In this episode of The Rule of St. Benedict for Daily Life, Kris McGregor reflects on St. Hildegard of Bingen’s vision of healing as the restoration of harmony. For Hildegard, healing is not only the easing of pain or the correction of one part of life. It is the return of right order, where soul, body, and daily life begin to come back into balance under God’s wisdom.

This vision fits naturally within the Benedictine way. The Holy Rule shapes time through prayer, work, and rest so that life is not left scattered or divided. Hildegard helps us see that this ordering is not merely practical. It serves wholeness. When prayer returns to its rightful place, when work is received faithfully, and when the body and soul are no longer treated as enemies, life begins to grow steadier and more peaceful.

This episode also draws out how deeply this matters in ordinary life. Fragmentation wears people down. Prayer gets pushed aside, work becomes anxious, rest loses its peace, and even the body begins to carry the strain of a divided life. Hildegard calls us back to a wiser order. In Christ, our humanity is not bypassed but healed and restored. This episode invites listeners to consider how grace works not around life as it is lived, but within it, gathering what is scattered and teaching the whole person to live in greater harmony with God.

St. Hildegard of Bingen, Scivias: Book One, Vision Two, section 33

“In this, humility and charity are brighter than the other virtues, since humility and charity are like a soul and body that possess stronger powers than the other powers of soul and bodily members. How? Humility is like the soul and charity like the body, and they cannot be separated from each other but work together, just as soul and body cannot be disjoined but work together as long as a person lives in the body.”

“May the God of peace himself sanctify you wholly; and may your spirit and soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

1. Where in my life do I feel the strain of fragmentation or imbalance?
2. Do I tend to treat prayer, work, rest, and care of the body as disconnected parts rather than as one life before God?
3. How might a wiser order in daily life create more room for healing?
4. In what ways have anxiety, overwork, or restlessness affected my peace?
5. How does Christ help me see that grace restores my humanity rather than working around it?

Copyright © 2026 Kris McGregor. All rights reserved. No portion of this content may be reproduced, distributed, published, or transmitted in any form, including audio, print, or digital media, without prior written permission from Discerning Hearts®.

Kris McGregor speaks with Sally Read about Annunciation: A Call to Faith in a Broken World, a book Sally wrote as a letter to her daughter and as a reflection on faith, motherhood, and conversion. Sally describes the Annunciation as a pattern for every life: God calls, the soul answers, and trust must continue even when prayer feels dry or difficult. She presents Mary not as weak or passive, but as courageous, powerful, and deeply faithful, and shares how her own view of Mary changed after moving from atheism to Catholicism.

The book explores how to pass faith on to children in a world marked by anxiety, despair, and distraction. Sally recounts her daughter’s honest questions about Mass, Communion, and belief, and explains that faith is less about dramatic feelings than about opening oneself to God. Kris and Sally connect Scripture, suffering, grief, identity, and contemplation, showing how prayer and the Eucharist can transform ordinary pain and confusion into grace. By the end, the Annunciation becomes a living invitation in daily life, with each moment offering another chance to say yes to God.

1. How do I respond to God’s invitations in my daily life, especially when I feel uncertain or afraid?
2. In what ways can I grow in trust like Mary, even when I do not fully understand what God is asking of me?
3. Do I rely too much on feelings in my prayer life, or am I willing to remain faithful during spiritual dryness?
4. How can I better communicate the truths of the faith to others, especially children or those struggling with belief?
5. What fears or anxieties keep me from fully surrendering to God’s will?
6. How do I bring my grief, struggles, or suffering to God in prayer and the Eucharist?
7. In what ways can I cultivate a deeper habit of contemplation and interior silence in my life?
8. Do I truly understand my identity as someone loved and called by God?
9. How can I recognize each moment of my life as an opportunity to say yes to God?
10. What practical steps can I take to grow in faith and trust in a world marked by distraction and despair?

Sensing the precarious nature of faith in an overwhelmingly secular world, Read, through meditation and anecdote, began writing down the compelling reasons for holding onto both God and Church. Taking the Annunciation as her template (that most fundamental yes to God), she explores common experiences of the spiritual life: His presence and invitation (And he came to her); the fears we have to let go of (Do not be afraid); the realization of our identity in God (Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord) and what our vocation might be (Let it be to me according to your word); and when God feels very distant from us (And the angel departed from her).

Drawing on Scripture, lives of the saints, and the lives of people she has known personally and professionally as a nurse, Read shows how God is with us always―through suffering, spiritual dryness and depression, as well as in joyful and mystical ways. This book was inspired by a mother’s loving response to a daughter―but what has resulted is something that will speak to any believer engaged in the bliss and bewilderment of a relationship with God.

