Awakening

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Acts of the Apostles, awaken, awakening, heal, love, Macrina Wiederkehr, open the door, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

As we seem to crawl toward the beginning of spring on this cloudy morning where snow flurries and a temperature of 25 degrees (F.) persists, I open Macrina Wiederkehr’s text, Seven Sacred Pauses, for some encouragement. She never disappoints. Here is what she tells me for today (beginning with my favorite verse from the Acts of the Apostles!):

O Morning Song of Love, O you in whom we live and move and have our being! We have been asleep too long. Heal the unseeing part of our lives. Lead us to our awakening places. Awaken us to the new light. Open the doors of our hearts, the windows of our souls, the walls of our minds. Awaken us to hope. Awaken us to joy. Awaken us to love. Awaken us to new insights. Make our hearts ready to receive the brightness of your presence. To you we give praise.(p. 61)

Watch and Pray

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awakening, be watchful, consciousness, peaceful transition, prayer, resolution, solution, Taizé, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I have been sitting for quite awhile this morning, trying not to try…to say anything of merit but just to wait. A song comes to me from Taize, a chant that simply says “Stay with me. Remain here with me. Watch and pray.” I hear it over and over in my head and then I realize it is my prayer for the day. As Americans we are not generally very good at waiting for things to happen. And truly, things are always happening. In the spring the energies of the earth “wake up” and bring us the beauty and renewed life of the land. That is much more pleasing than the moment we are in now when nature is resting and death is the order of the day – a stark reality in human terms this year.

We cannot avoid the reality that is ours now. Neither can we waste the moment that is upon us. We wait for resolution of our political situation. It looks like nothing will happen for at least the next two months…but that is not true. Much is happening in preparation for the inauguration of a new political team. Watch the news. It will happen and we can only hope it will happen peacefully. So pray for a peaceful transition.

We are watching incremental growth in the death toll every day. And still people refuse to do the simple things that will stem the tide of this horrific loss. We wait for a simple solution and a vaccine is coming but why wait? Wear a mask, keep your distance and wash your hands. Is that so difficult?

And pray for an awakening of consciousness. There are so many ways in which we are unconscious. We think it is the duty of others to fix things. I ask myself today what is my ability and my responsibility to my community, my nation and the world. What more can I do than watch and pray? Am I even consistent in those two activities? Is that enough?

Optimizing the Story

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awakening, Brian Johnson, George Floyd, hope, new birth, optimism, Peace, reparation, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Today there seems to be a whisper of promise in the world. The sun has returned after the torrential rain and thunder of yesterday and the birds are conversing in quiet tones outside. Fog is lifting – inside and out. There is a sense of possibility, a hope for return to civility on the heels of charges brought against the four policemen involved in the death of George Floyd. We are, perhaps, at the beginning of a new moment of what will be a long awakening. Our task now is to recognize and acknowledge the situation in which we stand.

I am often taken by the messages of Brian Johnson on his daily website offering: optimize.me and today I found his words and those he quoted from President John F. Kennedy particularly appropriate. The occasion was the graduation ceremony at the University of California at Berkeley in 1962. I offer it in gratitude for Brian Johnson, for the hope that is in me and perhaps for the stirring again in many of us, allowing a desire for reparation and a new birth.

Kennedy speaks: “‘Knowledge is the great sun of the firmament,’ said Senator Daniel Webster. ‘Life and power are scattered with all its beams.”‘ “In its light we must think and act not only for the moment but for our time. I am reminded of the story of the great French Marshal Lyautey, who once asked his gardener to plant a tree. The gardener objected that the tree was slow-growing and would not reach maturity for a hundred years. The Marshal replied, ‘In that case there is no time to lose; plant it this afternoon.‘”

Kennedy wrapped up his speech by saying: “Today a world of knowledge – a world of cooperation – just and lasting peace – may be years away. But we have no time to lose. Let us plant our trees this afternoon.”

Darkness to Light

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awakening, Barbara Brown Taylor, experience, Learning to Walk in the Dark, lessons, living in the moment, meaning, new growth, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Zoom

In a first step toward what might be movement back to the work of the Sophia Center – although that seems still very far away – Cheryl (my co-facilitator) and I are “zooming” today to plan what we hope will be the virtual re-gathering of our book study group to finish consideration of Barbara Brown Taylor’s book, Learning to Walk in the Dark (Is that not a perfect title for this moment in time?) which we left in mid-read in early March.

To prepare for our conversation this afternoon, I pulled the book from its resting place. Upon opening to the chapter where perhaps we left off (a very long month ago), I found a loose sheet with a poem entitled For Light by John O’Donohue. There is a parenthetical subtitle (A Blessing) and I found the first stanza very apt in describing just that. Here is what the poet said:

Light cannot see inside things.
That is what the dark is for:
Minding the interior,
Nurturing the draw of growth
Through places where death
In its own way turns into life.

It seems to me that this is what is happening at this “moment.” We cannot reach for the solace of others except virtually and not being able to touch physically is clearly a loss. Can we, however, learn lessons from this distancing? Does it become a benefit when, in the future, we will need to let go of a significant relationship? Are there times when we must “stand on our own two feet” and come through a danger or challenge that we thought we would never be able to achieve?

