a ride to The Root Beer Stand for an ice cream treat, bugs buzzing under the canopy lights, as a car hop would bring a tray to the car window.

We vacationed in Wisconsin many summers while I was growing up. I can recall only a handful of memories from those summers. I remember the deer we fed by hand. Or the firetruck my father insisted my brothers and I got on so he could take a picture. I exclaimed the leather seat was too hot but he wanted a picture. I still have the photo, legs tucked up near my chin and dress pulled down over my knees. Funny how the picture takes me right back to the feelings I was having.

I attended a local summer camp, Camp Saint Claret (I think we called it Camp Claretknoll). It was a historic summer camp operated by the Claretian Missionaries on the Claretknoll property. The camp was literally a few miles from home but I felt as though we were transported to a different world. I had no idea at the time it was a missionary founded organization. I really can’t recall what we actually did there but thinking of it brings back to memory nights of campfires and scary stories.

I remember my Noni’s garden. Besides her vegetable plants, the garden border was always full of peonies and roses. She loved her garden and I know she planted those seeds in me as well. We would pick dandelion from the yard, so that she could eat the greens in salad, long before the days of chemical treatments on lawns. She taught me about picking and sautéing zucchini flowers.

I love my flowers and adding new varieties to the flower beds each year. But, I gave up gardening vegetables. After my mother died, I lost the joy. I carried on the tradition of planting vegetables, after my father died, which he took on with gusto after my grandmother passed away. Mom and I planted tomatoes, peppers, zucchini and cucumbers. Dad’s garden was always much bigger, priding himself in the lettuce, onions, garlic and sweet corn. Thinking of the garden also evokes lovely memories with my mother, grating zucchini for bread and cooking tomatoes for sauce to use all winter. Perhaps the spark will return one day.

Do you have a favorite summer memory? Or perhaps a summer tradition you grew up with and still share with your family today? I would love to hear it. You can reply in the Facebook or Instagram post, or on my website, so others can enjoy reading it.

Wishing you summer days to savor and that bring you peace. Deena

Image: With my “Noni” in her garden.

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Becoming who I am

On By dpavinatoIn #sacredwork, a life of joy, A life worth living, Benedictine Oblate, Coming home to myself, contemplation, creative well-being, Doing what we love, Life of purpose, lifelong learning, mindfulness, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, spirituality, Teachers and Guides on the journey, toolkit for the spirit, Trust the journey4 Comments

Earlier this week I listened to a vlog “The Elegant Haiku” and read the accompanying blog by Michael Kroth. In his video he said something that immediately caught my attention. I stopped the video, backed it up and played it again. I wrote it down in my journal and it’s been on my mind ever since.

Michael said: “What we practice becomes who we are.”

His feature article this week was regarding his journey, learning about and writing haiku, as a daily practice. He began in 2019 as a result of attending a workshop by poet, author, and friend of ours Judith Valente (you have seen her name here in this blog many times). It may have been about the same time that I attended a retreat given by Judith at the Monastery and was also introduced to haiku. Michael decided to make it a practice. I have tried multiple times but give up. I judge, criticize, and analyze. (Frankly it surprises me that I continue to write this blog each week.) Michael’s haiku poetry is very good. He and friends even published a book, Framing the Moment; Haiku Conversations, together after sharing their haiku with each other.

Haiku is a form of Japanese poetry, consisting of three lines, in a format of 5-7-5 syllables. I have seen multiple variations or adaptations but most use this format. It sounds simple but I would invite you to look outside, or at an image, and capture the essence of it, or how it makes you feel, using that format. It challenges us to find just the right words to express a feeling or insight. It calls us to slow down, choose carefully and purposefully. It is way to be present and mindful.

In one of Judith’s latest books, How to be a Contemplative (also mentioned by Michael in his blog), she shares her wisdom about slowing down in our hectic, often distracted, lives. If you are challenged to wind down at all, much less write a three-line haiku, I invite you to explore Judith’s book.

