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Many Voices, one journey. Sounds true.com. You're listening to Insights at the edge. Today my guest is Tessa Bilecki.

Tessa is former Mother Abbiss of the Spiritual Life Institute, a Carmelite community,

with hermitages in Colorado, Nova Scotia, and Ireland. the

like Hermitages in Colorado, Nova Scotia, and Ireland.

Tessa recently created the Desert Foundation,

an informal circle of friends who explore the wisdom of the world's deserts, focusing

on peace and understanding between the three Abrahamic traditions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. She's the author of Theresa of Avala,

ecstasy and common sense, Holy Daring, and is also the publisher of Forefront, a quarterly magazine of contemporary

spirituality. In her release through Sounds True, Wild at Heart, radical teachings of the Christian mystics, a succession audio learning program,

Tessa invites listeners to a loving realization that God is our divine birthright and an intimate experience of the

divine that is not just an experience for Saints and Mystics.

In this episode of Insights at the Edge, Tessa and I spoke about the vitality in monastic life and some of the obstacles that prevent this vitality from running through all of our lives.

We also talked about what it might mean to balance polarities in our lives

and how this is such important work for the Christian mystic.

Finally, we talked about courage

in the transformative nature that courageous acts can have on our lives.

Here's my very heartful and honest conversation with Tessa Bilecki.

Tessa, you were part of a Carmelite monastic order for 40 years and to begin with I'm

curious to know why earlier in your life you decided to join a monastic order what was happening in your life?

...