You can only go so far for so long before you find the limits of yourself. For Phileena Heuertz that moment arrived, mercifully, around the same time as a sabbatical to mark her twelfth year of service with Word Made Flesh, a ministry to some of the poorest people in the world. With six months' respite from the daily task of serving those who have nothing, Phileena rediscovered the genius of contemplative spirituality. Activists often see contemplation as a luxury, the sort of thing that must necessarily be laid aside in the quest to see the world set aright. But in Pilgrimage of a Soul we see that contemplation is essential--not only to a life of sustained commitment to the justice and righteousness of God, but to the growth in faith and discipleship that the Holy Spirit beckons each of us to. Tracing seven movements from a kind of sleepfulness to a kind of wakefulness, Heuertz shows us that life is a journey that repeats itself as we are led by Christ deeper and deeper into our true selves and a truer knowledge of God.

The renowned author of eight books and abbess of the online retreat center Abbey of the Arts, Christine Valters Paintner takes readers on a new kind of pilgrimage: an inner journey to discover the heart of God. Eight stages of the pilgrim's way--from hearing the call to coming home--are accompanied by scripture stories of great biblical journeys and the author's unique and creative practices of prayer, writing, and photography. As she did in The Artist's Rule and Eyes of the Heart, Christine Valters Paintner once again helps readers travel to the frontiers of their souls to discover the hidden presence of God. In The Soul of a Pilgrim, Paintner identifies eight stages of the pilgrim's way and shows how to follow these steps to make an intentional, transformative journey to the reader's inner "wild edges." Each phase of the exploration requires a distinct practice such as packing lightly, being uncomfortable, or embracing the unknown. Paintner shows how to cultivate attentiveness to the divine through deep listening, patience, and opening oneself to the gifts that arise in the midst of discomfort. Each of the eight chapters offers reflections on the themes, a scripture story, an invitation to the practice of lectio divina, and a creative exploration through photography and writing.

An intellectually stimulating, profoundly inspiring anthology, wherein 60 authors reveal their own spiritual journeys and examine timeless problems of significance.

I invite you to go on a pilgrimage. A pilgrimage is a journey with a sacred goal. The sacred goal I have in mind for you is knowing God. Perhaps you’re already on that pilgrimage. Perhaps you already know God. If so, I invite you to know God better. A literal religious pilgrimage involves going to a place. In the Christian tradition, pilgrims have journeyed to such places as Jerusalem, Rome, and Santiago de Compostela. Going to these places requires moving your body to them. But the pilgrimage I’m inviting you to start—or continue—is a pilgrimage for your soul. Your purpose on this pilgrimage will be to get your soul closer to God. A pilgrimage is something you do. On a literal pilgrimage, you have to keep your body moving in the same direction for a long time. Doing so requires using and caring for your body. On a soul pilgrimage, you have to keep your soul directed toward God for a long time. Doing so requires the use and care of your soul by means of engaging in various spiritual practices. Will you accept my invitation? Will you join my wife Jennifer and me on this soul pilgrimage?

Companionship for the lifelong journey of recovery In Addiction and Recovery: A Spiritual Pilgrimage, Martha Postlethwaite--pastor and a person in recovery--reflects on her pilgrimage of healing through valleys of despair and vistas of resurrection. Addiction and Recovery is not just Postlethwaite's story, though. She also draws on the wisdom of pilgrims who have walked other paths to explore themes such as surrender, truth telling, shame, powerlessness, grace, forgiveness, and resurrection. Together, these chronicles bring hope to people who struggle with the disease of addiction and to those who love them. Each chapter ends with questions to reflect on with conversation partners or in a journal, and a spiritual practice. The spiritual practices are related to the chapter themes and serve as samplers, but they can be woven into the reader's own pilgrimage. Readers will recognize themselves in these stories and reflections, learn that they are not alone, and find reasons to hope as they make their own pilgrimage.

Activists can only go so far for so long before burning out. Including extended spiritual practices in this revised edition, Phileena Heuertz offers her story and helps us see that contemplation is not just a luxury, it is essential—not only to a life of sustained commitment to justice, but to the fully human life in the Holy Spirit.

The islands of the Outer Hebrides are home to some of the most remote and spectacular scenery in the world. They host an astonishing range of mysterious structures - stone circles, beehive dwellings, holy wells and 'temples' from the Celtic era. Over a twelve-day pilgrimage, often in appalling conditions, Alastair McIntosh returns to the islands of his childhood and explores the meaning of these places. Traversing moors and mountains, struggling through torrential rivers, he walks from the most southerly tip of Harris to the northerly Butt of Lewis. The book is a walk through space and time, across a physical landscape and into a spiritual one. As he battled with his own ability to endure some of the toughest terrain in Britain, he met with the healing power of the land and its communities. This is a moving book, a powerful reflection not simply of this extraordinary place and its people met along the way, but of imaginative hope for humankind.

A journey full of lost souls, gravity defying landscapes, and creatures that stretch the ability of the human imagination await. Simon Floyd, a man whose story on earth is ending, is about to discover firsthand all that the human spirit can conjure. Simon is given a second chance, and though he does not know it, he is about to embark upon an adventure that has the ability to reshape the universe. In his first published novel, author Samuel Kane crafts a new and intricate world that is both familiar and foreign. A world complete with historical figures, fantastical creatures, and an inter-dimensional logic that Simon must learn to navigate if he is to have any chance at redemption.  The Pilgrim’s soul is an imaginative romp into the human psyche, transporting readers into a place and time of eternal possibilities. Anyone who has contemplated the afterlife will find something to love in this book.