Sally Read is the author of Night’s Bright Darkness: A Modern Conversion Story (Ignatius Press, 2016) and three books of poetry published by Bloodaxe Books. She is poet in residence with the Hermitage of the Three Holy Hierarchs, and she lives with her family near Rome.

Msgr. John Esseff reflects on the Feast of the Annunciation, which falls in the heart of Lent. He shares how personal and significant this date is to him, as it marks the wedding anniversary of his parents. Their story, including seeking a dispensation to marry during Lent and defying an arranged marriage, mirrors the boldness and surrender exemplified by Mary’s own “yes” to God; drawing a connection between Mary’s total openness to God’s will and the Lenten call to deeper prayer, sacrifice, and discernment. Mary’s response to the angel, her understanding of Scripture, and her unwavering virginity reflect a soul in perfect union with God’s purpose.

Msgr. Esseff explores the moment of the Annunciation as a profound revelation—not only of Mary’s divine motherhood but also of the Trinity. The Father sends the Son, conceived by the Holy Spirit, marking the incarnation of God’s Word in the womb of one who had already received that Word in her heart. Her fiat—”Let it be done to me according to your word”—becomes the model of perfect prayer and surrender. He invites us to ponder God’s will in their daily lives as Mary did, suggesting that prayer is not about asking but about receiving and responding.

1. How does Mary’s “yes” to God challenge me to trust more deeply in His will for my life?
2. In what ways can I better listen to God in prayer as Mary did during the Annunciation?
3. Do I invite the Holy Spirit to help me discern God’s will in my daily decisions?
4. How does Mary’s example teach me about the meaning and purpose of obedience in the spiritual life?
5. What role does Scripture play in helping me understand and respond to God’s call, as it did for Mary?
6. How can I offer my own body, time, and choices to God like Mary offered herself?
7. In the midst of Lent, how is God inviting me to deeper union with Him through prayer and sacrifice?
8. What can I learn from Mary’s silence and pondering heart about interior prayer and reflection?
9. How does the mystery of the Trinity revealed at the Annunciation shape my understanding of who God is?
10. What does Mary’s life teach me about saying “yes” to God even when the path is uncertain?

The angel Gabriel was sent from God
to a town of Galilee called Nazareth,
to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph,
of the house of David,
and the virgin’s name was Mary.
And coming to her, he said,
“Hail, full of grace! The Lord is with you.”
But she was greatly troubled at what was said
and pondered what sort of greeting this might be.
Then the angel said to her,
“Do not be afraid, Mary,
for you have found favor with God.
Behold, you will conceive in your womb and bear a son,
and you shall name him Jesus.
He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High,
and the Lord God will give him the throne of David his father,
and he will rule over the house of Jacob forever,
and of his Kingdom there will be no end.”
But Mary said to the angel,
“How can this be,
since I have no relations with a man?”
And the angel said to her in reply,
“The Holy Spirit will come upon you,
and the power of the Most High will overshadow you.
Therefore the child to be born
will be called holy, the Son of God.
And behold, Elizabeth, your relative,
has also conceived a son in her old age,
and this is the sixth month for her who was called barren;
for nothing will be impossible for God.”
Mary said, “Behold, I am the handmaid of the Lord.
May it be done to me according to your word.”
Then the angel departed from her.

Msgr. John A. Esseff is a Roman Catholic priest in the Diocese of Scranton. Msgr. Esseff served as a retreat director and confessor to St. Teresa of Calcutta. He continues to offer direction and retreats for the Sisters of the Missionaries of Charity worldwide. Msgr. Esseff encountered St. Padre Pio, who would become a spiritual father to him. He has lived in areas around the world, serving in the Pontifical Missions, a Catholic organization established by St. Pope John Paul II to bring the Good News to the world, especially to the poor. Msgr. Esseff assisted the founders of the Institute for Priestly Formation and continues to serve as a spiritual director for the Institute. He continues to serve as a retreat leader and director to bishops, priests, sisters, seminarians, and other religious leaders worldwide.

Steps to Take as You Follow Christ

Ask—Are there areas of my life where I am still enslaved?

Seek—Persevere in the teaching of Jesus. Experience the joy of the small victories when standing your ground against the enemy, especially when he seeks to seduce you back into the slavery of sin.

Knock—Meditate on Romans 6:22–23.

Now, however, you have been set free from sin, you have been made slaves of God, and you get a reward leading to your sanctification and ending in eternal life. For the wage paid by sin is death; the present given by God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

What does it mean to be a slave of God? Are you a free person? If not, what still enslaves you? If so, from what has God freed you?

Transform Your Life—St. Ignatius of Loyola taught that we should make use of created things inasmuch as they aid us in praising, reverencing, and serving God, for that is the purpose of our existence. Spend your life seeing all of creation in these terms, remaining in the teaching of Jesus, and witness how your life is totally transformed.

Michael Dubruiel’s book The Power of the Cross: Applying the Passion of Christ to Your Life is currently available in Kindle format.

You can find the book here:
https://amzn.to/4rTMBK9

To explore more of Amy Welborn’s books and writing, visit:
https://amywelborn.wordpress.com/books-by-amy-welborn/

Check out more at the Discerning Hearts’ Michael Dubruiel page

Excerpt from THE JERUSALEM BIBLE, copyright (c) 1966 by Darton, Longman & Todd, Ltd. and Doubleday, a division of Penguin Random House, Inc. Reprinted by Permission.

In this episode of The Rule of St. Benedict for Daily Life, Kris McGregor reflects on St. Hildegard of Bingen’s vision of fruitfulness as something that grows slowly through steadfastness. Healing is not the end of the spiritual life. It prepares the soul for deeper growth. For Hildegard, fruitfulness is not measured by visible success, intensity or quick results. It comes through remaining rooted in God, faithful in ordinary life and open to the grace that works quietly over time.

This vision fits deeply within the Benedictine way. St. Benedict does not promise instant change. He gives a way of life in which grace can be received steadily through prayer, work, liturgy, silence and faithful community life. The soul is cultivated through this rhythm. Like a well-tended field, it is protected from neglect and given room to bear fruit in due time.

This episode also highlights how easily the spiritual life can dry out through neglect rather than open rebellion. Prayer is neglected. Attention is neglected. Ordinary responsibilities are carried without care. Hildegard calls the soul back to perseverance. Stability, obedience and prayer keep life from scattering and help the heart remain close to its source. In Christ, who teaches us to abide in the vine, fruitfulness comes not from striving alone but from remaining where life is given.

St. Hildegard of Bingen, Scivias: Book Two, Vision One

“For when a field with great labor is cultivated, it brings forth much fruit, and the same is shown in the human race, for after humanity’s ruin many virtues arose to raise it up again.”

“He who abides in me, and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit.”

1. Where in my life am I tempted to look for quick results instead of steady growth?
2. Do I trust that grace can be at work even when I do not yet see visible fruit?
3. What ordinary practices in my life help keep my soul rooted in God?
4. Where has neglect begun to dry out my prayer, attention, or fidelity?
5. How is Christ inviting me to abide more faithfully so that fruit can grow in its proper time?

Copyright © 2026 Kris McGregor. All rights reserved. No portion of this content may be reproduced, distributed, published, or transmitted in any form, including audio, print, or digital media, without prior written permission from Discerning Hearts®.

In this episode, Deacon James Keating and Kris McGregor explore Lent’s significance, urging introspection and acknowledgment of sin. Deacon Keating highlights society’s loss of this sense, attributing it partly to psychology’s influence.

This reminds us of personal responsibility and freedom in recognizing sin; especially cultural desensitization to sin, emphasizing intentional conscience formation through spiritually grounded fellowship. They advocate for gentle yet firm engagement on moral issues to foster genuine community within parishes.

1. Lenten Self-Reflection: How can you deepen your introspection during Lent to identify areas of sin in your life?
2. Responsibility and Freedom: Reflect on how you balance acknowledging external influences with taking personal responsibility for your actions.
3. Desensitization to Sin: How can you guard against societal desensitization to sin, especially in media and cultural norms?
4. Intentional Conscience Formation: In what ways can you intentionally cultivate a spiritually grounded fellowship to form your conscience?
5. Engaging on Moral Issues: How can you engage in conversations about moral issues with both gentleness and firmness, guided by love?
6. Fostering Community in Parishes: What steps can you take to foster genuine community within your parish, where faith is shared and nurtured collectively?

An excerpt from “Crossing the Desert: Lent and Conversion”:

“Celebrating the sacrament of reconciliation is, for many Catholics, a most daunting prospect. This sacrament has been the source of many jokes, composed perhaps by persons seeking to reduce the level of stress they feel regarding one of its main components: naming personal sin.

The naming of one’s own sin to oneself and to a priest is self-revelatory to the point of evoking anxiety. Initially, it can be true that some level of apprehension may accompany this sacrament, but over time with regular celebration of this form of worship, anxiety diminishes. Most positively the sacrament of reconciliation promotes truthful self-knowledge regarding sin in the context of Christ’s saving presence. Once someone experiences both the naming of sin and the reception of God’s mercy in this sacrament, he or she actually begins to celebrate this sacrament and see it as a great gift from Christ and his Church.”

Deacon James Keating, Ph.D., is a professor of Spiritual Theology and serves as a spiritual director at Kenrick Glennon Seminary in St. Louis, MO.

Check out Deacon Keating’s “Discerning Heart” page