Our Blog
Our Blog
These posts are shared from recent Facebook Reflections
When the Website is fully functional I will be offering current Reflections.
The first one will be on My LACK OF PATIENCE WITH TECHNOLOGY!!!đ¤
These posts are shared from recent Facebook Reflections
When the Website is fully functional I will be offering current Reflections.
The first one will be on My LACK OF PATIENCE WITH TECHNOLOGY!!!đ¤
Latest Blog Entry
Latest Blog Entry
These are Blogs taken from my Facebook Reflections of 2019
Posted on FaceBook December 3, 2019
Hi Folks,
For those who know parts of me - I am sharing here more than you ever wanted to know about who I am and what I am called to be and what I continue to become. If you are overwhelmed - thatâs okay - sometimes I am too!
Hereâs whatâs happening and on-going, on my Grandmotherâs 123rd Birthday; today: born 1896-1982. Our family lived upstairs from her. I was her firstborn grandchild and spoiledđ
*I have begun a Speakerâs circuit offering presentations about my TWO Camino journeys across Spain: the Camino de Santiago in 2015 of 787km and the Camino Ignaciano in 2018, a totally different experience on an injured foot.
In 2019 I did a Three-Month Journey - a Camino of sorts - on a Cargo Ship. Those who have see this presentation were amazed.
Currently, I am taking requests for this program, along with the Two Camino Presentations.
*I will have a calendar/list of upcoming events on my new website.
*Next presentations, those that I am developing now, are my Relationship with Montserrat, a Benedictine Monastery in Mountains north of Barcelona, Spain, where I visit at least once a year and spent a month, including Holy Week and Easter, this past April 2019. The Monks invited me into Holy Week immersion experience with them. It was a first for them and an incredible time for me.
*These Presentations are available for you. Contact me. Invite me. I will come anywhere to share these experiences and encourage you to discover your own life's 'Camino.'
*In addition to my book, The Lion of God: Archangel Ari'ElâŚ.personal encounters, I have published in a number of collections and Anthologies. I will be pulling together a list of the places and the titles that I have published for those who would like to know.
If you haven't read The Lion of God, I invite you to go to Amazon and purchase it for less than a cup of coffee. Take a look at the reviews that are posted on Amazon. Please, donât be shy, write a review for me. That would be a wonderful help to have more reviews posted.
*I have finished writing a children's book. It is a true story of a Mama Dear and her fawn who took up residence in my outdoor fire pit! This week I meet with the illustrator for the first time. Leslie will be designing the images that the children will see when the story is read to them, or they read the story. Together, itâs our plan to get this one published very soon.
*My first degree is in Music and Music Education. I have written music for years. I am especially fond of preparing music for Circle Dancing. I have recorded nine of the DANCECHANTS and hope to record that many more. I am deciding how to make these available. I think I will offer Workshops where I teach the music and the movements; note that I say movements and not dancing. Some folks get scared away if they think they will be embarrassed if asked to dance. Dance here is a very loose term. If you can stand, If you can walk, If you can sway - you can do this.
Let me know if there is any interest. I know I enjoy it. When I directed the Doctoral Program in California, we started every morning before class - with a time of Body Prayer. Often the morning prayer was Circle Dancing, Chanting with drumming. A year or so ago, I was invited to Boulder, Colorado to teach for a new school that was opening. They wanted to learn circle dancing. These were Doctoral Students - so not little kids. It is a powerful expression of group/community prayer.
*I profit deeply from the teaching of the Medicine Wheel Rituals and Sacred Space Gatherings. I am blessed to have an active Medicine Wheel - a Prayer Wheel - in my back yard. You will see dates posted on my Events Page as soon as I complete the Website.
On November 21st, I led a Medicine Wheel Ritual Gathering at the United Church of Christ International Amistad Chapel in Downtown Cleveland, Ohio. It was very well received by the International staff who attended. They invited me to come to honor the Native Americans and their teachings. I am blessed to have been taught by many Native People who encouraged me to share these teachings.
*I lead Retreats and Workshops.
Sometimes, I am more surprised than anyone at the retreats I am called to lead. March 2018 I was invited to be the Wisdom Elder for a Wilderness Retreat with Skylar Wilson, the group organizer and personal friend, in Desert Valley, CA.
Yep, we, a group of young men and myself, camped in the Desert in more WIND than I could have believed possible. It blew for three days without stopping; I mean day and night. My tent laid flat on top of me in the relentless Wind. Skylar would come check on me in the middle of the night because of the Wind and the extreme Cold! We couldnât even build a fire to cook or provide warmth.
