The loud silence of disbelief
byWhat’s the surest way to shut down conversation in a group of Christians? It’s to say you’re not sure what you believe anymore. Ask…
silence
All in the neighborhood
byBecause the stranger knocking at our front door didn’t look like a Jehovah’s Witness or a candidate for political office, I opened the door…
Doubtful Sound
byDoubtful Sound, New Zealand (2015) I had the privilege of venturing on a cruise of Doubtful Sound, New Zealand, this past summer. To get…
Golden
byMercer County, Pennsylvania (July 2015) It’s funny: this scene by a pond, suffused with golden brilliance, wasn’t silent but full of cricket and cicada…
Walking after midnight
byThis essay was previously published in the Summer 2001 Abbey Letter, no. 206 (Saint Gregory’s Abbey, Three Rivers, Michigan). Shortly after I joined the…
Finding God in the silence
byEditor’s note: Each Thursday, we feature a throwback piece from Topology’s predecessor, catapult magazine. In this essay, Karissa Knox Sorrell explores a critical shift…
Practicing silence
byAt The Hermitage Community, the contemplative prayer center where I serve, we often remark to new guests that we give the gift or “permission”…
Sounds like home
byWerner likes to crouch in his dormer and imagine radio waves like mile-long harp strings, bending and vibrating over Zollverein, flying through forests, through…
Winter Haiku
bySnow-fog hides houses on the opposite shore. Faith insists they’re still there. * A perfect silence in the winter field—the sound of snow alighting….
Abbey Cemetery
byfor Kilian McDonnell, OSB This gentle hill heaves, pushing up crenellations— those markers of surrendered life secured even in death. A phalanx of gray…