In addition to incorporating a practice, or desire to learn something, in our lives so that it becomes more closely aligned with who we are, I believe it also creates some sort of magnetic attraction to bring more of the same to us. Since reading Michael’s post I have seen and read so many compatible posts, poems, and book titles that encourage me to pursue and stay focused on the things that point me in the direction of who I am becoming and what I desire to have more of in my life.

I have a long list of things that I would love to be better at, that feel like they express who I am or who I want to be. So, I must ask myself why I am not pursuing them more enthusiastically – fear of failure, fear that I can’t ever be those things as proficiently as I want to be, that I will be judged…? If there is one gift of rapidly approaching 70 years of age, I have noticed that I am more easily gravitating toward not caring what other people think. But, there are moments. When I sense that feeling of doing something for approval, versus authentic desire, I think I have to grab myself by the shoulders and say “move on, let it go.”

Michael might be surprised to know that I have saved a little stack of his delightful pieces of mail, that he calls Haiku Drops (today’s image of the envelopes, not his poetry), since “meeting him” at a workshop with Judith. I pull them out from time to time if I need to take a peaceful pause during the day. Other times they just make me smile when I open the drawer I have them in, and see them. My point of sharing that is that our desire to learn and share something with others might be just what they need on any given day. So, if it makes you happy, continue to pursue and practice it, and share it with others!

Wishing you endless moments of being really happy with who you are, and who you are becoming, this week! Deena

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A seed is just a seed

On By dpavinatoIn #sacredwork, a life of joy, A life worth living, Benedictine Oblate, Catholic faith, discernment, Every day Catholic, Fruit of the Spirit, Gifts of the Spirit, Holy Trinity, Life in the Spirit, lush life in the spirit, Our unique call, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, Saints as Models & Guides, toolkit for the spiritLeave a comment

This is my favorite time of year in the Illinois Valley. We had late cold and rain this Spring, so it may appear to be a bit behind the last couple of years, but the baby corn, like the field in today’s blog image, are starting to sprout. I just love these little green leaves emerging from the ground. They make my heart happy!

Inside each tiny seed, the embryo of the plant has everything it needs to grow and transform into a mature plant. But each seed remains dormant until it has the right conditions of sun, oxygen, the right temperature and warmth, and moisture to activate and cause the seed to germinate. The seeds have a life force within them, that is dormant, until the right conditions appear to cause growth. (Farmers and scientists, please forgive my overly simplistic explanation.)

Seeing these plants beginning to grow this past week, I reflected again on the spirit, or life force, within all things. This life force is “viriditas”, or “greening power”, coined by St. Hildegard of Bingen, that I mentioned in last week’s blog. My reflection and study led me to review several articles again, especially one by Nameeta Renu, theology scholar and author of numerous articles on consecrated life, “Why St. Hildegards’s spirituality of ‘viriditas’ is so extraordinary”, on a site I follow, Global Sisters Report (see note below on GSR).

Hildegard, Benedictine abbess, mystic, healer, artist and scholar, saw the living power of light, from God, in all of creation. Her art and writings reflected this “greenness” in all things. But Hildegard’s concept of greening power wasn’t a study of ecology. She wrote that the soul within each person is the green life-force of the flesh. If we, as human beings, neglect our “inner greening”, if we lose the “sap of life”, carelessness about the things that are important in life, or if we experience the “drought of our indolence,” our soul power begins to “fade and dry up”.

Today is Holy Trinity Sunday. We reflect on the dynamic Love between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We attempt to grasp how that Love is then shared with us. Hildegard would talk about the Holy Spirit as this green “sap” within us. Like trees, the Holy Spirit is the juicy green, moist, creative life within us. Is it alive or dried up?

So a seed is just a seed, or is it? It is pure potential. It is potential waiting for the right conditions to nurture it so that it can develop in a way that it becomes what it was made to be, in the image and likeness of the plant that created the seed in the first place. Or as Hildegard wrote, “Every creature is a glittering, glistening mirror of Divinity”. We were created in the Divine image of God. We are beloved sons and daughters.

So I pause to ask myself this week if I am nurturing and watering that seed within? Am I living to my potential, daring to declare who I am (also a thought from Hildegard)? What else does my spirit need to become fully alive, lush and green? I hope my thoughts prompt you to consider the same.

Wishing you a week, and a new month, that is thriving, vibrant and full of growth! Deena

Note: Global Sisters Report is an independent, nonprofit source of news and information about Catholic sisters and the critical issues facing the people they serve. They send daily email updates or you can visit their site, Global Sisters Report. You can also find a direct link on National Catholic Reporter.

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A pause, with love

On By dpavinatoIn #sacredwork, a thin veil, care for creation, Compassion, mindfulness, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, Spiritual Journey2 Comments

I was preparing my post, focused on Lent today, and the day has required a different focus. My oldest cat, Bela, is not well today. It seems it may be getting closer to his transition. So my attention is on him and not writing. I am quiet and attentive, as I hope I will be this Lent. Since Lent begins Weds., with Ash Wednesday, I will finish my post and publish at that time.

I am so grateful to Kate Brown (Kate Brown Healing Essentials), taking time during her Sunday rest, for her Healing Touch for Animals work on him today. He is more relaxed and attempting to rest in the sunshine.

I wish you peace and love on this lovely Sunday. I hope it’s as beautiful where you are as it is in Illinois today.

Photo taken during a visit to Muir Woods in California

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Start with a dream and dream big

On By dpavinatoIn #sacredwork, a life of joy, A life worth living, Benedictine Oblate, Catholic faith, Coming home to myself, discernment, Doing what we love, Dream big, Every day Catholic, Ignatian prayer, Life in the Spirit, Life of purpose, mindfulness, ora et labora, Our Lady of the Way, Our unique call, Personal call and vocation, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, savor the days, Seeing things in a new way, spiritual freedom2 Comments

I love the Opening ceremonies of the Olympics, and the Winter 2026 Opening Ceremonies did not disappoint (ok, it’s in Milan and Cortina, so I might be a bit biased). I loved it all – Andrea Bocelli, the dove image and message of peace, the adorable Italian hand gesture lesson, the all female color guard in Armani suits, the colorful flowing paint tubes, dancing composers and, (seriously? How creative and representative of Italy!), giant colorful moka pots, I was thrilled.

Beginning with a sequence of the winter athletes watching their younger selves practicing their sport was an inspiring first segment for the Ceremonies! Having watched young people grow into adulthood, in my own family, with their specific goals and ambitions, and achieve those dreams is equally inspiring. I paused to reflect how some people are so inspired at a young age to pursue a goal, and the relentless practice to accomplish it. It’s a gift to be so confident and determined.

On Friday I was reminded that we are all encouraged to dream big. A reflection by Monk Mindset challenged me to consider that we would never tell a young child to dream mediocre dreams, to aspire to goals that are “less than” what they might desire. We don’t tell a child, or at least I hope we don’t, not to dream big because it is grandiose or presumptuous to want to accomplish something in life. My niece’s 7 year old has mentioned she wants to be a Lego Master. So why not?! She’s immensely talented at it and there are such individuals called Lego Masters in the world. Whether that comes to pass or it morphs into some other creative, and equally talented, skillset of planning, designing and creating, it doesn’t matter. I want to encourage her to believe in that dream! I would not dare to tell her to focus on something less exciting!

Fr. John of Monk Mindset continued to suggest that we might spend some time in prayer and discernment about the deepest desires in our hearts. It reminds me so much of Ignatian Spirituality and the notion that God is discovered when we spend time reflecting on the desires of the heart. In true discernment, we explore those desires that are ordered toward God, that lead to greater faith, hope and love of God. In that discernment we will uncover something that God might intend us to desire and pursue. When we have identified a spiritually noble and ambitious dream, then we have to courage to ask God to aid us as we run confidently toward it.

