McQuiston: Always We Begin Again

McQuiston: Always We Begin Again

“The first rule is simply this:

live this life

and do whatever is done,

in a spirit of Thanksgiving.”

—John McQuiston in Always We Begin Again: The Benedictine Way of Living (Morehouse, 2011).

I purchase copies of this book in bulk to give to individuals seeking spiritual direction. My own copy is falling apart. It is pocket-sized, so I can carry it throughout the day and leave it by my bed at night. McQuiston, a Memphis lawyer, has shaped and paraphrased The Rule of Benedict into modern language. Its simplicity is its beauty. 

McQuiston’s story of being introduced to The Rule of Benedict reminds us that we are constantly cared for by God. At his father’s funeral, a priest friend of the family gave him Esther de Waal’s book, Living with Contradictions: Reflections on the Rule of St. Benedict. That gift led him to Canterbury Cathedral and a Benedictine experience—and to a significant transformation in his way of life. 

McQuiston distills a rule of life written for sixth-century monks living in community into an essential guide for living today. His book is a tremendous help to those of us in today’s world who do not live in a monastery, showing us how to establish a balanced routine amid our busy schedules. I need to carry the book with me because I constantly forget and get pulled off-center and disconnected. I try to read the chapter on humility every day, especially when “I have such great ideas.” My rule of life changes more often than I would like, but McQuiston keeps reminding me how necessary it is to honor a rule, stay connected to God and my community, and remain thankful. 

Reading McQuiston’s book has been a revelation to me, revealing how many principles of the Rule are incorporated into the twelve steps of Alcoholics Anonymous. When two disciplines speak the truth, I try to notice and recognize this as wisdom. The book also includes meditative material and a sample rule of life. 

Joanna joannaseibert.com

Thank you for supporting our camp and conference center, Camp Mitchell, located atop Petit Jean Mountain, by purchasing this book as part of the daily series of writings for the liturgical year, A Daily Spiritual Rx for Lent and Easter. If you like this book, please take a moment to write a recommendation on its Amazon page. https://smile.amazon.com/Daily-Spiritual-RX-Lent-Easter/dp/0578425130/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=joanna+seibert&qid=1620904788&sr=8-3

 More thank-yous than we can say!!!

Scripture and Literature for the Season After Pentecost

Arthur: Scripture and Literature for Pentecost

At the Stillpoint “is a journey of the imagination guided by poets and authors, both classic and contemporary, who have known the things of God but speak in metaphor.”—Sarah Arthur, At the Still Point (Paraclete Press, 2011), p. 7.

At the Still Point, by Sarah Arthur, is a literary collection of daily and weekly readings and prayers for the long green liturgical season between the Day of Pentecost and Advent. Arthur has also published similar guides for Advent, Christmas, Epiphany (Light Upon Light), Lent, Holy Week, and Easter (Between Midnight and Dawn).

In these twenty-nine weeks between the Day of Pentecost and the first Sunday in Advent, Arthur kindles our imagination by exposing us to brief excerpts or short works by well-known writers and to offerings from authors we may not know but should! As we encounter readings in this anthology, Arthur warns us with an alert: “Warning: Powerful Spiritual Moment Ahead!” She suggests we read these passages not as assignments for our English Literature class or for pleasure, but as liturgical pieces for worship, especially prayer.

Each week begins with an outline for the next seven days, including an opening prayer, Scripture passages, readings from literature, space for personal prayer and reflection, and a closing prayer. Arthur suggests applying the ancient principles of Lectio divina, or divine reading, which many of us have used with Scripture, to selected weekly poetry and fiction. 

We read the passage, meditate on it, notice a word or phrase that resonates with us, and then rest in God’s presence with what we have experienced. It has been helpful to carry that word or phrase with me throughout the day or even for the entire week. Since this process is now used for literature and poetry rather than Scripture, Arthur has christened it “holy reading” or “Lectio sacra.”

I invite you to journey with Sarah Arthur and me through this “Ordinary Season” through an extraordinary spiritual practice of daily worship and prayer.

Joanna https://www.joannaseibert.com/

Thank you for supporting our camp and conference center, Camp Mitchell, on top of Petit Jean Mountain, by purchasing this book from the daily series of writings for the liturgical year, A Daily Spiritual Rx for Ordinary Time: Readings from Pentecost to Advent. All proceeds from book sales benefit Camp Mitchell. If you enjoy this book, please take a moment to write a brief recommendation on its Amazon page. https://smile.amazon.com/Daily-Spiritual-Ordinary-Time-Pentecost/dp/B08JLTZYGH/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=joanna+seibert+books&qid=1621104335&sr=8-1

 More thank-yous than we can say!!!

Remembering Memorial Day

Memorial Day

“No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”—John 15:13

 This week, we celebrated Memorial Day. It is an American holiday observed to honor and remember members of our armed services who died in battle. The observance on the last Monday of May began after the Civil War and officially became a federal holiday in 1971. As I see all the flags on graves at Arlington Cemetery, I am suddenly and profoundly moved. I have heard that the observance began with women placing flowers on the graves of more than 600,000 soldiers who died on both sides of the Civil War.

My husband and I have had parents and grandparents in our family who served in both great wars, and my husband served in the Navy during the Vietnam War. We have not known of any family members being injured or dying. 

I cannot imagine what it must be like to lose a friend or family member during a military action. This is a noble sacrifice for our country. The sacrifice of the one who died is also a sacrifice for those left behind, who will long for their presence for the rest of their lives. I say prayers for those who died and for those whose lives were changed by their absence.

Sacrifice is not a word I like to dwell on in my life. Yet whenever I visit the National Cathedral, I try to find the stained-glass window honoring the Dorchester Chaplains: Lieutenants George Fox (Methodist), Alexander Goode (Jewish), Clark Poling (Reformed), and John Washington (Roman Catholic). They were chaplains aboard the U.S. transport ship Dorchester on a mission to Greenland in 1943, with 900 men, when a German U-boat torpedoed and sank the vessel. The chaplains organized the evacuation, directed men into lifeboats, and handed out life jackets. When there were no more jackets, the chaplains gave their own to other sailors. The last image of the rescued men was the chaplains on the deck, linking arms and praying.

For the rest of my life, I hope to remember at least one person and their family on each Memorial Day who died in the war. In addition, I would love to hear the stories of those you remember who impacted your lives.

We must continue to remember the high cost of war and these tremendous losses.

Joanna. https://www.joannaseibert.com/

This past pandemic was a time to remember how our lives, work, friends, and family changed after the sacrifice each of us made to stay healthy, a greater sacrifice for some and much more for others.