For many of us, silence plays an integral part on our spiritual journey. It may be experienced as a welcome challenge or a necessity for the nourishment of our souls and inner lives. Silence may [...]
In this short piece, I would like to wander from the beaten path to Finchale (pronounced Finkle) Priory, a stage of the camino ingles, on the banks of the River Wear near to Durham. There, we can [...]
Claire was born at the end of a beautiful day in the early summer of 1981. It was the Year of the Disabled, but we did not have an inkling of what that year would bring.
We already had a [...]
The Rule of St Benedict for August begins by talking of monks who have to travel, rather ironic in today’s society where we are only just coming out of an unprecedented ban on travelling. Yet, [...]
I was happy that my husband could visit Mount Athos. In a series of ecstatic phone calls he described the landscape as he walked between the monasteries. “The land is covered in flowers. The [...]
Someone asked the question ‘What is God trying to tell us by the pandemic?’ God does not intervene with a pandemic to make a point or get people to think. Nevertheless it is important for us to [...]
At this unhappy time when we may be forgiven for anxiety about the health and welfare of our loved ones, Society and, indeed, ourselves it may be helpful to consider times when Christians have [...]
In his Holy Rule, St Benedict often refers to murmuring and grumbling. This is understandable as murmuring and grumbling can present obstacles to anyone trying to build up and maintain an [...]
There is often a tension between solitude and community; we need both at different times and in different degrees but we can’t always choose and that can be a real challenge. It can be difficult [...]
It has been said that a monastery is a place where our hearts are gradually being transformed into the likeness of God. St. Benedict tells us that every aspect of life in the monastery is sacred [...]
