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How to Be a Renegade Do-Gooders
When I worked in the nonprofit sector, I learned how hard it can be to do good things in this world. I advocated for arts and...
maureenmontague
Sep 102 min read


Where the Fairy Tales End
Like most American women, I was raised watching Disney princesses. Cinderella, Snow White, Ariel, and Belle were the architypes, the...
maureenmontague
Aug 212 min read


What is the Nature of Evil?
I was at a neighborhood meeting the other night, after finishing my work day. A neighbor noticed my blue necklace, which has a couple...
maureenmontague
Aug 73 min read


5 Hidden Blessings of Chronic Pain
It must have been nearly ten years ago now that I met with my family doctor at Kaiser for the results of an MRI. The super-charged x-ray...
maureenmontague
Jul 134 min read


We Will Be Free: Documents of the American Sacred Journey
The day I write this is Juneteenth, a celebration of the liberation of the last humans held as slaves in the United States. June 19, 1865...
maureenmontague
Jun 202 min read


Sin of Overweening-Pride
St. John Cassian, an early fifth century monastic who studied with the Desert Fathers of Egypt, wrote of eight vices. These vices make...
maureenmontague
Jun 162 min read


Joy Super-Charges Us
Alice Walker wrote “Resistance is the secret of joy” in her novel Possessing the Secret of Joy . I was a senior in high school when I...
maureenmontague
Jun 23 min read


Restoring the House of Hope
The American Dream is a simple narrative: people from all corners of the world come to our shores looking for a chance at a better life...
maureenmontague
May 222 min read


Loving Thoughts about the World’s Pope
Image from https://jesusbin.blogspot.com/2016/11/pope-francis-wallpaper-free-download.html Pope Francis was laid to rest this past...
maureenmontague
Apr 302 min read


A Message about Love for Good Friday
Love is at Hand I hear it every day: the fear of people. We all have fear in our lives, but what I am speaking of is a shared-fear of the...
maureenmontague
Apr 182 min read


Caring Enough to Share Our Reality
Georg Pencz | Christ Healing the Leper, from The Story of Christ The first patient I ever met with as a student chaplain had leprosy....
maureenmontague
Mar 282 min read


5 pieces of wisdom from my mid-life crisis
My fortieth birthday hit hard. I wasn’t a young thing anymore. I hadn’t achieved the accomplishments in art and writing that I had...
maureenmontague
Mar 162 min read


Seal Woman, Come Home
The new light reflected off the clouds and waves this morning. It was an orange crush sunrise. I walked along the little road next to the...
maureenmontague
Jan 162 min read


What I Found at the End of the Rainbow
The rain in Olympia feels endless this time of year. This past week it actually was, save for a few moments, truly endless. I took a walk...
maureenmontague
Jan 52 min read


Healing the Spiritual Sickness of America
Emotions are running high in the U.S.A.; like a tsunami of satisfaction on the Red-side and despair on the Blue-side. Make no mistake,...
maureenmontague
Nov 9, 20242 min read
Rendered Speechless
I watched a father and his three-year-old daughter walking into Costco today. The little girl was pointing at people passing by, saying...
maureenmontague
Oct 25, 20242 min read


Living in the Oceanic Soul: this chaplain’s story
I’ve heard the call from the deep ocean of my soul many times. The first call to which I responded sounded when I was 16 years old, when...
maureenmontague
Sep 14, 20242 min read


Paris Olympics Ignite our Spirits
I pay attention to what people are watching around the hospital. Nearly every patient has their own TV. There are the tiny TV’s we keep...
maureenmontague
Aug 3, 20242 min read


Words Are Medicine
My job is to listen and to speak. When I do my job well, the words come easily, from my heart to the listener’s ears. It’s not easy to...
maureenmontague
Jul 16, 20242 min read


A Treasure Map to the Pearl of Great Value
Per my last post, I feel that each of us possesses a Pearl of Great Value within ourselves, which is our story. Our personal narratives...
maureenmontague
Apr 19, 20242 min read
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