Beautiful sun and WIND during the day and frigid cold under zillions of glorious twinkling and shooting stars at night.
We learned so much from the Universe during that time. The Ravens were a continuous teaching presence. Every sunrise and sunset a miracle of color. A fire that danced Dragons. Luna, a white wolf/shepherd mix our constant companion. The care for and of each other as we survived the elements: physical, mental, emotional, spiritual....and the silence we found in the depths of our noisy hearts.
*I serve on the Prayer Team of Mount Saint Benedict's Monastery in Harborcreek, PA. I help teach StillPoint - a Zen style meditative practice of 'just sitting' in total silence for a full day once a month.
*For years I have done Spiritual Life Coaching and now I am welcoming new clients. Interested? Technology makes it possible, no matter where in the world we are - except when I am in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean without WiFi!
Contact me to schedule a time. Have a candle at the ready as we sit and share Light together!
*Recently I have completed two Masters Level courses in Medical Intuition and Psychic Surgery - these are advanced forms of Energetic Healing. I have been doing this labor of love for years; being taught by Spirit each time. I have had a number of profound experiences that have brought me to tears - the wonder of it all! I sat in on these Advanced Level courses to see if these world traveled trainers were teaching anything like what I have been taught by Spirit. YES!
I was consulted by a Medical Professional, an M. D. and a Neurologist to help them find the source of a problem they could not locate with modern Medical Technology. We were successful in our combined efforts to help locate an issue in the center of the patients brain. Once I found it for them, they could treat it.
These Ancient Healing practices combined with modern medicine are a winning combination. In January I am inviting folks who are interested in knowing more about this Healing work to make appointments to come and learn through hands on experience. You may have something about yourself that you would like considered. You may not know what feels out of sorts - you simply do and the Doctor keeps telling you there is nothing askew. You may have a loved one that you are concerned about. Come - and we will sit together in anticipation of healing! If the loved one you are concerned about doesnât live here or physically or emotionally canât come, thatâs okay. You can come in their stead and I can do distance healing. Please bring along a picture of the person.
*Currently I am helping as a Substitute Exercise Instructor at the Medina Community Recreation Center. I teach Senior exercise: Water Aerobics and also Silver Sneakers Yoga. I do this - because I want the classes to be offered. I am a certified Silver Sneakers Instructor and I love leading the classes. We are waiting for a new permanent instructor to relieve me of this responsibility in January...cause I just have too much to do. I want freedom to go whenever and wherever Spirit calls - or maybe I should say - shoves!
*Off the top of my head that's all I can think about right now. I need to get back to finishing up my new Web Presence.
This week, I plan to have my new website published and ready for public viewing. It is my plan to pull all of these aspects together into one Site - instead of having separate sites for the variety of gifts I share.
For those who know me, you know that I am involved in many things - pulling them altogether can be a bit like wrestling with an Angel and I don't want to get hurt. If you don't get the reference, I suggest some biblical research on Jacob Wrestling with an Angel! (Gen. 32)
Yep - I have a few things on my plate and I love being me and being called to become more than I have ever imagined. I say this, because I believe this is true of each of us. That's why I share, to help others to connect with their deeper Self. It is truly an adventure to connect with your Soul in ways you never dreamt! I feel like Dr. Seuss! "You're off to great places. Today is your day. Your Mountain is waiting, so get on your way."
All good,
Carol
Second Blog Entry
Second Blog Entry
These are Blogs taken from my Facebook Reflections of 2019
Center for Action and Contemplation @FaceBook. Com
2019-04-28. FB Post
2019-04-18. Richard Rohr: CAC
Do you know Richard Rohr's work. I receive his daily meditation and this one rings so true to what I teach and know. Thought if you haven't read his work, this might be or interest to you. Your Choice: Heaven or Hell
+++++++
Richard Rohr's Daily Meditation
From the Center for Action and Contemplation
Heaven Now
Heaven and Hell
Sunday, April 28, 2019
Lord, will only a few people be saved? âLuke 13:23
But remember, some who are now last will be first. And some who think they are first will be last. âLuke 13:30
Many of the saints said that no one is going to hell unless they want to. God condemns no one to hell, unless they themselves choose to live in hatred, evil, and disharmony. Then they are already living in hell here and now. God just gives them what their lives show they want.
