Tag Archives: community

It takes a whole village: a reflection.

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In a room, at the outskirts of a city, a young woman, 21 years, is giving birth to her first child, her baby girl. Her sisters,  mother, and  female cousins and friends are all around her. They console her, they squeeze her hand, and they also laugh that “knowing laugh”, while she screams in pain. They are all familiar with the joy of motherhood, the joy that comes after the pain. Some of the girls have not yet had  children, but this attending experience is something that brings them fear, curiosity, and excitement.

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The hermit who became a Bishop.

There’s a monastic story that left an impact on me and comes to mind a lot. The story goes like this:

There was a monk who entered anchoritic life – that is, he became a solitary. In this mode of life, he gave himself up to the sweet love of God, and felt many comforts that came from heaven. He felt the active presence of God, he felt joy in his prayers, and the supernatural was ever-present with him. There were physical and spiritual signs of God’s love at all times.
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