MAGGIE ROSS HAS JOINED THE RANCH STAFF We are very pleased to announce that Maggie Ross is living at The Bishop’s Ranch as Anglican Solitary in Residence. She is a highly respected author, preacher, lecturer, and liturgist, and is widely known for her writings on varied subjects, especially in the realms of contemplative practice and the environment. She is a Professed Solitary (1980) directly responsible to the Archbishop of Canterbury. She will be at the Ranch through the seasons of Lent and Easter, and during that time will be leading regular daily worship in the Ranch Chapel, providing leadership for Ranch Quiet Days and Retreats, and available for spiritual counsel. The origins of the Ranch are steeped in regular prayer and worship, and in the days of Franciscan leadership regular hours of worship and holy day celebrations were at the heart of the life of the Ranch. At other times resident priests led daily worship. The faithful community that gathers in the chapel every Sunday morning for the Eucharistic celebration has kept alive a vibrant prayer life. But, in recent years we have not offered regular Daily Offices in the chapel, and there has been no one living on the premises dedicated to prayer and specifically available for spiritual conversation or counsel. At this time we are working to refresh that core spirituality, seeking ways both new and old to strengthen the Ranch’s contemplative heart. St. George’s Chapel sits in the middle of the Ranch, and invites the people who come there, to sit with God, to pray and to worship. The land and beauty of the Ranch issue similar invitations. The Ranch is now a place of great activity, and used by a great variety of groups—some overtly religious, others not—some made up of youth and young adults, others of adults, still others of a variety of ages. In the midst of this often energetic and sometimes noisy life, we seek to offer a contemplative space for daily prayer and worship, and for conversation and refreshment. Upon Maggie's arrival in February, the chapel bells began ringing out the angelus every day to remind everyone of that ever-present call to pause for prayer and thanksgiving. Maggie Ross brings her commitment to the contemplative life back to The Ranch where she lived for a period during 1977-78. While she is in residence, she will be one of the facilitators for our Lenten Quiet Day (February 20) and for The Great Three Days retreat (April 1-4). Also, she will help facilitate two other retreats (March 7-9, and May 10-11). She is the author of Pillars of Flame: Power, Priesthood and Spiritual Maturity, The Fire of Your Life: A Solitude Shared, Seasons of Death and Life: A Wilderness Memoir, and The Fountain and the Furnace: The Way of Tears and Fire as well as numerous articles in Weavings and other publications. |