Many people have had religious experiences that lack a formal name or association with a divine figure. Increasingly, people self-identify as interfaith, or spiritual but not religious. They have tapped into the quickening moment that is pre-religious, before silence becomes word. Perhaps it is akin to the Zen mu (absolute nothingness) or what the German mystic Meister Eckhart called the "desert of the Godhead". The person who has been seized by the Divine Presence and has died to his or her self knows what this is. It is radical openness, flowing in and out of heaven, and direct and unmediated contact with the holy. When the gift is given, everything in life is seen from a unique vantage point. Faith begins anew. The person becomes a devotee, a disciple of wisdom.

The spiritual quest is a fundamental orientation common to the human experience. The commitment to seek the ultimate - Great Spirit Brahman, Allah, God, etc. - is imprinted in the heart of the world. We live in an era of new vision of the sacred types of religious expression; the monastic heart resides within all people, regardless of life situation or vocation; and it is a sacred duty to share contemporary spiritual ways of being in a world often lacking healthy models of faith.

For those who feel disenfranchised by their religion, or who are exploring a renewal of faith: seek the monk within. Before religion or identity is the capacity for silence and solitude intrinsic to personhood. It is the birthright of everyone.