New Skete Monasteries News

  By Brother Luke Suddenly a mighty wind swept in. (Job 1:19) Winter has truly blown in with a fury this year. We have had several winter storms accompanied by strong winds and the crack of trees breaking and falling in the woods. And when that happens, the trails don't get spared. So, my dogs and I have made, and continue to make, forays into the woods to hike the trails and clear away the debris and branches. Those forays are more like reconnaissance because when the trees themselves fall across the trails, then out comes the chain saw. Sometimes all that is required is to cut a path through a large tree trunk. But other times one tree will bring down another, and a jumble of branches blocks the trail. Much of that can be cleared by pulling the broken branches away from the trail and using a simple hand saw to cut some of the branches. In some cases a tree has fallen, uprooted, and hit another tree, and remains hung up perilously over the trail. Bringing that down requi...

  By Brother Luke   It may seem like an oxymoron, but we in the monastic life spend a lot of time talking about silence and listening. Maybe it's not a total oxymoron; one hopes if someone is talking others are listening! And isn't that important? To pay attention when someone is talking, especially when they are talking to you! However, if we are honest we may notice how often our mind wanders even when we are trying to make the greatest effort to stay focused and listen to someone. To listen I have to be silent, both outwardly and inwardly.             Engaging in a conversation with another can produce a challenge of a different order. I can be so fully engaged in the subject of the conversation that I almost end up listening aggressively. Then I have to hold my tongue, and I have to rein in the itch to finish the other person's sentences. And to truly listen I cannot be pondering my response or comment even befor...