Dalhousie Multifaith Services
4th Floor SUB, 6136 University Ave B3H 4J2 Halifax, NS, Canada

Let your light shine. Happy Hanukkah!

Give yourself a break and enjoy this! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MJ7M_57HS0w

‘We beckon this good season to wait a while with us. We, Baptist and Buddhist, Methodist and Muslim, say come. Peace. Come and fill us and our world with your majesty. We, the Jew and the Jainist, the Catholic and the Confucian,... Implore you, to stay a while with us. So we may learn by your shimmering light How to look beyond complexion and see community.’ During the weeks of December, Monday Night Minutes focus on themes common to most spiritual traditions: Hope, Peace, Joy, Love. Using the poetry of Maya Angelou and simple spiritual practices take a moment for reflection, away from the stress and pandemic restrictions of this season. WEEK TWO: PEACE. Find a comfortable, quiet space. Light a candle or place a meaningful centering symbol. 2. Breath prayer: Breathe in Peace. Breathe out worry. Breathe in Peace. Breathe out agitation. Breathe in Peace. Breathe out frustration. 3. Read Maya Angelou’s poem ‘Amazing Peace.’ What words or phrases catch your attention? 4. Reflect: What does peace look like (or what would it look like) in your personal life, in your community’s life, and in the life of our planet? What elements need to be in place before true peace is possible? How do you contribute to peace-making for yourself, your loved ones, all living beings? 5. Read Maya Angelou’s ‘A Brave and Startling Truth’ or Wendell Berry’s ‘The Peace of Wild Things.’ 6. Pick a time this week for a personal retreat, unplugged, untasked. 7. Repeat the breath prayer. See more

‘I am forced outside myself to mount the light and ride joined with Hope.’ During the next four weeks Monday Night Minutes will focus on themes common to most spiritual traditions: Hope, Peace, Joy, Love. Using the poetry of Maya Angelou, we will create moments for reflection, away from the stress, deadlines and pandemic restrictions of this season. (This series is based on the resource ‘Maya Angelou & the Freedom Poetry of Advent.’) WEEK ONE: HOPE. 1. Find a comfortable, qui...et space. Light a candle or place a meaningful symbol. 2. Breath prayer: Breathe in Hope. Breathe out despair. Breathe in Hope. Breathe out discouragement. Breathe in Hope. Breathe out fear. 3. Read Maya Angelou’s poem ‘A Plagued Journey.’ What words or phrases caught your attention? 4. Reflect: What signs of hope have you witnessed this week? What or who gives you hope? Where do you see evidence of hope in your life? What are you hoping for this month? 5. Read ‘Prayer’ by Maya Angelou or ‘Hope is the thing with feathers’ by Emily Dickinson. 6. Select a small item you can keep in your pocket this week, a reminder of the hope that calls you forward. 7. Repeat the breath prayer. See more

Today's Monday Night Minute: 'Tis the Season!' for celebrations, generosity... and food! Sadly, it is also a season of stress for many students facing food insecurity. The DMS 'Tis the Season' Calendar includes religious celebration dates PLUS ideas for useful food items to donate to the DSU Food Bank. Recent survey results indicate 4 in every 10 students are food insecure at all times, while the rate goes up to 74% during exam time! For a pdf copy of this calendar: [email protected].