Spiritual Seekers Who Desire Deepening
So what does it mean to be a spiritual seeker who desires deepening? Part of this definition is intuitive for me: It refers to me! It refers to my own sense of myself as a spiritual being with a constant sense of what Roman Catholic religious sisters (and especially Benedictines) call seeking passionately after God. […]
The Priestess-Minister: Where Does the River Flow?
I became a priestess. I became a minister. I never relinquished one for the other. And now I’m integrating the wealth of understanding I’ve gained from my preparation and experience of each of these roles into one whole, one identity. To Grow Is Both to Lose and to Gain Part of that integration has involved […]
Miracles of Prayer, by a Wiccan UU
Many people in my circles—UU, Pagan, humanist, atheist—have little truck with anything called “prayer.” It smacks to them of superstition, sycophancy, futility, or just bad experiences with religion in general and prayer in particular. I’m a huge fan of prayer. So much so, in fact, that my free e-book on this site is called Your […]
My Claims for Spiritual Direction
If you receive Reflections, you know that I offer spiritual direction. I’ve also written about it here a few times. As I return to the flow of the The Way of the River, I find I want to be clear about some things. Having a spiritual director does not mean that you are “directed” by that person. […]
Friendship Across Difference–Gratitude to Rev. Dr. Mackessa Holt
As of yesterday, contributions from many of you have brought my indiegogo campaign to $1000. Thank you so much for all your support and help, whether through your financial contributions or in the myriad other ways you have encouraged me on my path to ordination. If you haven’t already, please go to https://life.indiegogo.com/fundraisers/catharine-clarenbach-s-ordination and make […]
Our Glittering Cold Our Golden Warmth
US Thanksgiving has past. In my house, as in many houses, the preparation for December holidays begins today. While my history is not one of shopping on this day, it is nonetheless a day of preparation. Changing altars, hanging greens if I have them (this year I don’t have them yet), playing carols (not allowed […]
Mystical Insights I Do Not Want
How has my week been? – Profoundly up and down. Gloriously happy and terribly sad. Tremendously hopeful and naggingly worrisome. What am I up to? – See the words below, if you will. from Prayer Is An Egg […]
Lux Perpetua Luceat Eis
The dead are not dead; they are not under the earth… Moferere moferere eggun eggun… Lux perpetua luceat eis… The text above, in English, Yoruba and Latin, is the body of a three-part song that was written for Samhain, the Celtic—and now Pagan—celebration of the Mighty Dead, the ancestors. It was written by a largely […]
Akhilandeshvari – The Divine Reality of Brokenness
Many thanks to Karen Johnston at irrevspeckay.wordpress.com for inviting me to write for her site as a guest. Her post, “Befriending Death,” appeared here a couple of days ago, and is a truly insightful piece on the pace of death in spiritual practice. What follows here is the meditation I shared with her readers on Akhilandeshvari: […]
Guest Post | Befriending Death: A Meditative Spiritual Practice
My Unitarian Universalist colleague, Karen Johnston, has graciously agreed to post on The Way of the River. Her wisdom and compassion—born of a committed Buddhist practice—consistently impress and inspire me. I commend her to you and hope you will check out her blog, linked at the bottom of the page. Blessings! As this sound […]