• The Promise of Interruption – A Sermon on the Annunciation, Luke 1:26-38

    The Promise of Interruption – A Sermon on the Annunciation, Luke 1:26-38

    We call today (March 25) the Feast of the Annunciation (Luke 1:26-38) but I wonder if it might be more accurate to call it the Feast of Interruption. Here’s what I mean by that. We don’t know what Mary was doing when the Angel Gabriel showed up. Holy scripture doesn’t tell us. I’m willing to… Read more

  • Lent with the Desert Fathers: Fasting From Words

    Lent with the Desert Fathers: Fasting From Words

    A Word from the Desert Abba Macarius the Great said to the brothers at Scetis, when he dismissed the assembly, ‘Flee, my brothers.’ One of the old men asked him, ‘Where could we flee to beyond the desert?’ He put his finger on his lips and said, ‘Flee that,’ and he went into his cell,… Read more

  • Lent with the Desert Fathers: Detaching From Another’s Scorn or Praise

    Lent with the Desert Fathers: Detaching From Another’s Scorn or Praise

    A Word from the Desert “A brother came to see Abba Macarius the Egyptian, and said to him, ‘Abba, give me a word, that I may be saved.’ So the old man said, ‘Go to the cemetery and abuse [insult] the dead.’ The brother went there, abused [insulted] them and threw stones at them; then… Read more

  • Lent with the Desert Fathers: Is it Yours?

    Lent with the Desert Fathers: Is it Yours?

    A Word From the Desert “The same Abba Agathon was walking with his disciples. One of them, finding a small green pea on the road, said to the old man, ‘Father, may I take it?’ The old man, looking at him with astonishment, said, ‘Was it you who put it there?’ ‘No,’ replied the brother.… Read more

  • Celebrating St. Gregory the Great

    Celebrating St. Gregory the Great

    Today, March 12, is the feast of St. Gregory the Great also known, especially in the East, as St. Gregory the Dialogist because he wrote a book entitled The Dialogues in which he extolled the Italian saints. Gregory served as pope from 590 until his death on March 12, 604. Though often seen as Augustinian… Read more

  • Lent with the Desert Fathers: Detachment and Simplicity

    Lent with the Desert Fathers: Detachment and Simplicity

    A Word From the Desert Abba Zosimos said, “In time, through neglect, we lose even the little fervor that we suppose we have in our ascetic renunciation. We become attached to useless, insignificant, and entirely worthless matters, substituting these for the love of God and neighbor, appropriating material things as if they were our own or… Read more

Fr. Mike

My name is Mike Marsh. I am a priest of the Episcopal Church. I retired from active parish ministry in 2025 after serving twenty-two years in The Episcopal Diocese of West Texas.

Spiritual Direction

I am available for spiritual direction online and in person. I have been doing spiritual direction for nearly twenty years. It is one of the aspects of my priesthood about which I am most passionate.

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© Michael K. Marsh and Interrupting the Silence, 2009-2026, all rights reserved. Please contact me for permission to use content from Interrupting the Silence.

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