Monday 17th May, 2021
Marie McCarthy, 'Spirituality in a Postmodern Era', in James Woodward and Stephen Pattison,
eds., The Blackwell Reader in Pastoral and Practical Theology (Blackwell, 2000), 204. 
Image: Jeremy Bishop, California, jeremybishopphotography.com 

This quote is by Marie McCarthy, a Catholic nun from the Sisters of Providence in the USA, who has been in holy orders for more than 60 years. Before retiring she was a professor at the Centre for Religion and Psychotherapy in Chicago, and worked as a pastoral psychotherapist. This quote is taken from her chapter, 'Spirituality in a Postmodern Era', in James Woodward and Stephen Pattison, eds., The Blackwell Reader in Pastoral and Practical Theology (Blackwell, 2000), 204. Here, she suggests that we need to reclaim and restore the traditional practices of our faith, such as a discipline of silence, within our faith communities as a way of helping us to live more wisely and faithfully in the present. For a fascinating interview about her life and ministry, in which she talks briefly about the idea of taking one minute vacations in life, see here.