Archbishop Desmond Tutu, who died in 2021, could radiate the energy of the love of Christ by his very presence. Fiona Garrigan vividly recalls the moment she saw him nearly 35 years ago, a powerful life-transforming encounter that has remained with her ever since.
How an atheist poet nourishes faith
Philip Larkin, one of the greatest poets of the 20th century, was an atheist. Australian poet John Foulcher*, who has a deep Christian faith, reflects on how Larkin’s poetry has been a source of nourishment for him, how it has helped him to face his darkest fears, and how, with all good poetry, it lays bare our common humanity.
Francis of Assisi - a saint for our time
Into the growing darkness of our world, St Francis of Assisi shines a light of peace, hope and beauty. Anglican priest and third order Franciscan Pirrial Clift reflects on why this joyful revolutionary, who is commemorated on 4 October, has drawn her ‘like a magnet’, and speaks so powerfully to our time of war and ecological crisis.
Drinking living water from the well of poetry
Poetry can open our hearts and minds and provide a source of living water for our lives, says author Sarah Bachelard. Dr Bachelard*, who is the founder of the Benedictus Contemplative Church in Canberra, Australia, reflects on how poetry can illuminate our understanding and nourish our lives and faith. This reflection is based on a talk on 8 September at The Well, a monthly online meditation and talk on a mystic or poet*.
I believe! Let me count the ways ...
I believe in laughter in the rain.
I believe in the first soft footfall and the thud of jellybean legs flailing as a child learns to walk.
I believe in open arms; the entreaties of encouragement that are the refrains of a lifetime; the open arms of acceptance and welcome and refuge.
I believe God is, was and will be.
Meditation and dementia: A personal perspective
Leaving the house of fear
The power of weakness
The ‘gold-standards’ of power, perfection and privilege, which dominated Greco-Roman society, continue to capture us, writes poet and scholar the Rev’d Dr Mark S. Burrows.* But Christianity, he says, is a radical rejection of this ‘false gospel’, believing that true strength and freedom lie not in naked self-interest, but in the ‘weakness’ of compassion and putting others’ interests before our own.
Transfiguration or annihilation? Humanity at the crossroads
The joy of finding God in times of ‘holy uselessness’
Bird watching is akin to praying. Or, more precisely, bird waiting is an act of contemplative prayer. The Welsh poet and Anglican priest R.S. Thomas, who lived by the sea in North Wales, was a passionate bird watcher. His poem ‘Sea-Watching’ (below) explores the relationship between prayer and bird watching while looking out to sea.
How to remain human in a world obsessed with speed
Let the trees tell you their story
Divine messengers of hope
A revolution in wisdom vital for our time
An inspiring and gifted teacher of meditation and spirituality, Dr Chris Morris died suddenly earlier this month. Greatly admired and much loved, Chris was a Senior Lecturer in Spirituality and Head of the Department of Pastoral and Spiritual Studies at Catholic Theological College, Melbourne, Australia. As a tribute to him, the following is a re-posting of an article he wrote for Living Water in June 2021.
In 2020 Chris completed his PhD on Bruno Barnhart, Californian Camaldolese Benedictine Monk, who died in 2015. An extraordinary and life-changing spiritual experience when he was a young man shaped the rest of Bruno Barnhart’s life. It led him to devote his life’s work to recovering and re-conceiving Christian wisdom today, centred on and emanating from the one great revolutionary event of the Cross. Here Chris explains why he found Barnhart’s ideas “compelling and endlessly engaging”.
The precious gift of silence in a world of noise
While bushwalking in Western Australia, Rodney Marsh practised a silence and attention that allowed him to discover the silence and generosity of the natural world, and how nature can heal and restore the soul. This is the first article in a series of three in which he reflects on how walking in nature nurtures spiritual well-being.
The Easter joy of Being-in-Love
God has poured his love into our hearts through the Holy Spirit he has given us. (Romans 5:5)
This is one of my favourite Scripture verses, and for me is at the heart of my faith, and why we celebrate Easter. Through a simple practice of mantra meditation (see below) we can tap into this stream of love, and verify the truth of this claim through our own experience.
Baptism - a wild journey through the ‘Land of Unlikeness’
Born to have a living bond with the Divine
Outgrowing the masks that hide the True Self
In his poem Not A One, Mark Nepo reflects on how ‘being awake’ depends on outgrowing our masks, which Noel Keating says is one of the fruits of meditation. Long-time meditator, educator and author Dr Keating* continues his reflection on how poetry gives rise to rich contemplative insights and helps deepen our appreciation of the mystery of our own spiritual experience. The articles are a slightly edited version of an online talk Dr Keating gave to a group of Christian meditators on 28 August 2023*.
Finding the words for the inner riches of our lives
Just as meditation moves our consciousness from the head to the heart, and from Doing to Being, so poetry also leads us to an inner richness that we hunger to experience. Long-time meditator, educator and author Dr Noel Keating* reflects on how poetry gives rise to rich contemplative insights and helps deepen our appreciation of the mystery of our own spiritual experience. Part II of his reflection will appear in two weeks. The articles are a slightly edited version of an online talk Dr Keating gave to a group of Christian meditators on 28 August 2023*.