Proceed with Caution

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awareness, best practices, blessed, Lynn Bauman, psalm 112, reconciliation, resolution, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Here we sit with knowledge of unprecedented numbers of votes having been cast in our national elections – a very good thing – and with incredibly close numbers of those votes for each of the two presidential candidates – not such a good thing. I say that because that split in the vote is so indicative of the divide in our country. More than ever before as we continue to see new numbers with each report, we cannot imagine how a reconciliation will be achieved. I do not mean, of course, that I would ever hope for a world or even a country where everyone held all the same ideas, where there was no diversity; that would be boring! So what do I mean?

Lynn Bauman’s translation of the psalm for today (PS 112) speaks of how we need to proceed in life, and I think it is a fitting way to move forward. It begins with Hallelujah! and continues in a statement of what we might call “best practices.” See if you don’t agree.

I speak in praise of all the truly blessed upon the earth. They stand in awe, aware of God, and listen carefully to every breath and word God utters. (That would certainly take a great deal of attention! Later in the psalm we hear a darker side of life and how “the blessed” manage to keep the faith): In all the dark and bitter places of their lives the light remains and brightly burns with mercy and compassion, for these they balance with righteous laws.

As the days pass and the outcome seems close to a resolution, I can only hope that our “better angels” are with us as we strive for peace and compromise.

The Essential Word

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agent for change, awareness, Eckhart Tolle, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I’m on retreat this week so I’m not sure how my time will play out for blogging. We start with morning meditation at 7:30 so, as my father used to advise, it’s “short stories” for now. Here’s a word from yesterday that came from Eckhart Tolle as a Present Moment Reminder. It seems perfect for me today and, if you are willing, it could be your prayer for everyone seeking to deepen their spirituality in “the Now.”

Eckhart reminds us: Awareness is the greatest agent for change.

What Can One Do?

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Awakened, awareness, caring, challenges, concern, mindful, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Last night we had a thunderstorm that rumbled for quite awhile and poured torrents of rain on our land as if every cloud was ripped open and burst all at once. I had a moment of wishing to go out and stand under the rain to be washed clean but the lightning convinced me to take a safer path. Looking out the window into the dark was not as fulfilling but definitely a more adult option.

Suddenly there was a thunderclap that woke those who were asleep and called us all to gather in one place in the house. Had a tree fallen? Was there an electrical outage? It truly sounded like two giant boulders smashing into one another. There was nothing to do but sit in the dark and wait. After some moments we expected nothing more than a continuation of the rain, the weakened effort of the the thunder and lightning, and a surrender to the night. But were we changed?

Anything can be a call to awareness. There are places in our country where the storm that disturbed us for a moment was wreaking havoc for inhabitants as a hurricane. Were we concerned for their safety last night? If we had been living in one of the war zones in the world, that moment might have been catastrophic. Are we mindful of the “hotspots” in the world? Do we consider the dangers that some people face every day of their lives? We are living now in the midst of a pandemic. Has it changed us for the better, made us more mindful and caring of people less fortunate than we are? How do we meet the challenges of each day now?

I wonder what one thing I will do, one thought I will think today to make someone happier…to care for someone in need…to be grateful for my life.

Pay Attention!

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attention, awareness, compassion, grief, Jesus, John the Baptist, loss, Matthew, needs, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Sometimes I feel so sorry for Jesus. In today’s gospel (MT 14:13-21) there are three distinct moments when Jesus could have used a kind word but no one noticed. The first line is the saddest:
1. “When Jesus learned of the death of John the Baptist, he withdrew in a boat to a deserted place by himself.” Of course he did!! This was his relative and dear friend who had baptized him and recognized who he was immediately. With him gone, Jesus would certainly have been bereft.
2. Even then, the crowds followed him. (I’m hoping they just weren’t informed about John because had they known they would have given him some space to grieve.) They were waiting from him when his boat pulled in to the shore and in his great sense of compassion, he tended to their needs – putting his own feelings aside. He cured them.
3. I’m wondering why the disciples couldn’t see his sadness. They seemed to just be concerned to have him disperse the crowds so they, themselves, wouldn’t have to figure out what to do next. I love the challenge he offered them when he said, “There’s no need for them to go away. Give them some food yourselves.” Of course they had no idea how to do that, but once again compassion reigned and Jesus taught a great lesson.

All of this in the midst of his grief! What lessons might we learn from this reading? Once again, I would say “Awareness, awareness, awareness!” Look beyond what is in front of you to what is inside the person before you. See always with an eye of compassion in the generous manner of Jesus.

Awareness, Awareness, Awareness

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awareness, change, consciousness, Eckhart Tolle, possessions, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Eckhart Tolle posted something this morning that caught my eye in its simplicity and its perfect depth of meaning. It was easily said, I suppose, as we are all about “catch phrases” these days, but I plan to spend time and effort with this one.

“Awareness,” he said, “is the greatest agent for change.”

I had been thinking about today’s gospel, the one I always refer to as “bigger barns” and talk about as akin to the relatively recent appearance of the storage units that dot the landscape in most towns these days. I wonder sometimes as I look around my bedroom how I acquired all the books I see or why I can’t find an empty hanger on which to place the laundry I just took out of the machine. How many of us can name all our possessions these days, I wonder.

Seeing what is in front of us to see and doing what is before us to do becomes more difficult unless we stand still for a moment every little while, look about us and shake off all the accretions of the last ten minutes. (I hyperbolize, no doubt, but only to make what I am coming to consider as a very important point.)

I challenge us all to see how long we can pay attention to anything in particular today before we fall out of consciousness. Let’s see what we see!

