February 19, 2010
Photo by Howard Reed
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JEFF BEHRENS: We are big-time stars in God's ongoing drama
A legal size envelope arrived in the mail a few weeks ago. I looked at the return address label and it was from a woman I met in the retreat house a month or so ago.
JEFF BEHRENS: We can be a blessing to those we love by sharing what we have
My Aunt Margaret and Uncle Jim lived in Brooklyn. Dad used to drive the seven of us kids and Mom over to see them when we were little kids. God knows how we all fit in the old Packard. We must have sat on each other's laps in the back seat and two little siblings sat in the front.
JEFF BEHRENS: Hopefully Winehouse has peace
When someone dies young, the loss of youth adds to the grief felt by those who knew and loved the one who has died.
JEFF BEHRENS: Salute to the good old days and the feasts yet to come
We celebrated the Feast of Our Lady of Mt. Carmel and Augustine was the celebrant of the Mass. The feast was July 16. He gave a good homily, starting off by telling us how he grew up in the Southside of Chicago and was baptized in Our Lady of Mt. Carmel parish.
JEFF BEHRENS: Love can be a strange thing
It was a lazy afternoon. We had a good lunch and I headed back upstairs, took off my habit and crawled into bed. I had been up since four in the morning and the lack of sleep was catching up to me.
JEFF BEHRENS: God gives his heart away over and over again, using every language
I know that there is a Sacred Heart parish in the Vailsburg section of Newark, N.J. It was once a large parish, with a cathedral sized church. The area fell on hard times and the church was closed a few years ago. In its day, not that many years ago, it was a thriving parish of mostly blue-collar families. The Vailsburg section was home to a lot of fireman and policeman. After the Newark riots in the 1960s, the area changed drastically and the church struggled for years until it was closed.
JEFF BEHRENS: Love is the door that opens again and again
Even though they would eventually go their separate ways, a deep love and respect endured through all the changes that life was to bring.
BEHRENS: 'Monastery of the Heart' a nice contribution to literature
A friend of mine recently sent me a book. The name of the book is "Monastery of the Heart" (BlueBridge Press, 2011) and the author is Joan Chittister, a well known and much published Benedictine nun.
BEHRENS: God reminds us we are brothers and sisters
Problems arise, in some quarters, when the topics of God and belief arise. Differences easily divide people. History shows that unity on the God question is seemingly impossible. Even within our own tradition, there are sharply defined lines that can be drawn between various and differing versions of the divinity.
BEHRENS: Town brings back fond memories
Summer is upon us and the warmer weather has a way of enticing my memories of long gone summers.
BEHRENS: Memories are like pins in the pin cushion of your heart
Father Luke was the monastery tailor here for a long, long time. It is more than "as far back as I can remember." He may well have been at it before I was born.
BEHRENS: God, the grand chef, is cooking up something special
I remember the metal box in which my mom used to store her recipes. It was small, the kind you use for holding index cards. In fact, many of her recipes she wrote on those cards and there were little tabs, well worn from her fingers, that separated meals into different categories.
BEHRENS: Being a priest means being at home with God
Life is a unceasing search for God. It is a search that can be looked at from many angles.
BEHRENS: Presence of God lives through our everyday feelings
During one of his homilies this past week, Father Matt Torpey spoke of the experience of undergoing various throes in life.
BEHRENS: Let Jesus take the wheel
It must have been in the early 1980s that I took a course at Drew University. The name of the course was "Peacemaking in a Nuclear Age."
BEHRENS: It is no secret that God always shows his love for us
Little kids love secrets. I have more than a few pictures that I took of kids while they were in the process of sharing a secret.
BEHRENS: We can do our part to alleviate the suffering of others
When I was growing up, it was customary for the kids in my grammar school to participate in the Stations of the Cross.
BEHRENS: Circus reveals a bit of heaven on this earth
The circus was recently in town and I was asked to go over and say Mass for the workers. We do it every year that the show rolls into town. I always have a great time. I took my camera along and took a lot of pictures. I went on two weekends and often look at the pictures.
BEHRENS: God's way helps us make amends, lighten the burdens we carry
I have had a few encounters with the law in my life.
BEHRENS: Jesus just wants you to keep trying
I used to see an old man on a weekly basis up in Paramus, N.J.
BEHRENS: Find your inner monk to achieve peace in life
A young woman who was staying in our retreat house asked if she could chat with me for a while. Her name is Sara.
BEHRENS: God has made life rich with new beauty
It has been many years since I took a trip from New Orleans, where I used to live, to Los Angeles, where I was once scheduled to give a series of talks.
BEHRENS: Memories can be a comfort
A friend of mine recently told me that old metal lunch boxes are now worth a lot of money.
BEHRENS: Life has a way of getting us to where we need to go
We celebrated long and hard into the wee hours of the morning at a bar in downtown Manhattan. The bar closed down and we headed our respective ways home.
