Stephen Copeland

When Francis of Assisi was blind, ill, and on his deathbed, he wrote his famous “Canticle of the Creatures.” What if we allowed the Incarnation to stir our hearts as it did for Francis, even when we feel lost or frail?

The great philosopher and theologian Paul Tillich once wrote about the profound inner movement of “accepting your own acceptance.” God loves us as we are, not as we should be.

Henri Nouwen’s book “The Return of the Prodigal Son” was inspired by a chance encounter Nouwen had with a reproduction of Rembrandt’s famous painting.

Richard Rohr sometimes talks about how negative thoughts have a way of sticking to our brains like velcro, while positive thoughts have a way of slipping away like teflon.

It seems our world is becoming more noisy by the day. We can even become addicted to the noise, eager for the next stimulus to activate our hearts and minds, especially in our social media age and with inflammatory news cycles.