Daily Reading for August 2

When we are nearby to our usual place of meditation, we should return to that place at the appointed times, for we are sustained by such continuity. We are physical creatures, and concrete reinforcement of habits of meditation, prayer, and gratefulness will assist us in the work.

Similarly, when we are nearby to our friends and family at mealtimes, we should return to them to take our meals in community, renewing and continuing the relationships that make up the fabric of our lives.

We are ceremonial creatures. A special place for worship services should be maintained, and in that place only such work on our spirits should take place. It should be made available between services for individual prayer and meditation. It should at all times be treated with reverence, and when services are not taking place a deep silence should be preserved there.

We must not allow criticisms of the failings of organized religions to keep us from worshiping in community. No one can live up to the true standards of the great religions. There is no church, synagogue, or temple that does not contain some number of persons who are sincere, worthy of friendship, and from whom we can learn.

From Always We Begin Again: The Benedictine Way of Living by John McQuiston II. Copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Morehouse Publishing, Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. www.morehousepublishing.com