Via Vetera

09/21/2026

Breathe Prayer - Centering Prayer,
Two Simple Practices

For a while now, I’ve been thinking about a very simple question:

What are some practices that can actually help us in those moments when worry and anxiety begin to take hold?
I keep coming back to two:

Breath Prayer and Centering Prayer.

Both are remarkably simple. But simple doesn’t mean shallow.
These are practices that can take us into a deeper place of stillness, presence, and awareness of God.
Recently, a small group of us spent several weeks together rediscovering Centering Prayer, and I think it took all of us by surprise.

None of us was new to the practice, and yet something about returning to it together had a profound effect on each of us.
Breath Prayer has become important to me in a slightly different way. It’s a practice we can carry with us into the middle of ordinary life.

We don’t need a special place or a large block of time.
In a moment of worry, fear, frustration, or simply feeling overwhelmed, it can help us become present again — to ourselves and to God — right when we need it most.
I would love to share these practices with you.

If you’d like to take a little time to understand one of them, experience it for yourself, and discover how it might become part of your own journey with Jesus, simply reply to this email and tell me which one interests you:

Breath Prayer or Centering Prayer

We’ll gather a small group and explore it together.
If you’ve been around Via Vetera for any length of time, you know that I believe deeply that some things are best learned in community. We need companions on the Journey.
So if one of these practices is tugging at you, just hit reply.
We’ll make it happen.
Blessings and peace,

Danny B.
aka The Poncho of Many Colours
For Via Vetera
Via Vetera is a not for profit organization, and we appreciate your support.

At any time, for more information, don't hesitate to contact us at
[email protected]

09/21/2026

A new episode of the Conversations podcast is now live on YouTube, Spotify, Amazon, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you listen to podcasts.

This time, I’m talking with Monica Romig-Green, a wonderful spiritual director and someone who knows the Journey deeply.
Our conversation wanders into a number of different places, but throughout it there are some very real and practical things that I think can help us as we seek to live more deeply and attentively with Jesus.

If you’d like to watch the conversation on YouTube, simply use this link:

https://youtu.be/YqYCFEZJ9hQ

Two Simple Practices

For a while now, I’ve been thinking about a very simple question:

What are some practices that can actually help us in those moments when worry and anxiety begin to take hold?
I keep coming back to two:

Breath Prayer and Centering Prayer.

Both are remarkably simple. But simple doesn’t mean shallow.
These are practices that can take us into a deeper place of stillness, presence, and awareness of God.

Recently, a small group of us spent several weeks together rediscovering Centering Prayer, and I think it took all of us by surprise.

None of us was new to the practice, and yet something about returning to it together had a profound effect on each of us.
Breath Prayer has become important to me in a slightly different way. It’s a practice we can carry with us into the middle of ordinary life.

We don’t need a special place or a large block of time.
In a moment of worry, fear, frustration, or simply feeling overwhelmed, it can help us become present again — to ourselves and to God — right when we need it most.

Danny (my husband) has just dropped another incredible conversation regarding SPIRITUAL FORMATION through Via Vetera

I would love to share these practices with you.

If you’d like to take a little time to understand one of them, experience it for yourself, and discover how it might become part of your own journey with Jesus, simply reply to this email and tell me which one interests you:

Breath Prayer or Centering Prayer

We’ll gather a small group and explore it together.
If you’ve been around Via Vetera for any length of time, you know that I believe deeply that some things are best learned in community. We need companions on the Journey.

So if one of these practices is tugging at you, just hit reply.
We’ll make it happen.
Blessings and peace,

Danny B.
aka The Poncho of Many Colours
For Via Vetera
Via Vetera is a not for profit organization, and we appreciate your support.

At any time, for more information, don't hesitate to contact us at
[email protected]

Hi there — come eavesdrop on a warm, wide-ranging conversation with...

04/05/2026

The morning has come.

After the long night, after the silence of the tomb, after all that seemed lost and broken beyond repair—light breaks in again. Steady and sure, like dawn has always done.
And with it comes the world-altering truth: Christ is risen.
Give thanks to the Lord for He is good
His faithful love endures forever

Easter does not deny the darkness we have known. It does not rush past grief or pretend that suffering was not real. Instead, it speaks gently into those very places and says: this is not the end.

The stone is rolled away. The grave is empty. And love—faithful, patient, enduring love—has the final word.
“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.
His faithful love endures forever.”

