A Vital Conversation: Integrating Ecology, Justice and Peace On Agape’s 32nd Anniversary – by Suzanne Belote Shanley

At first we thought only of disaster for our annual St. Francis Day event as forecast after forecast of steady rain, forced us to set up three huge tents for people and food on the dark and overcast St. Francis Day, October, 2014. The rain held off only intermittently. It

Must We Not Kill? – by Brayton Shanley

Outrage at the bombing of ISIS is in short supply these past months.  There must be strong compliance in this absence of opposition.  One can almost hear the unstated logic: “Certain monsters have to be stopped and quickly.”  Like the Taliban, ISIS fighters are Islamic extremists who threaten, intimidate, torture

Statement on Nonviolence & Healing re: Dzhokhar Tsarnaev

For over 25 years, Agape has co-sponsored Stations of the Nonviolent Cross, in front of Boston’s State House, with a strong emphasis on the Death Penalty, which Jesus suffered and about which he spoke eloquently:  “Do Not Kill”  As the jury selection and trial of Dzhokar Tsarnaev is in full

It Runs In the Family: On Being Raised By Radicals by Frida Berrigan

by Frida Berrigan Once, when my husband Patrick was a kid, he and all his friends were sitting under a big table in a circle. They were talking in emphatic and verbose gibberish—each taking a turn and getting more and more animated as they went along. Finally, one of the

A Mystic Journey in the Everyday Life at Agape – by Angela Cacciarru

When I arrived at Agape Community, on September 13th, the first thing that I noticed was the vegetable garden, with its almost circular shape, and located in a central position, between the houses and the trees. I thought that the garden was more than a choice: it was a statement

(Stop) “Talking ‘bout My Generation” – by Patrick Cage

During my stay at Agape in August, Brayton and I talked frequently about my generation, The Millennials, and the way that we are depicted in the media. Open almost any periodical these days, and you will run across an op-ed critiquing the Millennial Generation. These op-eds attribute millennials with being:

Reflection at the Reservoir By Anthony Yakley

It was grey and cold that morning walking up to the Quabbin Reservoir. We progressed in perfect silence, a walking meditation. It was only when we reached the reservoir itself that I broke the silence with a hushed “Wow”. In front of me, spanned miles upon miles of placid water,

Thee Days without Technology by Matthew Dyer

The Elms College Men’s and Women’s Cross Country teams spent three days at the Agape Community in late August, put together through the assistance of Elms College Campus Ministry for a combination of reflection, community service, and team bonding, all while learning about sustainable living and living in peace. Morning

Hermitage Time By Jerrod Oltman

The Hermitage is slow time. It’s a time that isn’t rushed. There are no clocks to check every five seconds, nor are there errands to run and food to cook all the time. There is just you and God and whatever emotional and spiritual baggage you decided to drag up

In Memoriam – Bob Solari

In Memoriam: Bob Solari died on November 9th, after a long siege with Parkinson’s disease, and residence in a Worcester nursing home. Bob gave himself tirelessly to the Agape Community, in ways too numerous to count, but included great acts of humility–wiping dishes, cleaning floors, chopping and freezing vegetables. Bob