My Educational and Thought-Provoking Road Trip

This past weekend, Carrie and I took a road trip with two Sisters to Delaware, Ohio to attend a conference on monasticism at Ohio Wesleyan University. We were there selling several of Sister Joan Chittister's books (see below) since she was the Friday night keynote speaker.

The conference was entitled: "Radical Gospel Living-Monasticism Today." It was very interesting. There was all sorts of information on alternative ways of monastic living. One Sister we traveled with gave a presentation on this community's new monastic movement, Monasteries of the Heart. Check it out. 

The second speaker was Shane Claiborne, one of the founding members of The Simple Way, a faith community in inner-city Philadelphia. He and Sister Joan had a very similar message, but very different presentations. Both were interesting, educational, and thought-provoking. Both left me thinking, what can I do to create community and promote social justice both during my time spent with the Benedictines, and especially after I leave? What have I learned from the Sisters themselves? What can I do to leave a positive mark on this world? All valid questions just waiting for an answer.

For those that might think monastic living can only be achieved by taking vows and joining a formal religious community, a lot can be learned from conferences like this one. If one shows up, take advantage of it. And really check out the two links on this post. They present several different ways to live out monasticism, but everything is rooted in the same values.


Sunday was a gorgeous day. Carrie and I drove into the city, walked from 9th St. down to the bayfront, FINALLY got our library cards, and checked out one of Shane's books. I'll let you know how it is.