These dreams would not be petty desires or visions of grandiose and self-promoting accomplishments. Fr. John reminded that we need to be open to and allow room for purification and alteration of those desires toward the will of God in our lives. In prayer and contemplation, we weed out the disordered attachments and desires and seek those that best use our gifts and talents to serve God and others. I always thought, why would God want me to be an accountant when my heart does not move in that direction. So I don’t have to fear asking God what ways I can best serve.

I was also reminded, seeing a recent post from Hay House, that Louise Hay, an author and founder of Hay House Publishing, began her life’s work late in life. After a divorce and cancer diagnosis she began to write and at the age of 62 opened her publishing company, which remains a leader in the world of self-help and personal fulfillment publications. Do I desire to open a publishing house or author several books? No, but perhaps some of the other ideas that I lay in bed and dream of deserve a bit more reflection, prayer and discernment.

We can all make a difference in the world by using our gifts and talents. What are your dreams that lay dormant? Spend some time this week and reflect on ways that your future might be as grand as God imagines for you.

One of the best commercials I have seen so far is by Toyota with young girls repeating positive affirmations from their father in a car. The tag line is “Every destination has a beginning.” What’s your destination?

Wishing you abundant peace and joy this week, Deena

Image: created in Canva

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The journey of peace

On By dpavinatoIn #sacredwork, A life worth living, a school of God's service, Benedictine Oblate, Catholic faith, Coming home to myself, Compassion, Daily Prayer, discernment, Every day Catholic, hope and healing, Life in the Spirit, Life of purpose, mindfulness, ora et labora, Our Lady of the Way, praying for peace, Sacred Heart of Jesus, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, Seeing things in a new way, spiritual healing, Spiritual Journey, spirituality, Teachers and Guides on the journey, Trust the journey, visionary faithLeave a comment

In today’s Gospel from Matthew (Matthew 5: 1-12a), Jesus gathers his apostles, and the growing crowd of disciples and followers, and shares the familiar Beatitudes with them – these words shared are a radical blueprint for the heart for those of us searching for answers. Although I’ve heard these verses many times, they spoke to me with a new weight this year. Ever since the Vigil Mass on Saturday, words like ‘peacemakers,’ ‘persecuted for righteousness,’ and ‘hunger and thirst’ have been nudging me to spend more time with them. What am I being called to do? How might I move beyond hearing the words and make them become a part of my life? What is my role to help embody the words at a time when our world needs more light and peace? I don’t have the answers, so I have gathered a few favorite quotes from many that I respect and turn to for wisdom, with a prayer that they might help me understand the words Jesus is calling us to live. I also share a personal example at the end of how we are invited to reflect on our own journeys.

As a Benedictine Oblate, I begin with St. Benedict and the peace he advocates in our daily living of The Rule, from the Prologue: “Let peace be your quest and aim.”

Pope Leo XIV, yesterday in his address to participants at the “Political Innovation Hackathon: One Humanity, One Planet” Conference, said “there can be no peace while humanity wages war against itself—by discarding the weak, excluding the poor, and remaining indifferent to refugees and the oppressed.” He said “Only those who care for the least among us are capable of accomplishing what is truly great.” He urged the young people to seek peace always.

Dorothy Day: “If peace is to be built, it must start with the individual. It is built brick by brick.”

St. Mother Theresa: “If we have no peace, it is because we have forgotten that we belong to each other.”

Anthony deMello: “Peace is not the absence of conflict, it is the ability to handle conflict by peaceful means.”

Thomas Merton: “We are not at peace with others because we are not at peace with ourselves, and we are not at peace with ourselves because we are not at peace with God.”

Thich Nhat Hahn: “Peace in every step.”

