Mindfulness

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Benedictine, busy, consciousness, full, mindfulness, spiritual traditions, Sr. Joan Chittister, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, wisdom

In March The Sophia Center for Spirituality will offer a five-session series on spiritual practices that foster mindfulness. Far reaching and from diverse spiritual traditions, we hope something in these presentations and exercises will catch the attention of each person who participates. Sister Joan Chittister, the prolific and highly esteemed author of spiritual books, many of which teach about Benedictine spirituality, reminded me this morning of how important it is to be consistently mindful as I go about my days. Here is what she says:

And so Benedict calls all of us to mindfulness. No life is to be so busy that there is no time to take stock of it. No day is to be so full of business that the gospel dare not intrude. No schedule is to be so tight that there is no room for reflection on whether what is being done is worth doing at all. No work should be so all-consuming that nothing else can ever get in: not my husband, not my wife, not my hobbies, not my friends, not nature, not reading, not prayer. How shall we ever put on the mind of Christ if we never take time to determine what the mind of Christ was then and is now, for me. (Wisdom Distilled From the Daily, p. 105)

That about covers everything, I’d say…no life, no day, no schedule, no work, no person or thing. I am fascinated with the way Sister Joan rolls out her sentences so that each slice of life is connected to a practice that – if we are not mindful – is ignored to our detriment. Each of her sentences, therefore, could be a subject for examination of consciousness. How busy am I? Of what is my day full? How tightly do I pack my schedule? What consumes me that hinders my attention to the important things/people in my life? How do I see my capacity for “putting on the mind of Christ?” Weighty questions, these. Perfect for a Saturday perhaps!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Important Things

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anxious, busy, Jesus, love of God, Luke, presence, St. Martha, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, worried

I think St. Martha ought to be the patron saint of the United States. (Today is her feast day.) We are so busy! One translation of the familiar message to Martha in the tenth chapter of Luke’s gospel has Jesus saying, “Martha, Martha, you’re anxious and worried about so many things…” but another has it as: “you are so BUSY…” Either one fits the description of so many of us whose lives are so full of activity that we find it difficult to sit still. Even when there is nothing pressing, we find some necessity staring us in the face. Even when we’re eating (at least if alone) we look for something to read, just to save time! Even our children don’t have time to sit down to talk or eat with parents because after school means basketball or travel soccer, music lessons or karate… then homework on into the night.

Perhaps I’m making excuses for myself. It’s almost noon and I am still in my pajamas (which could be taken to be a shorts set, however!). I’ve had my coffee, eaten a banana and emptied the dishwasher in the 3 1/2 hours since I finally rolled out of bed, but I’ve also had some great conversation with my Sisters. Now, however, I have told myself I have to “get serious” and attend to all the catch-up things that await my attention. Somehow, I’m not sure I will be too productive today. And that’s okay. I think I’ll focus on the conclusion of Jesus who finished his message to Martha about all that she’s concerned about by saying, “Only one thing is necessary.” He was trying to get her to imitate her sister who was just sitting with him, reveling, I would guess, in his presence and what he was saying. So whether it’s a focus on the present moment with those around us or on the love of God, it sounds like enough for me today. And it sounds good.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Busy?

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blessings, busy, holidays, honor God, Paul, Peace, psalm 128, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Thessalonians

One of the most frequent comments I hear these days is how quickly time is passing. We wonder if it’s just because we’re getting older that it seems so – but younger people are saying it too. Perhaps it’s because we’re so busy and it seems time is being stolen from us by our over-active lives. (There was a website in my in-box this morning offering workshops on how to be less busy as well as “keeping your eye on the path.” – common themes lately.) The Christmas rush is already in high gear, mixed with groaning about the “warp speed” approach of Thanksgiving and potential travel glitches. Even writing this brings a feeling of urgency, although I plan to stay home and relax through both of those holiday events; the whirlwind is just everywhere in and around our days.

All this blathering on my part arose from Paul’s first letter to the Thessalonians this morning (1 THESS 5:1-6) He’s talking about “the day of the Lord” overtaking people who aren’t alert “like a thief in the night.” The beginning of the reading says, however: Concerning times and seasons, brothers and sisters, you have no need for anything to be written to you…presupposing that they’ll be ready for whatever comes. It seems a bit of a warning not to get caught up in our busyness. He says at the end of the reading, Therefore, let us not sleep as the rest do, but let us stay alert and sober.

Going back to that website, I was thinking that rather than abdicating my responsibility (and my financial resources) to someone to find out how to be less busy, maybe I should just sit down, take a breath and make a list of priorities about the next six weeks so that I can then spend a little time thinking of the deeper meaning of these “times and seasons” that are upon us. While I’m waking up to this activity, finding peace and focus for the task, I might choose to read my favorite translation of the psalm for today (128) that gives a vision of what it’s all really about.

Blessed are you who walk upon the paths of God. Your life is filled with many hidden blessings, which overflow as from your hands, the gift of many labors. And blessings like fruit-bearing trees and vines spring forth and flourish from the garden of your house; your spouse and children are its yield. And all who honor God upon this path shall know a cornucopia of good. For it is God, the center of the heart, who prospers life until its end. So you who hear and pray this prayer, come close and live within the circle of God’s care, and may God’s special peace be yours, one generation to another.