Friday, February 27, 2009

What's an anchoress anyway?

Julian of Norwich was an anchoress. That means she lived alone in a little bitty room inside a church, living a life of prayer and meditation. She spoke to people through a little window into her room. The church was bombed in WWII, but the doorway to her cell was saved. It's believed she had a cat as a companion. For rat control.

Wednesday, February 25, 2009


Discipline and Lent

Giving up stuff sounds like a Drag, but being disciplined sounds Good. I'll be praying with Julian of Norwich during the season of Lent. I may be a Quaker, but the liturgical calendar was etched into me early in life thanks to 1950s-style Catholic spiritual formation. Today's thought from Julian has to do with growth in the spiritual life -- her quaint Middle English term is "forth spredying." God's love increases, as does ours for God as we grow spiritually. It spreads forth.