Ever since she was a child, Maria Mitchell had a dream, to study the stars as an astronomer. There was just one problem. Read more »

Grace is one of those words whose meaning has been diffused by so many strands of religious tradition that it is hard to use without confusion. Read more »

My mother tells how when I was in grade school I wanted to take dance lessons, so she enrolled me in ballet. Although I approached the activity with forceful energy and my typical incorrigible enthusiasm, I lacked grace. Read more »

There are many ways to experience the idea of divine “grace.” Read more »

Sometimes they just happen: grace-full moments; gifts from something beyond myself. Read more »

“For me, every hour is grace. And I feel gratitude in my heart each time I can meet someone and look at his or her smile.” —Elie Wiesel

“Wonder is the beginning of wisdom.”—Socrates

“God has no religion.” —Mahatma Gandhi

“All peoples are members of the same body, created from one essence. ” —Saadi

“The winds of grace are always blowing but you have to raise the sail.”—Ramakrishna

For many of us, it proves impossible to limit religious thought to a narrow creed. The more we learn, the more difficult it becomes to restrict ourselves to the definition of ultimate reality, or God, that we grew up with, or held when we were young. Read more »

I wrote this prayer sitting in a military chapel in Afghanistan. The prayer was inspired by my encounter with a service-member I met. Read more »

Well-meaning people explain that it doesn’t matter what religion I choose, but I must choose, and only one. Only then, they say, can I go truly deep into a religion. Read more »