There are so many lessons offered to us now. We may not see them as blessings just yet but perhaps we are coming closer to the possibility of awakening to new meanings, new growth, new experiences of life. We may even name those openings “Blessings.”

Getting It Done

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awakening, blessed, holiness, Macrina Wiederkehr, mindfulness, pause, prosper, seven sacred pauses, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, to do list

Today promises to be one of those days when I wonder how I can possibly do all the things I have to do in order to be ready for what comes next. As usual, the answer popped right up, this time from Macrina Wiederkehr on a circled page number of her book, Seven Sacred Pauses, which is subtitled Living Mindfully through the Hours of the Day. Whether or not I get all my tasks completed today, I hope at bedtime to feel as if all is right with the world as long as I remember the advice Macrina gives at this first hour.

If we practice living mindfully, we slowly begin to see the holiness of so many things that remain hidden when we choose to rush through the hours, striking tasks from the list of things we must accomplish by day’s end. It will be a happy moment when we remember to add the wise act of pausing to our to-do lists.

This pause can be as simple as standing attentively before a flowering plant or listening to the frogs in the pond. Perhaps we can stop for a cleansing breath: Breathe in the spirit of the hour; breathe in gratitude and compassion for yourself; breathe out love and encouragement for your co-workers, friends, family members. Your pause may be an awakening stretch, or sitting quietly and remembering your name. If you can learn the art of pausing, your work will prosper and be blessed. (p. 20-21)

Sunday Morning

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Ancient Songs Sung Anew, awakening, beauty, God's love, honoring, Mary, psalm 96, sing, song of praise, strength, taize, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Psalm 96 greets me this morning, encouraging me to sing, a prodding that will not be difficult to follow as I wake both to memories of yesterday and events of the day to come.

The women I met and interacted with yesterday were so kind, so respectful that I found myself immediately comfortable in their presence and awed by their faith in the power of prayer and the love of Mary, the mother of Jesus, whose intercession with God was a consistent strength in their lives. We had five hours together sharing information and experiences, both serious and lighthearted, and one of the best by-products for me was introducing my own mother to them and feeling her spirit fit in such a wonderful community. And then there was the bonus of driving home along a highway where the trees were brilliantly colored, singing their own song of praise. What a surprise! We are so accustomed to the peak weekend of autumn’s glory being earlier now in October that finding this brilliance just a little north of here was an unexpected delight at this late date. I just had to sing in accompaniment!

Today there will be occasion for our spirits to sing again as we welcome our newest candidate to our religious community for a conversation about what is closest to our hearts. This evening I will join in a prayer service in the style of Taizé with chant and Scripture and shared silence, a fitting conclusion to this Sabbath. What could be better, I ask myself, as I return to the words that prompted this reflection on Psalm 96.

Singing is a form of honoring someone. It is also a form of awakening. In this case both humanity at large and creation as a whole are being brought to wakefulness…Beauty attracts us and God is the ultimate Beauty of the universe. We are invited into that beauty, attracted close and closer, being touched and changed by it. What is there of beauty, reflecting the divine glory, that attracts you? (Ancient Songs Sung Anew, p. 244)

 

 

 

 

 

An Extraordinary Idea

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awakening, compassion, daily practice, Jan Phillips, mindfulness, No Ordinary Time, social awareness, spiritual, spiritual practice, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, tranquility

Today I’m meeting with Cheryl, my co-facilitator of our summer series on Jan Phillips book, No Ordinary Time. Jan’s workshop with us was so inspiring that Cheryl thought it a good idea to keep that awakening going and it seems that others – myself being the most enthusiastic – agree. (Check the “Events” page on our website for further information.) To prepare for our planning session, I decided to read a little of Jan’s Tuesday chapter. Here’s what she said:

Our spiritual practice tones our mindfulness muscles just as physical discipline might tone your abs. The results of mindfulness are tranquility, compassion, spiritual and social awareness, balance, bliss. I could go on. All this is guaranteed, but there is a minimal requirement. Daily practice. Hence, the word discipline…

We have disciplined ourselves to fasten our seatbelts, to put children in car seats, to stop smoking, for the most part, and these external disciplines promote our well-being. This discipline of interior practice promotes the well-being of our spirit and bodymind. And since we are to love others as we love ourselves, this is one way of fully loving ourselves… (p. 31, 33)

If you live close enough, won’t you consider joining us? If not, my suggestion is to gather a group yourselves and read the book together. I am certain that you won’t regret it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Dawn

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awakening, dance of creation, dawn, Jesus, Macrina Wiederkehr, mindfulness, Rumi, seven sacred pauses, stay awake, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Thoreau

On the opening page of chapter 2 of her Seven Sacred Pauses, Macrina Wiederkehr writes about greeting the dawn. Toward the end of her reflection she offers words more meaningful than any I could string together as guidance for this day.

This is the awakening hour. This is the hour of praise. “O medicine of dawn; O healing drink of morning!” Offering both words and silence, I join in the dance of creation. What will this day be like? Will I choose to walk through the hours mindfully? “To affect the quality of the day is the highest of arts,” Henry David Thoreau tells us. And the mystical poet Jalaluddin Rumi reminds us, “The breezes at dawn have secrets to tell you; don’t go back to sleep.” Jesus says, “Stay awake.”