Lastly, I share the personal experience from my reflection during Adoration this past Wednesday on the Buddhist monks walking for peace. I prayed to let their walk continue to plant seeds of peace in my heart. That they might encourage me to spread a message of peace in my own way. I contemplated the number of people they are influencing by their walk and their daily messages. I continue to write in my journal each morning, “Today is going to be my peaceful day.” I paused and thought about others, like the Peace Pilgrim, who have journeyed for peace. Then God reminded me he has a sense of humor and is listening to all these silent prayers and yearnings.

I reached down and picked up my copy of the new book, Encounter Grace: Moments of Hope, Joy and Peace, by mentor and friend, Becky Eldredge. I opened and turned to pages 36 and 37 and read the two reflections “A Call” and “Healing Power”. In “A Call”, Becky wrote that we are invited to pray for the grace of getting to know Jesus more intimately as we journey through the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola. “It means not only hearing the call to follow Jesus but also to WALK with him and be there working with him.” Then in “Healing Power”, Becky reflected on the ways that Jesus healed others and the impact it had on her. She invites us to consider that it is through our connection with Jesus in our “inner chapel” that “his power moves from him to us.” When we do that, we “encounter Jesus the same way Jesus encountered people tangibly when he was WALKING around the earth.” (Using caps for both quotes here is my emphasis.) I laughed out loud, quietly because I was in Adoration, but I thanked God for reminding me of Jesus’ constant effort to be and share peace. I can turn to scripture just as easily as I can turn to YouTube to see where the monks are walking today.

So today, in whatever way is most helpful for you, consider how you are and might be sharing a message of peace to those around you. We all need it so desperately.

Wishing you abundant peace this week, Deena

Image: A photo of a banner at Subiaco Abbey in Subiaco, Arkansas taken during an Oblate conference.

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Make me an instrument of your peace

On By dpavinatoIn #sacredwork, A life worth living, a school of God's service, a season of hope, Benedictine Oblate, Catholic faith, Compassion, Every day Catholic, hope and healing, praying for peace, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, spiritual healing, Spiritual Journey, Trust the journey, visionary faith, waiting and reflecting2 Comments

It’s hard to find words. But I have one, Enough! I saw a post this morning that calmly pleaded, if you have a platform use it. Mine is a small platform but I want to share my prayers and hopes.

I pray for peace. I pray for the people of Minnesota and an elimination of the fear and injustice they are experiencing. I pray for children, like 12 year old Max with a soccer medal around his neck, crying to his mother that another boy told him he was going to be arrested, because they look different even if they were born in the US (and I share Max’ tearful sentiment, “it’s just not nice”). I pray for other states that are beginning to experience the same insane use of discrimination. I pray for our country and a restoration of the values we have held dear for so long. I pray for the honest police, military and elected officials who desire to uphold the laws of our country. I pray for leaders, religious and civil, to step up and do what is right. I pray for a restoration of respect between other countries and the United States. I pray for each of us as we struggle to find a balance between staying informed, knowing what and when to speak up, and still maintain respect, peace and hope in our hearts and minds and with each other.

Please know that this is no longer, if it ever was, about legal deportations. We’ve had those conducted by past administrations and not heard about them. Why? Because each person was given due process. This is also not about legit law enforcement and military doing their jobs. I watched law enforcement calmly arrest clergy and interfaith leaders who were protesting at the Minneapolis-St. Paul airport on Friday. I did not see guns drawn, pepper spray or harassment. This is about unlawful and unjust discrimination and bigotry. It has to stop.

So, today, I turn to one of my favorite prayers, attributed to St. Francis of Assisi. I pray it so that the words make a home in my heart and mind so that then I can, in turn, sow love, pardon, faith, hope, light and joy in my small way.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon;
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope;
where there is darkness, light;
where there is sadness, joy. 

O divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek
to be consoled as to console,
to be understood as to understand,
to be loved as to love.
For it is in giving that we receive, 
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, 
and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.
Amen.

Please dear God, hear our prayers.

