Author name: Kevin Maksym

Dear Group Leaders and Friends in Christian Meditation,
Our parents are our first teachers of faith. I think of my own mother and how she continually gave the example of praying the rosary daily. I can still see her holding the rosary with great devotion as she prayed for those whom she saw in need in her life. Her faith in the transformation that comes through prayer was seen in her empathy and kindness.

Dear Group Leaders and Friends in Christian Meditation,
The other day, I was visiting my eldest sister. She had a statue of Mary that our parents had on their front lawn for as long as I can remember. It’s been in my mind that I would like to have this statue and place it in a location of prominence at my home. My parents died within a year of each other over a decade ago and at that time, I didn’t take many of their belongings. I had spent much of my life living in church housing with little space to make my own. I have that space now and want something to remind me of my parents, particularly my mom; it seemed like a good moment to ask my sister for the statue. She gladly welcomed me to take it.

Dear Group Leaders and Friends in Christian Meditation, Happy Easter!
 As we continue along the way of these 50 days of Easter, I give thanks for the gift of faith that each of us has been given in the Risen Jesus. We come from different branches of the Christian family, but we all are following our baptismal call to have Christ live through us in living out our baptismal commitments into the Jesus movement that we call Church.

Dear Group Leaders and Friends in Christian Meditation,
At the church I attend, we are taking time during Lent to create rules of life. This process is meant to be a vehicle to grow in our spiritual lives. For me, this is helpful because so often with our relationship with God, like all our relationships, it is just easier to go with the flow. We can forget the intentionality that helps to flourish relationships. I am sure that we all desire that our relationships with friends and beloveds flourish rather than flounder.

Dear Group Leaders and Friends in Christian Meditation,

I’d like to say Happy New Year, but considering we are just about done with the first month of the year this seems late…. However, as meditators we recognize that we are always beginners.

Dear Group Leaders and Friends in Christian Meditation,

I had the good fortune to attend an Advent retreat at Bonnevaux Center for Peace. Bonnevaux is the physical center for our monastery without walls. A few days a week, the community at Bonnevaux, residents and visitors, come together to reflect on the Rule of St. Benedict. This time with the Rule…

There is something holy and whole for me during the month of November. We begin the month by remembering our loved ones who have gone before us into the fullness of God’s life. We remember these beloveds on All Saints Day and All Soul’s Day. We remember that we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1). As Christians, we are always a part of something far bigger than our individual experiences…..

For some time, I have been pondering becoming an oblate of the World Community for Christian Meditation. I am sure that many of you are oblates, and some for many years. I hope this sense of call is something you can relate to on your own journey. This desire has been in my heart….

In my previous incarnation as a Catholic priest, one of my priest friends whom I love and respect, yet at the same time with whom, I disagree fundamentally on both church and state, would lovingly refer to me as the “hippie peacenik priest.” I took these words as ones of endearment as I have spent much of my life…

I have been thinking extensively about the John Main Seminar. The discussions that flowed out of the contemplative listening sessions were bonding, inspiring and challenging. It has always been my experience, as Fr. John Main prophetically understood, meditation builds community. A member of our gathering remarked to me after the seminar that he has been meditating for 10 years and this was the first time he has meditated in a group.