Oblate Program at Belmont Abbey, NC

Tag: God

Questions about ‘Ultimate Reality’

When talking to people about their inner lives and how they pray and process, I find that I have talked to no one who fits into any kind of preconceived all size fits all spirituality. Each person is unique in how they deal with the mystery of who they are and how they relate to… Read More ›

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Our hiddenness from others

How could you every count my sacrifices? The stars witnessed My nightly prayers; the cold, My frozen limbs; the earth, my broken feet. — 5/11/48 paragraph 6 He and I (Pauline books) We all live hidden lives. We can talk about ourselves, our joys and sufferings, our sacrifices, yet it is never enough. There is always… Read More ›

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God’s Fingerprints

When we take time to look for God’s Fingerprints, they can be found at every turn and event,through life, but to see them we must be in tune with Him; He is there — His “prints” — every minute. We are never alone. Each of those minutes of life, we are presented with choices and… Read More ›

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Though darkness and light, through confusion and loss you are with me O Lord

I have always said that I ‘enjoy aging. By that I don’t’ mean it is fun or pleasant, yet there are inner changes that make all of the others aspects of getting older well worth it. I do believe that this life is about how we choose to deal with challenging circumstances. I don’t think… Read More ›

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The beauty of people

When talking about the beauty of people, it is of course something that is based on personal experience. I believe that when people come to a Monastery, or some other place to become more centered, or to get close to God….and as well as working through some particular problem, they come with an openness that… Read More ›

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Are Your Decisions Born of Fear or Love?

Do we choose the conceited illusion of control, or do we trust in God? Recently, I spent time talking to a man who seems to exist in a permanent state of rage about everything — headlines, the Church, the pope, the presidential campaigns — and it seemed to me that the taproot of all of… Read More ›

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Introducing Atheists to God

The philosophical proofs of Gods’ existence are a helpful first step The first battleground for any evangelizer is the question of God’s existence. There’s no sense discussing transubstantiation, the Virgin Birth or the infallibility of the pope with a committed atheist. With the rise of the “new atheists” like Oxford dons Richard Dawkins, Sam Harris… Read More ›

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God cannot be regarded with indifference

So loving and generous a God cannot simply be regarded with indifference, or be a matter for dispassionate, rational speculation. The Cistercians, therefore, are far readier to speak to God than about God: Now, therefore, Lord, in complete faith I worship you. You who are God, the one Cause of all that is, the Wisdom… Read More ›

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How to Beat the Devil: Advice from Rome’s Chief Exorcist

Too many Christians do not believe in the devil, such as the Cardinal who alarmed Father Gabriele Amorth, the famous exorcist and expert on Mariology, by saying one day: “Nothing but superstition!” Others see the devil everywhere, paying him an unhealthy amount of attention. Father Amorth restores the proper perspective in this “spiritual testament” at the… Read More ›

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Our gracious Creator has provided for us a Redeemer

By conveying the Bible to people . . . we certainly do them a most interesting act of kindness. We thereby enable them to learn that man was originally created and placed in a state of happiness, but, becoming disobedient, was subjected to the degradation and evils which he and his posterity have since experienced…. Read More ›

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