Most of the world religions have some concept of heaven and hell. Why? Because human freedom matters. We have to be given the freedom to say no to love and life, and one word for that is hell.
Pope John Paul II, who certainly was not a liberal, reminded listeners that heaven and hell are not physical places at all; theyâre states of being in a living relationship with God or choosing separation from the source of all life and joy. [1] And, if thatâs true, there are plenty of people on earth who are in hell now. They often choose to be miserable, hateful, negative, and oppositional. They love to exclude people who are different from them.
St. Catherine of Siena (1347â1380), whose feast we will celebrate tomorrow, received a vision of Jesus Christ as a bridge reaching from heaven to earth, forever joining âhumanity with the greatness of the Godhead.â [2] Catholic Worker founder Dorothy Day (1897â1980) was fond of citing Catherineâs inspiration in her own reflections, often writing âAll the way to heaven is heaven.â [3] Iâd also add âItâs hell all the way to hell.â Youâre choosing your destiny right now. You are responsible, not God. Do you want to live in love and communion? Or do you want to live in constant opposition to others and life itself?
As we observe our politics, antagonism appears to be the primary style of communication todayâhow to fight and win, how to be suspicious, how to be hateful, how to tell lies. Who can we exclude now? Which race, religion, or group is unworthy? (All in the name of God, remember!) Thatâs simply hell right now. And an awful lot of people, even those who call themselves Christian, appear to be living in a hell of their own construction. Thatâs why Jesus can say, âI do not know youâ even to those who âate and drank in his companyâ
(see Luke 13:25â27)!
Heaven is not about belonging to the right group; itâs not about following the correct rituals. Itâs about having the right attitude. There are just as many Muslims, Hindus, and Jews who are in loveâserving their neighbor and the poorâas there are Christians. Jesus says there will be deep regretââwailing and grinding of teethâ (Luke 13:28)âwhen we realize how wrong we were, how thoroughly we missed the point. Be prepared to be surprised about who is living a life of love and service and who isnât. This should keep us all humble and searching and recognizing itâs not even any of our business whoâs going to heaven and whoâs going to hell. What makes us think that our little minds and hearts could discern the mind and heart of anyone else?
First Blog Entry
First Blog Entry
These are Blogs taken from my Facebook Reflections of 2019
This Reflection was in response to a question about praying to the Transcendent versus the Immanent expression of Divinity.
November 2019
Carol Vaccarielloâs Reflection on Prayer:
Thank you for posing your thoughtful question. You have invited me into my personal journey with Imago Dei and my journey with Transcendent and Immanent experience of that which is. Like most of us, I started out as a child learning to "say my prayers". I was raised RC in Cath grade schools - through college. All the time encouraged to pray to the transcendent God outside of myself. When I began to read and study at the Ecumenical Theological Seminary with John Biersdorf, my Imago Dei - my image of God was seriously challenged. I began to experience opportunities for inner silence and to discover the "kindom" within. From that time till now I have continued both the inner and outer manifestations of prayer. NOW THIS IS THE IMPORTANT PART that I would like to share - and also hear others' experiences. As I developed more and more deeply the inner life of prayer, the outer manifestation has become not only a natural outcome, but an essential outcome. Here's what I mean. I am now on the prayer team at a Benedictine Monastery near Erie, PA. I help lead the Zen Stillpoint day of silent sitting once a month. When I sit in the depth of silence and take the silent meditative walking breaks outdoors, my heart flings itself wide open to the Universe, to everything that is and I am swallowed up in the moment of awareness too big to hold in my small self. This is not something I do. IT IS THE RESULT OF THE SILENT SITTING AND WHAT THAT EXPERIENCE DOES IN ME. My consciousness becomes one with the immensity of Lake Erie as I stand looking out over its vastness and depth and experience its fullness within me. I fly with the sea birds and feel the power of the wind holding them in sacred flight. Everything around me becomes a prayer and I cry out with joy to be in it, of it, and it in me. Then filled with this experience of magnitude of the expression of all that is Divine - I return to my silent seat in fullness beyond the already full silence and I am lifted as I am filled. Just as I go deep, I expand, simply because that is how God, the Universe is. Everything and One. Me and You. Nothing separate. No divisions. No race or economic lines drawn. Would that we could discover how to live what we pray. Thank you for asking. I have never expressed this before. Please, I want to hear others' experiences. Please, create a beautiful reality in the fullness of who we are, please.