BEHRENS: Stop and listen for the voice
It has been an unusually cold week. The snow arrived early on and with it came colder weather.
BEHRENS: Writing cards or in journals brings back memories
This may be the first year in a long time that I have not written Christmas cards. It is not that I have lost interest. I am running out of time.
BEHRENS: Soon a gift in the form of eternal love will be given to all of us
We have been having some cold weather here the last week. The temperature is in the low 20s this morning. The reflecting pool in our cloister is covered with a thin sheet of ice.
BEHRENS: God's presence an in-between-the-lines kind of thing
It is late on Tuesday afternoon, the last day of November. The month flew by so quickly. It is raining very hard. There are strong winds and I heard that there is a tornado watch in effect.
BEHRENS: God's presence an in-between-the-lines kind of thing
It is late on Tuesday afternoon, the last day of November. The month flew by so quickly. It is raining very hard. There are strong winds and I heard that there is a tornado watch in effect.
BEHRENS: Let us go marching in with the saints
During this past week, we celebrated the Feast of All Saints. It is a festive feast for the church, and is immediately followed by the more sobering All Souls Day.
BEHRENS: Be of help to those who need a lift in this life
Many years ago I read a tale from a collection of Sufi parables. It was very brief but rich in its implications. It was about a stream. The stream flowed many miles through very fertile lands, never worrying about its existence.
BEHRENS: God can be found on benches, in malls and small towns
There are some people with whom I feel very much at ease. It is hard to explain just why that is, since a tell-tale sign of such ease is the leisure of not having to speak when I am with them. The pleasure of their company is peaceful enough that a silence is born out of the comfort of their presence.
BEHRENS: We share the ups and downs of life with the Lord
Like any life, the monastic life has its rituals. Most of our days are laid out according to the same schedule, with variations taking place on holy days or holidays.
BEHRENS: God provides all kinds of gifts through all kinds of people
Several mornings a week I walk down to the construction site here at the monastery.
BEHRENS: We can see God working through our own projects
It is written that God created the world, and when He was finished, He rested on the seventh day. Such an account would seem to give the impression that He left us with a finished product.
BEHRENS: Love seems to be the glowing ember that offers hope amidst ashes of life
It is early Sunday morning and I was looking at a wedding announcement, notifying the world of the marriage of Tomas and Anne. I don't know them. They live far from here, in a big Northeast city.
BEHRENS: The only thing you need to cherish is being loved by God
You can either trust in divine providence or abandon yourself to it.
Photographs can communicate an awareness of love
I was looking at some old photographs yesterday, photos which I scanned and that are now on my computer
BEHRENS: We are called to take each day as an invitation to love deeply
It is important to make as many connections as possible when trying to establish some credible currents between scripture and our own times.
BEHRENS: Key to peace is to listen
One of the monks needed a ride to and from the Veterans Hospital in Atlanta and he asked me to do the driving. He had to undergo a catheterization and it turned out to be an all-day affair.
BEHRENS: The best we can do is take it slow and look around
Some mornings I walk to our bonsai work area, which is in a large house across Ga. Highway 212. It is a about a mile or so from the main monastery building.
BEHRENS: To be like God is to treat each other as brothers and sisters
A few months ago I was chatting with one of the monks and he mentioned something that comes back to me every now and then. We were talking about human foibles -- including our own -- and he looked at me and said that a big problem is the need most people have to be right.
BEHRENS: Life is enhanced when a person lives for others
One can easily wonder about what kind of compass should be used that would truthfully guide one across the seas of life.
BEHRENS: Heart of Jesus draws us in, and it's where we're at home
If the heart's deepest desire is found and lived through one's passion, I cannot think of any more meaningful way to live.
BEHRENS: There is nothing in the universe that is not moving
A handwritten letter came in the mail a few days ago from a friend of mine who lives in Chicago. She is a member of a religious community of sisters and has been retired for many years. She has remained healthy and active throughout all her years as a professed religious. About a year ago, her community decided it was time to relocate. They will soon be moving to Iowa to a larger retirement facility. It is a beautiful place -- I visited there a few years ago. It is a lovely spot, high on a hill with a clear view of the Mississippi River.
BEHRENS: There is more to God than what can be seen with your eyes
I watched as my little niece Emily and her brother Pierce blew bubbles. They are 2 and 4 years old, respectively. Each kept an eye on the other as they dipped their plastic bubble-makers into the sudsy water and laughed with glee as the bubbles grew and then floated in the air and then down to the ground, where they burst.
BEHRENS: Love arrived as a flame and will always burn among us
There are people who sift the sediments of the earth seeking telltale clues to shed light on the origins of mostly everything. Fossils, DNA codes, ancient seeds, fibers, bone fragments -- these and more yield their secrets about what things once were and what they can tell us about who we were and where we came from.
