Holy Week: Monday | Matthew 26 (14-35)

Greetings, Duffy.

I won't add anything to N.T. Wright's excellent commentary today, especially not so soon after our wonderful spiritual friendship conversation this morning.

Instead, let me shift gears to five brief "technical" observations as we start to look past Lent (to the extent we are able to lift our eyes above the Cross at all during this point in the liturgy of Holy Week!)

1. The synchronized daily reading and weekly 1:1 calls feel like our spiritual friendship retreat mode. Monthly update calls without synchronized daily reading feel like our spiritual friendship maintenance mode. 

2. There is a benefit to staying in retreat mode through Eastertide, perhaps taking Saint Aelred's classic as our daily reading:

Spiritual Friendship: The Classic Text with a Spiritual Commentary by Dennis Billy, C.Ss.R. (Classics With Commentary) | Kindle edition by Aelred of Rievaulx

There is also a benefit to shifting into maintenance mode from Eastertide through the end of October.

Of course, both approaches have downsides, too.

3. Just as this is the beginning of the busiest time of year for you, I am more than half committed to a daily deep dive into The Rule of Saint Benedict here on "Jesus with Jonathan" from May 2 to August 31 (though putting it on my blog "New Monasticism with Jonathan" would probably make more sense). Realistically, I should probably try to get in as much walking as I can from April through October, and maybe even help my mom out some more around the house and garden, too.

4. This said, I am not sure I will stay as focused and make as much progress on the spiritual path without our weekly structure.

5. Let's pray for guidance :)