Morning Glory

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awareness, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, dawn, praise, psalm 66, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Thomas Merton

The deck at the back of our house is wet. I am grateful for the rain that gentled the heat of yesterday while we slept. Everything is still quiet – except the birds who must know that today is the beginning of a new week, a new moment for songs of praise. I feel like the sole witness to creation’s great, miraculous beauty as I read the refrain from Psalm 66: Let all the earth cry out to God with joy!

Some moments later, even the birds are quieting down in awe as Thomas Merton steps in from long ago with his own psalm at dawn just perfect for this holy sabbath day.

Today, Father, this blue sky lauds you. The delicate green and orange flowers of the tulip poplar tree praise you. The distant blue hills praise you, together with the sweet-smelling air that is full of brilliant light. The bickering flycatchers praise you with the lowing cattle and the quails that whistle over there. I too, Father, praise you with all these my brothers, and they give voice to my own heart and to my own silence. We are all one silence, and a diversity of voices. You have made us together, you have made us one and many, you have placed me here in the midst as witness, as awareness, and as joy.

(Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, p. 177-178, excerpted in Thomas Merton – A Book of Hours edited by Kathleen Deignan)

Imagine!

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A Deep Breath of Life, abilities, Alan Cohen, awareness, creativity, enlightened, healing, I am the way, Imagine, Jesus, joy, life, love, seeking, striving, success, support, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, truth, trying

Home again this morning in my own space, I first did what is my usual Sunday morning task: checking my calendar for the week to make sure nothing creeps up on me for which I’m not prepared. I was reminded that there is some creative work to be done and that is a good thing for my spirit. That task done but still in waking mode, I turned to Alan Cohen to find the perfect message for this morning. Perhaps you will find it to be so as well.

Imagine that all of your trying, seeking, and striving has been completed. Imagine that you have within you all the awareness and tools you need to live a life of joy, creativity, success and love. Imagine that you don’t have to pass any more tests or prove anything to anyone. Imagine that you don’t have to earn the love or favor of God. Imagine that you have the abilities and credentials to offer healing and support to others. These imaginings are much closer to the truth than imaginings that you are broken, wounded or needy. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth and the life.” If you recognize who you are, you can make this statement with equal authority. 

Practice being enlightened. It is the truth about you.  (Alan Cohen – A Deep Breath of Life)

Awareness All Around

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awareness, God's voice, Joan Chittister, spiritual practice, teacher, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, wisdom, Wisdom Distilled from the Daily

As the days of September slip away too quickly, I am trying to find a rhythm that will make me feel as if I am living the days in the best way I can. Turning for help from Sister Joan Chittister in her book Wisdom Distilled from the Daily, I found the following familiar story that made me smile but also gave me a practical reminder.

One day a traveler begged the Teacher for a word of wisdom that would guide the rest of the journey. The Teacher nodded affably and though it was the day of silence took a sheet of paper and wrote on it a single word, “Awareness.” “Awareness?” the traveler said, perplexed. “Couldn’t you expand on that a bit?” So the Teacher took the paper back and wrote, “Awareness, awareness, awareness.” But what do these words mean?” the traveler insisted. Finally the Teacher reached for the paper and wrote, clearly and firmly, “Awareness, awareness, awareness means…Awareness!” (p.68)

My practice today will be an attempt to be present at every moment to that which is happening around me and within me so that I will not miss the voice of God at any moment or in any event.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Going Forward…Again

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attention, awareness, Benedictine, connectedness, discipline, Joan Chittister, list, prayer, reading, spirituality, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

This early rising time – 5:20 again this morning – seems a throwback to when I was first in the convent! At issue now, however, is the fact that I wake up at this time after only five or six hours of sleep (when my “normal” is eight) and am not able to go back for more rest, which has serious consequences later in the day. With my coffee just now I decided to make a list of important things not to forget for today and tomorrow. No wonder I’ve already entered a mental marathon! Within about three minutes I had 25 things on my list! They aren’t all very time-consuming, but still…

I read a few lines from Joan Chittister when I finally gave in to the dawning of day. I was reminded immediately of the importance of prayer and reading to Benedictine spirituality and the rule that she says “does not call for either great works or great denial. It simply calls for connectedness…with God, with others and with our inmost selves. It (the Rule) is for ordinary people who live ordinary lives.” But it calls us to attention and awareness.

That’s why I need my list. Lately I feel as if I have let the weather determine my activities and see the hours slipping away in lassitude. A little discipline is good for the soul. So here I am – determined enough to regroup and take my list in hand, willing to admit my shortcomings to the world in order that I might get back to a deeper connectedness and well-ordered living.

May it be so this very day!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Friends of God

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awareness, child, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander, content, faith, friend, friendship, gratitude, humble, knowledge, light, poverty, praise, prayer plant, presence, simplicity, spirit, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Thomas Merton

Sometimes when life feels very complicated I like to find some simplicity somewhere. This morning, since light had already arrived at this task before I did, I looked up and saw that my prayer plant had found a way to untangle herself from the tight configuration her leaves had been living in since I transplanted her a few weeks ago. She seemed happy to spread her arms in praise. That moment was enough to call me to do the same.

The feeling was deepened when I opened to the words of Thomas Merton who offered me the following message from his book, Conjectures of a Guilty Bystander:

You ask of me nothing else than to be content that I am your Child and your Friend, simply to accept your friendship because it is your friendship. This friendship is Spirit. You have called me to be repeatedly born in the Spirit, repeatedly born in light, in knowledge, in unknowing, in faith, in awareness, in gratitude, in poverty, in presence, and in praise.

Such a wide-ranging invitation offered to all who consent simply to accept humble friendship with God!