I wish you abundant peace, hope and calm this week. Deena

Image: art of St. Francis taken during my pilgrimage to Assisi.

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In the beginning

On By dpavinatoIn #sacredwork, A life worth living, Benedictine Oblate, Catholic faith, Coming home to myself, Compassion, Daily Prayer, Every day Catholic, grounded in faith, hope and healing, Life of purpose, mindfulness, Our unique call, Personal call and vocation, praying for peace, sacred listening, sacred seeing, sacred waiting, seeing beauty around me, Seeing things in a new way, spiritual freedom, spiritual healing, Spiritual Journey, Teachers and Guides on the journey, Trust the journey, visionary faithLeave a comment

The Center for Action and Contemplation in New Mexico, published a series this past week on Creation. Each week, Fr. Richard Rohr’s (Franciscan priest and founder of CAC) writings, as well as those of other writers, poets and theologians, are shared in a daily blog. Each day, this week, has challenged me to reflect on creation as an ongoing act of God’s love. Recent events have weighed heavily on some of us. Yet, in the midst of turmoil, there have also been moments of great peace and tranquility, solidarity and hope. Those stories might be harder to find, but they are there.

If you read the Bible, especially the early stories in Genesis, it’s a mess! Lies, deception, betrayal, thousands of Israelites defeated in battle, and exile. We know these stories were passed down to preserve an ancient heritage and the wisdom gleaned through that history. These words carry a truth that despite all of the sin and error committed by our early families in faith, an ultimate truth remains. As Fr. Richard wrote, this story shared through generations “is saying that everything is grace, everything is gift, everything comes from God. God is the one who makes something out of nothing and gives it to us, not only then, but now. God created both the natural universe and our own human nature, and all of it is good. All of it is to be enjoyed, if we can receive it as a gift.”

Brian McLaren’s article in the series invited us to remember that all of creation is good and that in that creation, all matter and each person, are part of the story and are different branches on the tree of life. Later in the week, theologian Elizabeth Johnson shared a more poetic perspective, that existence itself is an ongoing act of God’s love, and that “without the ongoing creative power of God at every moment, all would collapse into … an unimaginable no-thing.” She stated the “Creator gives with great affection; creatures receive. Nothing in the great world would exist but for this constant relationship.”

We are rereading the newer (2010) translation of Sr. Joan Chittister’s commentary on The Rule of St. Benedict in our monthly Oblate gatherings. Sr Joan, in the section on the Prologue of The Rule, which has guided monastics for well over 1,500 years, proposes that in “failing to respond to God everywhere God is around us, we may lose the power of God that is in us.” We have all been failed by the things of this world, the people in our lives, leaders both personal, local and national, security in our work and our homes, things that will not ultimately satisfy us. God is the only “lifeline” when nothing else fulfills and satisfies, and when the world feels to be imploding, it is comforting to remember the source of all goodness continues to create out of love for us.

I do not suggest that a solution is ignorance of current events. I am inspired by those who choose to more actively represent, and speak out for, the just and equitable principles that our country was founded and has been guided by. But when I feel myself reacting with rage and condemnation, I remember the words I reflect on each morning and evening, from the venerable monks walking for peace, unless we have peace in our hearts, we will never have peace in the world. So I pause, mindful of the present moment, and turn inward. I reflect on the warmth of the sun through the window, the tea in my mug, and I send a silent prayer, a prayer for peace in my being and a peaceful solution to what is happening in our country.

I can’t think of a better way to pray for and reflect on the drastic change needed in our country today, than on the eve of Martin Luther King Jr. Day, to share one of his most famous quotes, “Darkness cannot drive out darkness, only light can do that.”

May we be light. May we embody peace. May we be a seed in the ongoing act of creation. May we be a source of inspiration to those seeking answers in a world that will never provide them at the deepest level. Amen.

Wishing you abundant peace and hope this week, Deena

Photo: A recent sunset, a visible sign of the glory of creation.