Lass auch Dir die Brust bewegen, Liebchen, höre mich!

Every year everything I have ever learned in my lifetime leads back to this: the fires and the black river of loss whose other side is salvation, whose meaning none of us will ever know. Mary Oliver: In Blackwater Woods I was listening to Radio 3 over breakfast on Wednesday. Bryn Terfel was interviewed and … Continue reading Lass auch Dir die Brust bewegen, Liebchen, höre mich!

An affirming source (6): Empowered

[See Parts 1, 2, 3, 4, inter-mission, & 5] Spiritual direction relocates authority from out there to in here. It’s about an authority that emerges from yielding not to an alien will but an affirming source … [We] are empowered, emancipated, to use the transforming energy we can exercise by acknowledging our dependence upon an unconditional source of affirmation.Rowan Williams: … Continue reading An affirming source (6): Empowered

On illness and punishment

When they fetch up in hospital because of an illness or old age, some religious people ask, "Why is this happening to me?" and might add "I've been a good person." Some have never thought about their mortality. Illness takes them by surprise. They have made no preparation. Illness and death is an affront to … Continue reading On illness and punishment