“Spiritual practices teach us the discipline of listening, of inter-dependence, of loving, of letting go. These are the skills we need to grow in wisdom and kindness. I am grateful to Manish Mishra-Marzetti and Jennifer Kelleher for the gift of this book. Thank you, Manish and Jennifer, for bringing it into being, and thank you to all the contributors. It is my hope that as a religious tradition, we can rediscover the wisdom, the power, and the gifts that are present in prayer. It offers a fullness and humility essential for the maturity of our faith”
—from the foreword by Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray
“Conversations with the Sacred offers us a timely window into the rhythms of prayer that resound in our community. Those whose mindful words shape this collection have gifted us with an intimate encouragement into a life of the spirit. These conversations are inclusive, broad, and invitational. Their beauty serves to center us through the turnings of life.”
—Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt
Bringing alive the heartfelt words and artwork contributed by creators diverse in spiritual perspective and identity, Conversations with the Sacred is a moving testimony to the power of prayer. Prayers of love, lamentation, justice, inspiration, and transcendence—all are here, thoughtfully selected by editors Manish Mishra-Marzetti and Jennifer Kelleher. Whatever your relationship to prayer, whether it comes naturally, you have a complicated history with it, or have never prayed before, Conversations with the Sacred is a powerful and accessible resource for anyone looking to explore or deepen a spiritual practice of reflection or prayer.
Foreword by Susan Frederick-Gray
Introduction by Manish Mishra-Marzetti
Inspiration for Daily Centering
Bringing Love Alive
Lamentations of the Heart
On the Road to Justice
Reaching Toward Transcendence
Closing by Jennifer Kelleher
“This book is a testimony to the power of prayer. Not prayer in a child-like, praying-for-goodies kind of way but prayer as a form of sacred conversation. It is a way that we speak our own truths to ourselves, in vulnerability and honesty. It is a form of reaching out to other human beings, at times implicitly inviting them to witness our hopes, gratitude, sadness, fear, and other realities, and at other times implicitly inviting others to show up for or with us, in either support or celebration. It is a recognition of our finitude, a profound act of humility in an age of unapologetic arrogance. We step into and name the limits of our individuality, offering our hope, gratitude, sadness, and fear back out to all that exists, not necessarily expecting intercession but acknowledging the depth of our circumstances, the limitations of our control, and the reality that we all need help now and again. Prayer helps us communicate with the Cosmos; it creates relationship where otherwise there might be none.”
“Spiritual practices teach us the discipline of listening, of inter-dependence, of loving, of letting go. These are the skills we need to grow in wisdom and kindness. I am grateful to Manish Mishra-Marzetti and Jennifer Kelleher for the gift of this book. Thank you, Manish and Jennifer, for bringing it into being, and thank you to all the contributors. It is my hope that as a religious tradition, we can rediscover the wisdom, the power, and the gifts that are present in prayer. It offers a fullness and humility essential for the maturity of our faith”
—from the foreword by Rev. Susan Frederick-Gray
“Conversations with the Sacred offers us a timely window into the rhythms of prayer that resound in our community. Those whose mindful words shape this collection have gifted us with an intimate encouragement into a life of the spirit. These conversations are inclusive, broad, and invitational. Their beauty serves to center us through the turnings of life.”
—Rev. Dr. Sofía Betancourt
“Prayer is a conversation, not a monologue. That is the holy assertion at the heart of this collection. Conversations happen in the context of a relationship of one sort or another, and these reflections beautifully demonstrate the relationships that hold us all—to imperiled nature, to each new day, to families and congregations, and the ‘source of sources’ beyond our naming. What can be more sustaining in these times than a relationship with something greater than ourselves, pulling us toward heartfelt praise, honest lament, and the pursuit of every form of love-filled justice? I’m grateful for this curated glimpse at the relationships that sustain us and the conversations that keep us going, artfully edited and composed by such gifted colleagues. I will return to it again and again.”
—Nancy McDonald Ladd, author, After the Good News: Progressive Faith Beyond Optimism
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