Old Monk on Silence
Silent people are not the only ones who don't say much.
From the Old Red Book
Here is a beautiful and mystical hymn/poem by the Victorian convert F.W.Faber. As all good hymns should do it blends deep theology, sublime worship and radiant insights. Amid the eternal silences God's endless Word was spoken none heard but He who always spake and the silence was unbroken. Oh marvelous! Oh Worshipful! No song or sound is heard, [...]
On the Usefulness of Prayer
A typical response when a man says he is entering a monastery is, "Why would a smart guy like yourself waste your life doing something like that?" This understandable remark indicates that a man's worth is determined by his usefulness, and in our sated but not satisfied society "usefulness" is usually determined by the level of [...]
The Katskhi Stylite
Maxime the Stylite of Katskhi in Georgia lives here. Learn more.
Awake. I Will Awake the Dawn
My heart is steadfast, God; my heart is steadfast. Let me sing and chant praise. Awake, lyre and harp! I will wake the dawn. I will praise you among the peoples, LORD; I will chant your praise among the nations. For your mercy is greater than the heavens; your faithfulness, to the skies. Psalm 58
Closed to the World. Open to Heaven
Cloister, Mont St Michel, France When I lived in England I made my annual retreat with the small community of Benedictines at Mont St Michel. The architecture is a Gothic marvel of economy and engineering brilliance. The lower levels with thick walls support common rooms with thinner walls and pillars and the whole living [...]
From the Old Red Book
Many years ago a very holy old Anglican priest of the old school died and left his "occasional book" to me. This book was a collection of quotations and words of wisdom that he had compiled over the years. He was a very cultured and well educated man, like so many of the old Anglican priests [...]
Atheism or Catholicism – You Choose
there is “no medium in true philosophy between atheism and Catholicism… a perfectly consistent mind, under those circumstances in which it finds itself here below must embrace either the one or the other.” - Bl. John Henry Newman I’ve got this gadget on my home page that generates quotable quotes. You don’t know what [...]
The Puri-Fire
I was talking with a man I'll call Henry today who lost his wife just before Christmas. She was only in her early sixties and had premature dementia. It was a terrible disease. Horrible to see an intelligent, active, prayerful woman laid low, and terrible to see the suffering of her husband and family as they [...]
Pause for Prayer
To be led by God's patient love into this attitude of unconditional self surrender is painful, but there is no avoiding it for anyone who seriously wants to pray. It requires no special conditions or peculiar way of life. The ordinary experience of work, daily hardships and living with people is the field of obedience to [...]