The View Up Here

From a great article on what it means to be a mystic  (all emphasis mine) : What makes a mystic, well, “mystical”? Mystic and related words come from the Greek language — from the same word which gives us mystery and even sacraments. But the Greek root word, mueo, also gives us the English word mute. So a mystic is someone who enters the mystery of God. And a mystic also, and therefore, is someone whose spirituality is muted (in other words, profoundly silent) — which is to say it cannot even be put into words. It’s the silence of a monastery, understood not merely as the absence of sound (or thoughts, or words), but as an opening that allows us to discern the quiet presence of God.  A mystic, in the broadest and m[o]st humble sense of the word, is simply someone whose relationship with God is primarily contemplative. Someone who prays, and who prays silently, opening the heart to the presence of God , which cannot ever be fully put into words.  The author wisely...

I'll start with this quote from Fr. Vincent Serpa, O.P. (Dominican priest) from CatholicAnswers (website and radio). He's quoted as saying/writing: The Lord told us to ask for what we need—not because he doesn’t already know, but that we come to him in love, humbly acknowledging our complete dependence on him—and willingly accepting whatever and however he chooses to respond. The prayer of petition is a matter of loving trust and absolutely nothing else. To that I would add that God wants us to co-create with God. My charismatic community in L.A. taught me the phrase "agreeing in prayer," which means that we are agreeing with each other and with God's will (whatever that may be) for the best possible outcome - even if it's not the one we'd prefer. This acknowledges that God sees far more than we can in our limited scope, while offering ourselves as a community and individually to be God's presence to others in a difficult situation, as God longs ...

Over the past few months, I've had many interactions with friends of mine that go way back - 20, 25, even 35 years - and they have asked some very good questions about this whole "discerning a vocation" business. I also picked up that a few of them had some concerns, which is a natural reaction, I think, if the process and the spiritual life inherent in the process is unfamiliar to them. Not to mention the actual concept of monastic or religious life. And for some, me returning to the Catholic faith and wanting to live a life within that context has been troubling. With all this in mind, I figured it might be good to do an FAQ.  Please click on the links I've provided for more info on specific topics and experiences. If you have any other questions, please send me a comment. Thanks for reading! 1.   I have been discerning a religious vocation (to become a sister or a nun) for almost four years, now. In that time, I have met with several and very different re...

10 ways to love, according to the Scripitures. Dust off your #Bible and start loving! pic.twitter.com/Ct4kTSFaAT — CatholicLink English (@catholink) November 17, 2015 Loving is a way of being in the world, a disposition, and a choice. Similar in concept and practice are  The Four Agreements .

As you know if you read this blog, I am discerning a religious vocation, which means that I feel the call to become a religious sister. A nun, actually, meaning that I am called to contemplative life. Daughters of Charity of St. Vincent DePaul http://stpatricksconventschool.blogspot.com /2012/03/three-nuns-at-ball-game.html Some folks, well many folks, still think of nuns as circa 1955 with flying buttresses on their heads, vows of silence, self-flagellation, and other eerie and dysfunctional behaviors. For certain, there were some practices that have been done away with. Others never really existed in the first place.  Active apostolate sisters have been out in the world with and without modified habits for longer than you think. But contemplatives are still out there too, in monasteries both rural and urban. I encourage you to look around in your local diocese or archdiocese for women's monastic orders and get to know them by going to Mass there, or even staying ove...

If you're like me (and you may not be), you don't really like exercising. Lots of people seem to love it -  they like to run, they like to push their body to the edge of endurance and beyond. If they don't want to break someone else's record, they want to break one of their own (even if it's only a personal best, no where in any official record books). And to these I say:  awesome! It is a blessing that you are gifted with this focus. Then, however, there's the likes of me. I would rather sit and read. Or sit and pray. Or lie down and read. Or watch the clouds roll by from a supine position. Okay, and I absolutely love LOVE to swim and be in the water of any sort ( except for Lake Ontario's algae-ridden shores this time of year ). However, that's not always an option. Neither is this, apparently: via GIPHY Fortunately, I do like to walk. I like seeing things, places, animals, people at eye level in person, rather than speeding by in a car or th...

This year's theme was 'Hope: A World Afire!' I'm winding down the weekend after an intense two days at the Religious Education Congress (Friday and Saturday). I only went for two of the three days, mainly because I needed my one day to stay home and gear up for the coming week. I day tripped to Anaheim for the event, which was more of a challenge with Friday traffic both going and coming home, but I definitely feel the 'conference high' even with the commuting and not making it for the last day (which was today).  The sessions I chose back in December and got into (I had to choose my top 3 for each period) seemed to interlock with an ever-unfolding message of forgiveness, reconciliation and God's Love. In fact, it would appear that this Lent, the journey I'm taking with Yeshua is one of forgiveness.  Friday I arrived frazzled from rush hour and Disneyland traffic (the Anaheim Convention Center is across the street from California Advent...

It's been a busy couple of weeks! I've started a new screenplay, and taken a free lance gig proofing and copy-editing a short manuscript for a local author. I am also quite addicted to my Kindle. My brother gave it to me for Christmas of 2010, and it wasn't until last month that I started using it. I don't have room for lots of books here, so I decided to make use of this lovely device, and it has totally changed my world. Imagine bringing multiple books with you where ever you go, so that whatever you feel like reading is at your finger tips. Most of what I have loaded on here now reflects the new direction my spiritual path has taken. Of those, the most inspiring, important, and perfectly appropriate is Without Buddha I Could not be a Christian , by Paul Knitter . He identifies himself as a "Buddhist Christian" as I have come to do, and his treatise on "crossing over" from Buddhism to Christianity is invaluable. Of special note is what he calls...

Yesterday I did something I haven't done in years: willingly and of my own accord, I went to church. I've been craving a spiritual community for some time, now, and while there are Buddhist centers here in L.A., I realized I wanted something a bit more focused. And I've realized that while being Buddhist has made me a better person, by far, the things I've learned through that practice really fit in quite nicely with what Jesus taught - love one another, commit acts of compassion, respect yourself, recognize that we are all the same (seeking wholeness). In fact, my understanding of things like kleshas (strong emotions that pull us toward and away from pleasure and suffering - aka clinging and aversion which drive our actions that obscure our innate Buddha essence) help the concept of original sin make sooo much more sense than biting into an ancient apple and blaming it on the woman (yes, I know it's an allegory, but it never worked for me). So what was I saying?...