Hello from the airplane en route to Philadelphia. Besides feeling cramped from the long flight, I am immensely grateful for all the blessings of this week in Rome to support the Catholic Church’s Synod on Synodality 2023. First of all, I have encountered many wonderful people, each one doing good in the world – for...
Category: Blog
October 19, 2023: Praying With Pope Francis
Wow! This week is flying! On Tuesday, friends and I had a guided tour of the Gesu, the Jesuit Church of the Holy Name of Jesus, and of the rooms in which St. Ignatius Loyola lived. As you can see, the church was designed in the awesomely garish Baroque style of the sixteenth century. The...
October 16, 2023: My First Full Day in Rome!
Ciao from Roma to everyone in the Cranaleith community! My first full day here in support of the Synod on Synodality involved travelling to the headquarters of the Christian Brothers, the LaSallian Consulate, to co-facilitate a workshop for young adults studying in Rome. The aim was to give them an experience of the synodal process...
An Interconnected and Sacred Creation
When Cranaleith first opened our doors as a spiritual center, we had experienced very little rainfall over the Spring and Summer. The pond was nearly dry. The vegetation around the pond was dying, and the surrounding trees were languishing. One of our first visiting groups were women from a Mercy ministry in North Philadelphia who...
Volunteering at Cranaleith: George Whalen
As I was approaching retirement from a long career in Philadelphia City government, I started to think about what was I going to do with the balance of my life. I had always been interested in Religion and I was active in several groups at our parish. I also studied Theology at LaSalle University before...
Stories from the Mercy Station: Summer 2022
Each Wednesday from July 6 to August 3, campers (5 years-old and up) and counselors from the Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia spent the day at Cranaleith, where they were engaged in fun, and often meaningful, activities around the 10-acre Sanctuary of Trees. One such activity was the Mercy Station, where Cranaleith’s Program Director, Bernadette...
Cranaleith Program Director On Popular Podcast
Bernadette Rudolph, program director at Cranaleith Spiritual Center in Philadelphia and a certified Spiritual Director, was a guest on the popular, “The Forgiveness Lab” podcast. Her episode is titled, “Forgiveness and the Spiritual Journey.” From The Forgiveness Lab: “She [Bernadette] endlessly explores how God is mixed up in human lives and tries to help others...
Memorial in Bloom
For the employees at Selzer Company in Warrington, PA, Donna Arnold was more than just an accountant and coworker for 20 years. For them, she was a shining light. “Everyone loved her. She was the best. She touched every person with kindness,” said Elizabeth “Liz” Kenney who works at Selzer. When Donna passed away “rather...
It Only Takes a Moment
Video: “It Only Takes a Moment,” written and performed by Steve Hart, Cranaleith Board Chair. It only takes a moment to support the work of Cranaleith. Your support helps us to fulfill our mission to offer a contemplative space for all those seeking wholeness and transformation for themselves and society. We are committed to making...
New Executive Director Announcement
A Message from Cranaleith Board Chair, Steve Hart Dear Cranaleith Community, Since the retirement of Deborah Kost in February, the Board of Directors has been engaged in a regional search for Cranaleith’s next Executive Director. Working with the non-profit executive search firm Lambert and Associates, and including input from many of Cranaleith’s staff, volunteers, donors,...