Compassion
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Prayer
Don't say prayers. Be prayer. Text and image © 2010 by Dirk deVries. All rights reserved. Continue reading
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Write Your Own Blog! (Part 2)
I'm on a personal retreat for a few days, so I'm inviting you, the reader, to write the blog yourself. You might consider what Jewel sings in her moving song "Hands" (by Jewel Kilcher and Patrick Leonard): "In the end, only kindness matters. In… Continue reading
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The Ultimate Liberal
How ironic that many conservative Christians use the word liberal to brand their political enemies, as if that's a bad thing. It's ironic, because the Christian faith is founded on one simple concept: grace. Hmm. Grace? Liberality? Generosity? God, according to… Continue reading
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Fearful Questions
The trick, in uncertain times, is not to let your decisions be ruled by questions that arise from fear. As Thomas Merton points out, "A huge network of anxious questions surrounds us and begins to guide many, if not most… Continue reading
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Letting Go
Strive for nothingness, the point of complete surrender, of acknowledged helplessness, weakness, poverty, detachment. All ideas of self released. Paradoxically, ironically, in surrender we finally know freedom—from pretense, fruitless self-talk, dissatisfaction, fear, superiority, jealousy, anger. We enter peace, compassion, clarity,… Continue reading
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Those Whom Others Would Discard
A special reward awaits those who give shelter to God's most vulnerable creatures, those who love those whom others would discard. We all, at one time or another, will be discarded by the many and need the compassionate, attentive touch of… Continue reading
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The Love of Snow
It is snowing–big, wet flakes coming out of a gentle, quiet, gray sky. There's no anger in this snowfall, nothing being whipped, thrown or driven. It's simply snowing. It's snowing simply. This snow invites: "Watch me," it says. "Enter me;… Continue reading
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To See with the Eyes of the Divine
In an often-quoted passage from the writings of Thomas Merton, he relates the following epiphany, experienced while standing on a street corner in Louisville, Kentucky: "I was suddenly overwhelmed with the realization that I loved all those people, that they… Continue reading
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Snacking on Human Remains
I'm dreaming, and in my dream, I'm looking at a new product, either candy or snacks made from human remains. And while the idea seems slightly repellent, it isn't entirely so–it seems like a good use of a resource that… Continue reading
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At Ease in Your Own House
Teresa of Avila tells us, "There is no evil greater than being ill at ease in your own house." We can take that literally, of course, and find plenty of meaning there, but I'm pretty sure she meant something more,… Continue reading