Today we remember that this love has walked through death itself and come out the other side.

It has not abandoned us in our fear or our doubt.
It meets us where we are—in our weariness, in our hope, in our longing—and calls us again into life.

“Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good.
His faithful love endures forever.”

So we gather with gratitude.
We gather with wonder.
We gather with hearts that may still be healing, yet are stirred by this promise:

Resurrection is not only something that happened,
but something that is happening still.
May this Easter morning find you held in that promise.
May it awaken in you a quiet hope and joy.
And may you know, deeply and truly,
that His faithful love endures forever.
Grace and peace to you this Easter,

Danny B.
aka The Poncho of Many Colours
For Via Vetera
Via Vetera is a not for profit organization, and we appreciate your support.

At any time, for more information, don't hesitate to contact us at
[email protected]

04/03/2026

Good Friday:

The Wounded God

Good Friday invites us to linger where we might otherwise hurry past—to stand at the foot of the cross and behold a mystery that is not easy, but is deeply true.

We worship a God who did not remain distant from human suffering, but entered into it fully. In Jesus, God does not watch from afar; He knows pain from the inside. He bears it, carries it, and, in love, transforms it.

There is something in us that longs to be understood in our wounds—not explained away, not fixed too quickly, but known. On this day, we remember that Christ meets us there. His suffering is not abstract; it speaks to our own. His wounds are not hidden; they are the place where healing begins.

As you move through this Good Friday, may you find space for quiet reflection. Bring before God whatever feels broken or heavy, trusting that nothing is beyond His reach.

I leave you with these words:

“The other gods were strong, but Thou wast weak;
They rode, but Thou didst stumble to a throne;
But to our wounds only God’s wounds can speak,
And not a god has wounds, but Thou alone.”
— Edward Shillito (1872-1948)
Grace and peace,

Danny B.
aka The Poncho of Many Colours
For Via Vetera

https://www.viavetera.com
Via Vetera is a not for profit organization, and we appreciate your support.

02/15/2026

Lent Reflection 2026

Hi everyone,

Lent invites us to slow down and listen to the quieter, truer parts of ourselves—the places where our souls ache, hope, and long to be made whole again. It’s a season that doesn’t look away from our brokenness or our mortality, but gently asks us to bring those very things into the light.

During Lent, we gather to take some time that makes space for honest reflection, thoughtful conversation, and the grace that meets us right where we are. Together, we’ll explore what it means to be human: fragile, beloved, unfinished—and still deeply held by God.

Whether you’re feeling strong or tired, hopeful or worn thin, you’re welcome here. Come as you are. Bring your questions, your weariness, your hope. Let’s walk this season together, tending to our souls and making room for renewal.

The Details:

When: 4 consecutive Mondays from March 9th, 2026 at 6pm PST

Where: Online

Cost: We ask you to please give what you can - simply click on the Donate button at our website https://www.viavetera.com
Sign Up: Sign up by clicking here
https://confirmsubscription.com/h/t/B9CE70DBF2C936E6

Come and take some time for your soul.
Peace

Danny B.
aka The Poncho of Many Colours
For Via Vetera

Via Vetera is a not for profit organization, and we appreciate your support.

11/25/2025

Advent Reflection Group
Hi
Just a reminder that our Advent Reflection group begins a week from today on December 1st, 2025.

In the midst of busy days, this gathering offers a peaceful space to prepare our hearts for the coming birth of Jesus.
During this sacred season of waiting, you are invited into a space of stillness:

a gathering of prayer, quiet reflection, and hearts turned toward the dawning light of Christ.
Together we will sit with the themes of Advent as we prepare for the wonder of Jesus’ birth.

So I invite you to take some time for your heart - come and spend some time in reflection and prayer.

Advent Details

When: 4 consecutive Monday evenings from December 1st to December 22nd

Time: 6pm PST

Where: This is an online group

Cost: As always, there is no charge but we do ask you to donate what you can.

