Bryan Sherwood

How Scripture Changes Us - A Quote from Saint Aelred

I love this quote by Saint Aelred.  His language is a bit "flowery" but he says many good things about how the Scriptures change us.

Brothers, however cast down we may be by harassment or heartache, the consolations of the Scripture will lift us up again . . . I tell you, brother, no misfortune can touch us, no situation so galling or distressing can arise that does not, as soon as Holy Writ seizes hold of us, either fade into nothingness or become bearable.  This is the field where Isaac walked in the evening meditating, and where Rebecca came hurrying towards him and soothed with her gently charm the grief that had befallen him.  How often, good Jesus, does day incline to evening, how often does the daylight of some slight consolation fade before the black night of an intolerable grief?  Everything turns to ashes in my mouth; wherever I look, I see a load of cares.  If someone speaks to me, I barely hear; if someone knocks, I scarcely notice; my heart is turned to stone, my tongue sticks fast, my tear-ducts are dry.  What then?  Into the field I go to meditate.  I reread the holy book; I note down my thoughts; and suddenly Rebecca comes running towards me and with her light, which is your grace, good Jesus, dispels the gloom, puts melancholy to flight, disintegrates my hardness.  Soon sighs give way to tears, accompanied in their turn by heavenly joy.  Unhappy are those who, when oppressed in spirit, do no walk into this field and find that joy.  (De oneribus 27; Matarasso 193)

100 of My Favorite Pics from the Abbey of Gethsemani

I've been visiting the Abbey of Gethsemani since 2005.  I've also been taking photos since my very first visit.  I have hundreds of photos of one of my favorite places on earth but these are my favorites. I hope somehow I've captured some of the spirit of this place.

Grab a cup of coffee, click on the slideshow link and use this as a lectio. 

Enjoy.

100 Favorite Pics of the Abbey of Gethsemani Slideshow

100 Favorite Pics of the Abbey of Gethsemani (Without slideshow)

G.K. Chesterton and Pride

Fr. Michael taught on Humility at the Lay Cistercian Retreat this weekend.  With that fresh on my mind, I found this quote on Twitter today thanks to the Asbury Alumni Office.

If I had only one sermon to preach it would be a sermon against pride. -G.K. Chesterton

Lay Cistercians Fall Retreat

I'm fortunate enough to be a part of the Lay Cistercians of Gethsemani.  What I've learned from my association with this group of like-minded believers has been forming for me and continues to be.  I'm thankful for Gethsemani and her witness in the world. 

Of course, I managed to snap a few photos.  I've always found photography to be a contemplative experience for me.  It's these quiet, prayerful moments I try to capture and  hopefully, make a prayer.

Enjoy.  More to come later.

It's Over!

What a relief – the summer term of grad school is finally finished. I don’t mind telling you it’s been the l-o-n-g-e-s-t term of my grad school experience so far. The good news is I actually get a short break and don’t have classes resume until Sept. 21.

What’s this mean? It means I’ll have more time to enjoy with my family and friends. It means I can read books that I WANT to read. It means I won’t have to spend my lunch break doing homework. And it means I’ll get a lot more sleep between now and Sept. 21. All of those are very good things!

You may even notice more frequent blogging here. It’s unfortunate but blogging must take a backseat to most everything else. Hopefully, you’ll keep coming back though since I do try to keep my blog updated as much as I’m able.

I am looking forward to finishing a book I’ve been trying to read for weeks: Thomas Merton’s The Monastic Journey. Although I’m not even half way through, I’ve found it to be a helpful book as Merton writes about the monastic life. Like most of us, he can write about what he knows about and he has lived and knows the life of a monk with its challenges and blessings. Here’s a quote from my lunch hour reading today:

It is in the Mass and the liturgy that we are most truly and perfectly monks, because it is there that we most fully live our life in Christ, finding Him whom we have come to seek, submitting in and with Him to the Father’s will. (p. 28)

Chew on that for a while.

Okay, I better get busy; work beckons. Peace to you.

Lauds: Psalms 148-150

Some Psalms are unmistakably psalms of Praise.  Psalms 148-150 are psalms of praise.  Psalm 148 begins this way:

Alleluia!

Praise the Lord from the heavens,
praise him in the heights.
Praise him, all his angels,
praise him all his host.

Praise him, sun and moon,
praise him, shining stars.
Praise him, highest heavens
and the waters above the heavens.

Let them praise the name of the Lord.

It's interesting that the Latin name for Morning Prayer is fittingly called "Lauds" so when one visits a monastery like Gethsemani, they'll hear it referred to by the Latin name.  I like that as it's a reminder to give the Lord praise. 

What a good way to start the day!

The Abbey of Gethsemani - New Photos

 A picture I recently took at Gethsemani.  It's a beautiful time of year at the monastery.  There are a few other photos on my flickr feed.

Silence & Solitude

Silence and solitude - I find both of these practices to be essential for my spiritual life and my own well being.  Thomas Merton has taught me much about these practices.  He once wrote:

It is in deep solitude that I find the gentleness with which I can truly love my brothers. The more solitary I am the more affection I have for them…. Solitude and silence teach me to love my brothers for what they are, not for what they say.

And so, I will be making some time in the immediate future for silence and solitude.  My spiritual life requires it.

Mark Galli on Happiness Is Not Hope

Sometimes I wonder if Easter has become the Golden Gate Bridge of the church, where we pull out all the stops, importing brass and balloons and a green house of lilies, all to create an overwhelming, magnificent effect. This would not be a concern if it weren't for the fact that week by week, we act like we have cremated death. No more graveyards around the church. No small-group Bible studies on how to die well. No spiritual disciplines that focus on our mortality — like the medieval practice of meditating on a skull. No more preaching about our mortality, except as a quick setup for eternal life. No, it's your best life now. We know that if we are going to keep those pews filled, we can't be going on and on about death. (Galli, 2008)

I think Galli is on to something here.  I've thought the same thing for a while.  Our culture does all it can not to contemplate death.  We don't like the negative.  We don't like talking about the negative.  After all, all that talk about death makes people uncomfortable.

Yet, I'm reminded of some wonderful thoughts on death and dying by the Cistercians.  I appreciate this teaching which acknowledges the reality of death but also affirms the reality of life everlasting.  As Galli said it so well, happiness is not hope.

Galli, M. (2009).  Happiness is Not Hope.  Christianity Today.  Retrieved April 21, 2009 from http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2009/aprilweb-only/115-41.0.html

Epiphany Sunday 2009

Thanks to everyone for their prayers for my grandmother.  I'm happy to report that she is home and recovering nicely.  We couldn't have asked for a better outcome from her surgery!  It was obvious that you stormed the gates of heaven for her.  Thank you.

I spent most of the day at the Abbey of Gethsemani.  It's always good to be there, joining the monks for Mass and our group potluck afterward.  It seems I go there and God often deals with me while I'm at the monastery.  It's not always a pleasant encounter.  It's often filled with pain but ironically, I don't feel alone in the abbey church when pain rises to the surface.  I know many others who are there are partly there because they have pain to deal with.  So, we all sit in the darkness of the abbey church and pray for each other and for ourselves.

I'm back to work on Monday and classes start the same day as well.  Kind of a brutal beginning to the new year.  To be honest, I'm not ready for it. 

I guess that's it for now.  Just wanted to check in and say hello.  Here's today's collect:

O God, by the leading of a star you manifested your only Son to the peoples of the earth:  Lead us, who know you now by faith, to your presence, where we may see your glory face to face; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen.