Ecumenical Benedictines of Heartsong Hermitage
Ultimately,
it is the power of God that makes us one.
Each of us a mixture of splendid possibilities
and dismal limitations.
Seeking God
Seeking God above all else is the root of all Christian values. In seeking God we live and grow in God's love. Seeking God means loving Him with all one's heart, mind soul, and strength, therefore, following Christ whereever he may lead us. Seeking God is not just a part-time activity but a full-time moment by moment quest to know how God works in our everyday life and leads one lovingly on a lifelong journey of faith. The Christian knows in faith that God is always with us and is aware that God's gaze is upon us wherever we may be. This quest for God is undertaken not only in solitude and private prayer but also in the busyness of work and in the midst of a community of fellow-seekers.
Contemplatives learn to listen to God's call always and everywhere through the regular study and reading of Scripture, with special attention to the Gospels and by efforts to apply the fruits of their meditation to their everyday lives.
In this way we learn to seek God's will in every circumstance and to heed God's word above every selfish impulse and every other desire. We learn to regard our own sufferings as a share in Christ's cross and as an opportunity to experience Christ in the midst of ordinary events so that every moment becomes an opportunity for deeper trust in God, firmer rejection of self-will, and a more generous surrender to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
What We Believe
In the Spirit of acceptance, we recognize that we can do little to change other people. God will change them in His own time, when that time comes they will change freely.
Acceptance means I say yes to all of God's creation.
Acceptance does not mean imitating or praising others or blindness to obvious flaws or woundedness.
It means I say yes to the human being that exist beyond appearance, behavior, expressed opinion or past history.
Father, we ask forgiveness and enlightenment when we condemn those we don't understand. We ask forgiveness and guidance for assuming to know all there is to know about each other, for defineing, confirming, limiting, labeling, conditioning, interpreting and oppressing each other. We ask forgiveness for excluding, withholding, insisting and resisting the inclusiveness of your love.
Amen.
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