Sign up: By clicking here : https://confirmsubscription.com/h/t/ED7D42C72E0ECDA0

Advent Reflection Group

Viavetera.com

09/26/2025

I am beyond excited to share the launch of Via Vetera's Conversations Podcast - Please go listen, share with your friends - the speakers are really amazing with some interesting and thought provoking perspectives. We appreciate you guys so much!
The Via Vetera Conversations podcast is now available in video and in audio.
For the video of the episodes please go to Youtube.
Here are quick links to the first 2 episodes:
Intro episode:
https://youtu.be/iXEzdmRKqX0?si=_zmdY7xDSnUquA_j
Where Prayer Becomes Real:
https://youtu.be/GfFUKoA2oVc?si=F_xcMzkfeJkmAWv9
The audio version of the podcast is on Apple, Amazon, Spotify, iHeart and many other platforms.
We have received great feedback from these episodes so please check them out.
As always, please Like, Comment, and Subscribe as it prompts the algorithm to get the episodes out to a wider audience.
Please let us now what you think - we really do want to know.
Blessings and peace to you,
Danny B.
aka The Poncho of Many Colours
For Via Vetera
Via Vetera is a not for profit organization, and we appreciate your support.

09/01/2025

EXCITING NEWS!!!!

"Conversations" Podcast
Hi everyone,

After many attempts, the Via Vetera "Conversations" podcast is finally here.

This video is a short introduction to the podcast so that you have a sense as to what it is going to be about.

https://youtu.be/iXEzdmRKqX0?si=AVoCLGcYTIwHsDuI

The podcast will be available in both video and audio formats. I will let you know when the audio will be available - hopefully, as early as next week.

Please Subscribe, click on the Like button and please tell your friends and family about us - we really need your support.
It's been a long time coming but we're pleased to finally be able to launch it.

Blessings and peace to you,

Danny B.

https://www.viavetera.com

08/10/2025

The Pause Button...

Concluding this short series on the gift of the Holy Spirit’s presence, take a moment to reflect on words from the Apostle Paul.

Scene 3: Paul writes to the church in Rome (Romans 8:9-11)

“…You have the Spirit of God living in you… and Christ lives within you…
If the alive-and-present God who raised Jesus from the dead moves into your life, he’ll do the same thing in you that he did in Jesus, bringing you alive to himself…. With his Spirit living in you, your body will be as alive as Christ’s!” (MSG)

Consider these profound promises.

What word or phrase stand out to you?

In what ways are you able to see Spirit-life in your life right now?

In what ways do you feel distant, lacking, or even unworthy of that Spirit-life?

Talk with God about anything that you notice.

This same Spirit who raised Jesus from the dead gives life to you right now

O Holy Spirit,
By whose breath
life rises vibrant out of death,
Come to create, renew, inspire;
Come, kindle in our hearts your fire
- Veni Creator Spiritus, tr. John W. Grant

Blessings and peace to you,

Susan Ness
For Via Vetera
Via Vetera is a not for profit organization, and we appreciate your support.

05/26/2025

The Pause Button...

Hi

Today is a remembering day.
When we first immigrated to the US, this was one of the holidays about which we had to become familiar.

Along with Thanksgiving, it was amazing to me that a nation would take the time to remember how they got here.
Some folks don't like to look back, but the past is filled with the stories of both good and difficult things - it lets you remember the journey.

Remembering is a powerful thing.

The founder of the Hasidic movement, Israel Baal Shem Tov wrote:
“Forgetfulness leads to exile:
remembering is the key to redemption”

Most recently, I’ve had a lot to be concerned about and I have caught myself praying in a kind of resigned sort of way.
I mean, I’m a Christian, I’m supposed to pray, right?
It occurred to me in the middle of one of those prayers, that I was so wrapped up in the concern that I couldn’t recall anything good that had happened.

"Forgetfulness leads to exile…"

So on this remembering day, let’s try to remember how we got here. And here is a temporary place - we’re still on the journey…
Remember the things I have done in the past.

For I alone am God!
I am God, and there is none like me.
- Isaiah 46:9 (NLT)

I will remember the deeds of the Lord;
yes, I will remember your wonders of old.
- Psalm 77:11 (ESV)

Reflect:
Take 5 minutes and consider these passages.
Read slowly, considering each word.
Now sit quietly and reflect.

Whatever, arises in your heart - whatever it is - share this with your Father who loves you.
Blessings and peace to you as you remember,

Danny B.
aka The Poncho of Many Colours
For Via Vetera

Via Vetera is a not for profit organization, and we appreciate your support.

At any time, for more information, don't hesitate to contact us at
[email protected]

https://www.viavetera.com