In fact, the Gospel shows us change comes from the bottom rather than the top, from an old rugged cross rather than a gold royal throne.

There is extreme poverty in Appalachia, where I was, and increasingly poverty is not just an urban thing.

The Eucharist is a symbol of that as you have bread, the staple food of the poor, and wine, a luxury of the rich, which are brought together at the table.

Too often we just do what makes sense to us and ask God to bless it.

When we were starting our community a bunch of older Benedictine nuns said to us, "If you have any questions or want to pick our brains, please do - we've been doing community for about 1,500 years together so we've learned a few things."

Every 70-year-old needs a young person in their lives to mentor, and every 20-year-old needs a senior.

I think in the end, God's justice is redemptive, it's restorative, it's about giving life, not taking life.