Shattered Mirror
And so a stricken lad with glassy eyes was spirited away to serve the fates of reason, with the measurements just so, a fairyland enchantment robbed of soul. Continue reading Shattered Mirror
Author: Avellina Balestri
A Catholic author & editor, seeking God in all things good, true, and beautiful and celebrating the divinely crafted dignity of every human person.
Advent Reed
Our Blessed Lady is meek,
but in a way that inherits the earth
A humility that is exalted,
A simplicity than reigns… Continue reading Advent Reed
Pilgrimage to a Small Island: A Britophile’s Memoir
On the plane, I cannot bring myself to look out the window before taking off. It’s too much, almost like claustrophobia of some sort, but not the fear I felt on the first flight over. It’s just pain now… and turning, looking for people to be there who I’m leaving behind. Continue reading Pilgrimage to a Small Island: A Britophile’s Memoir
Abraham’s Sacrifice: Reflections from Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
Sometimes we see Abraham’s hand pressed over the boy’s face, as if to cover it, lest they make eye contact, and he lose his nerve to go through with the sacrifice. Some have the boy lying on his belly, his mouth agape, waiting in horror to have his throat slit. Continue reading Abraham’s Sacrifice: Reflections from Judaism, Christianity, and Islam
Our Love Must Make Us Strong: The Music and Mysticism of Loreena McKennitt
While no single religion may be able to claim Loreena for their own, I think there is no doubt that she is a deeply spiritually aware person, and has led others to search for God and the meaning of existence through her music. Continue reading Our Love Must Make Us Strong: The Music and Mysticism of Loreena McKennitt
Adam, Christ, and Evolution: Seeking Meaning in Our Primordial Past
The very fact that we are able to say “Thou” to God means that we are able to disobey and reject Him, to turn away from the “Eden” of spiritual union with Him and choose our own path of disorder. Continue reading Adam, Christ, and Evolution: Seeking Meaning in Our Primordial Past
Slaves, Sons, and Submission: Christian and Muslim Understandings of God
As with verses from the Quran dealing with violence and warfare, it seems many Christians tend to emphasize the names of Allah that deal with dominance and power and de-emphasize or skip over others involving love, mercy, and forgiveness. Continue reading Slaves, Sons, and Submission: Christian and Muslim Understandings of God
Mother of Sorrows
I’ve never seen him…dead before, he who was always so full of life, more fully alive than anyone I have ever known, pulsing with youth, agility, vigor. Life…now drained out. Continue reading Mother of Sorrows
Sheath and Knife: A Star Wars Fanfic
“The galaxy will not know light unless you are out of it, Kylo Ren!” Rey’s voice was as furious as it was broken, and she drew her light saber to challenge him. “And if comes down to it, I will be the one to take you out of it!” Kylo Ren supposed he had always known this moment would come, that the moment … Continue reading Sheath and Knife: A Star Wars Fanfic
Prodigal: A Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Fanfic
Where has he gone? The son that was once my own, raised alone without a mother’s tenderness? Has he vanished into a world where reality has been turned on its head? Did I turn the little boy, with his love of sweets, into a man with love of…nothing? For pleasure, in the end, ebbs out to nothing…unless something deeper is found. Perhaps the same … Continue reading Prodigal: A Charlie and the Chocolate Factory Fanfic
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