Mother and Child Appreciation Day

Posted on June 19, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

Aka Father's Day Since becoming a father, this day has always seemed a little off-kilter to me. Shouldn’t this day be called Mother and Child Appreciation Day? After all, what little the father-to-be had to do with becoming a dad—from what I recall—was Read more [...]

The Spiritual Life is Not a Life of Quiet Withdrawal

Posted on June 18, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

Today's Life-Line is: The spiritual life is not a life of quiet withdrawal, a hothouse growth of artificial ascetic practices beyond the reach of people living ordinary lives. It is in the ordinary duties and labors of life that the Christian can Read more [...]

Jesus and John Wayne

Posted on June 17, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

At the top of the hoodoo next to my writing desk, the Leaning Tower of Pisa column of books, I recently made it to a book that has been out since 2020 that I've wanted to read—as much as one can desire to read such disturbing news—Kristin Du Mez' Read more [...]

Find Your Own Calcutta ~ Two Life-Lines:

Posted on June 13, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

Today's Life-Lines are a follow-up to my post on June 10, 2022, on COMPASSION. I link compassion immediately with intimacy. Compassion is the ability to vitally imagine what it is like to be an other, the force that makes a bridge from the island of Read more [...]

The Coming of Your Bones

Posted on June 12, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

Yesterday, I posted a reflection on compassion which I believe is a constitutive element of any authentic spirituality. I told a story about when I was in college and on the receiving end of a simple but profound act of compassionate presence. At Read more [...]

THE DREAM TEAM: My Starting Five ~ 4. Compassion

Posted on June 10, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

Suppose your spiritual life was a ball team. Who would be your starting five? Remember this: All suffering comes to an end. And whatever you suffer authentically, God has suffered it first. ~ Meister Eckhart The love of our neighbor in all its Read more [...]

Pentecost ~ We Are the Sent Ones

Posted on June 5, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

On Pentecost Jesus gave his disciples and thus gives us today two presents in particular: one is a confidence, the other is a command; one is an assurance, the other is an assignment. The first gift is peace, shalom. Jesus comes to the disciples in Read more [...]

To Be Grateful ~ A Life-line

Posted on June 4, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

Note ~ This passage originally was written as prose. It comes from Merton's book Thoughts in Solitude. It's a follow up to my reflection on June 2, 2022 on Gratefulness. Today's Life-Line is: To be grateful is to recognize the Love of God in Read more [...]

Why are Our Children Bearing the Burden of the Right to Bear Arms? | Opinion

Posted on June 3, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

Guest Columnists: Kelsey Gastineau, Maya Neeley and Dena Ibrahim NOTE WELL: The following piece appeared on June 1, 2022, in the Opinion section of the Nashville newspaper The Tennessean. It is co-authored by three local pediatricians. I offer it here Read more [...]

THE DREAM TEAM: My Starting Five ~ 3. Gratefulness

Posted on June 2, 2022 by Daniel J. Miller

Suppose your spiritual life was a ball team. Who would be your starting five? For all that has been—Thanks! To all that shall be—Yes! ~ Dag Hammarskjold “Dear old world', she murmured, 'you are very lovely, and I am glad to be alive in you.” Read more [...]

The Sacred Braid

Helping Persons and Communities Weave Lives of Spiritual Depth.