BEHRENS: The tragedy of death, loss leaves no one untouched
It has been a week filled with events that have deeply changed the lives of many in Conyers.
BEHRENS: Couples stay together and build what is new and holy through each other
We have a lot of destruction and construction going on here at the monastery. Some old barns were taken down and new structures will go up in their place.
BEHRENS: The ways of God are inviting us to explore what is new
I enjoy my duties here at the monastery. Among the several that I have, the one that draws my mind and heart in many different directions is the job of guest master in our retreat house. I meet a lot of people who come to us for as many reasons as there are those who come here.
BEHRENS: God's truth lives within us and around us
There is a large area above our garage. Years ago, it was home to a number of monks. They lived up there while the larger monastery structures were being built.
BEHRENS: God's truth lives within us and around us
There is a large area above our garage. Years ago, it was home to a number of monks. They lived up there while the larger monastery structures were being built.
Let yourself be drawn into the mystery of God
After J.D. Salinger's death a few months ago, there was a not-surprising surge of stories about him in the media. The highly reclusive writer rejected the public arena for most of his life.
BEHRENS: Easter allows us to enter a deeper awareness
Several years ago, a woman was standing on a subway platform in New York City, waiting for a train that would take her to work.
BEHRENS: Easter blessings remind us of the beauty of eternal life
There is a tree in the corner of our cloister and it blooms every year, just before spring.
BEHRENS: You don't need to know about God to experience His love
Marlene is a good friend of mine and she lives far from here. She writes me letters and sends me cards, and fills me in on people we know in common. We grew up together and our parents were long-time friends.
BEHRENS: You don't need to know about God to experience His love
Marlene is a good friend of mine and she lives far from here. She writes me letters and sends me cards, and fills me in on people we know in common. We grew up together and our parents were long-time friends.
BEHRENS: Love can break barriers
There is that saying that distance makes the heart grow fonder for loved ones far away. It is also distance that enhances the maintenance of hatred, grudges, false projections and the like.
BEHRENS: We should return God's friendship, love
Not long ago I was driving on Ga. Highway 138 and saw a man in front of a place that redeems gold.
BEHRENS: A dinner that continued with unresolved questions, answers
Recently we had a big, fancy dinner here at the monastery. We hosted a gala-like banquet for the religious of the Archdiocese of Atlanta. It is an annual event and has always been a wonderful evening. The guests mingle with the monks at a wine and hors d'oeuvres reception, and that is followed by the dinner.
Take time to appreciate God's beauty around you
Some say that it takes a while for a writer to find his or her voice, for an artist to find his or her proper form, for a photographer to develop an eye.
Take time to appreciate God's beauty around you
Some say that it takes a while for a writer to find his or her voice, for an artist to find his or her proper form, for a photographer to develop an eye.
BEHRENS: All that is spoken by God is alive and growing
I was sitting in the back of our church early this morning. It was dark, the only light being the light in our sanctuary, a burning reminder that God is present.
BEHRENS: The wonders of life are a daily discovery
A friend of mine lives in Alabama and he is a frequent visitor to the monastery.
BEHRENS: Love from the Lord is within our reach
A friend of mine sat near me during a retreat session on the writings and religious vision of the late Southern author Walker Percy. The subject turned toward the novel "The Moviegoer," for which Percy was awarded the National Book Award.
BEHRENS: With loss, we are called on to believe in love's power
When I served in parishes as a parish priest, the hardest part of ministry was telling parents that they had lost a son or a daughter. I think back on those times and the memories are still painful for me.
BEHRENS: Take sorrows to heart and just listen
It is still the birthing of a new year and, for many people, resolutions of all kinds are still fresh in the making and hopefully solid in their beginnings. I, at times, wonder if, with the passing of years and the probable weakening of our resolves to try this or that resolution again, we need a boost.
BEHRENS: Baptism deepens our awareness of God's force around us
We know that the word "baptism" is used to express an initiation. It is the rite through which something new happens to the initiate. One emerges from it a new person, a person deeply and forever transformed by the experience.
BEHRENS: The best gifts of all are the signs of God's love
There is a heightened expectancy these days in the hearts of millions of people all over the world. Various religious traditions, large and small, await the coming of a Savior, a Redeemer of the human race.
BEHRENS: Christmas anticipates the divinely given greatest show on earth
I went to the circus last year, the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus that was in Atlanta.
BEHRENS: We carry redemption within us
Many years ago I was in Milan, Italy, and was waiting in the train station for the train that would bring me up to Geneva, Switzerland. I knew that the train would cross the Alps on the way and I made sure I had enough film for my camera. The train had yet to pull into the station, so I looked about at the other people waiting on the platform and captured the scene on film.
BEHRENS: God rides within all of us, even when we are lost
I have been thinking a lot about him ever since I read about him in the paper. His name is Francisco. He is 13 years old and he was lost.
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