Table of Contents
A Note about Language ix
Introduction From Bernard's Valley to Merton's Mountain 1
Chapter 1 Charism: A Gift from God (with a Greek Accent) 13
Chapter 2 Sacred Stories: Remembering Who We Truly Are 25
Chapter 3 Formation: You Are the Potter, I Am the Clay 39
Chapter 4 Humility: Down-to-Earth Spirituality 53
Chapter 5 Hospitality: Welcoming Christ, Welcoming Others 65
Chapter 6 Compassion and Community: Where Two or Three Are Gathered 77
Chapter 7 Prayer and Liturgy: The Rhythm of the Day 89
Chapter 8 Contemplation: The Star of the Sea 101
Chapter 9 Conversion of Life: A Promise for All Time 115
Chapter 10 Stability: Blooming Where We're Planted 127
Chapter 11 Perseverance: Living a (Lay) Cistercian Life 141
A Final Word 155
Acknowledgments 157
Appendix 1 Vocations to Cistercian Monastic Life 159
Appendix 2 Vocations to the Lay Cistercian Family 163
Appendix 3 Cistercian Abbeys in North America 167
Notes 174
Selected Bibliography 178