Once again I marvel at the fifth chapter of Matthew’s gospel. Today it’s verses 38 to 42 where Jesus says: “When someone strikes you on your right cheek, turn the other one to him as well. If anyone wants to go to law with you over your tunic, hand him your cloak as well….”
Over the past few weeks, I have made three trips to The Deposit Closet, a thrift store in the village of Deposit, NY (really!) not too far from Windsor where I live. I have brought a number of boxes and bags, some full of blankets and afghans from our house, but also a lot of clothing that has been “mine,” much of which we call “hand-me-overs” as someone else has worn it first. That’s the easy part. There are also items that I find it hard to let go of but that I know I do not need. Those are more difficult to give away, but it is time…
I find it interesting that on the drive home from “The Closet” I feel a lightness inside, a freedom in knowing that I am not tied to those possessions and that they will serve others well. More difficult for me is letting go of books (many of which I still hope to read after they have been with me for years). And then there is money. Surprisingly, that has become the easiest thing to give away. I have never had much money (having promised a vow of poverty at age 21). I smile at teenage me who used to be certain to know just how much money was in my bedroom drawer, but then I think of the generosity of my parents and the way we always had what we needed. Every year, usually after a dance recital, I recall starting to get an allowance as a reward for our stellar performance (!!) but sooner or later that habit would disappear and we would be back to just having money when we needed it for something. Now, as then, my needs are taken care of so it becomes easier to make a donation from my monthly “budget” each time a need arises. I don’t know when letting go began to be so easy, but I think it’s likely since centering prayer became my preferred spiritual practice. Essentially, the process and the goal are similar: sit, let go of thoughts and consent to be in God’s presence. So simple, but somehow difficult.
It’s all about letting go. Perhaps, if I continue to do so in small ways, I will be ready when I am called to let go of this life into God…and that will be the best reward of all for the practice of loving generosity!
I just read the gospel story of the blind man, Bartimaeus. (MK 10: 46-52). My favorite line has Bartimaeus answering the question Jesus had put to him when he called out for attention. Actually both lines of the exchange are crucial. Jesus asks, “What do you want me to do for you?” to which Bartimaeus answers, “Master, I want to see.” Upon reflection one might ask why Jesus needed to pose that question as it must have been obvious that the man was blind. It certainly wasn’t a trivial request. The fact that Jesus asked it, however, might move us to consider some deeper content in our own prayer.
When I think of the courage necessary to the first Christians as they shared their beliefs in Jesus and found resistance that led to beatings and vilification, I’m honored to have an opportunity to do the same with radically different outcomes. I am certainly not comparing myself to St. Paul and his gift of preaching! The only similarity is that I will leave in a few hours for a destination in Pennsylvania, close to 225 miles away. Unlike in Paul’s day, the trip will take me about four hours and the travel conditions will simply necessitate paying attention while I drive.
Again yesterday I was reminded of the importance of spiritual practice but this time that message came in a group gathering. Five of the seven members of our “practice circle” who were able to be present came together in Estelle’s lovely living room for what has become an increasingly important monthly meeting. As we first checked in with present events in our personal lives – some painful or difficult – we also expressed our gratitude for the sunshine and promise of spring (regardless of the 25 degree temperature and mounds of snow outside!) as well as our enthusiasm for being together.
Synonyms for constantly: continuously, persistently, always, again and again, frequently, repeatedly, over and over…(You get the picture, yes?)
I had the privilege once of meeting Oren Lyon, the Native American “Faithkeeper” of the Onondaga Nation who lives just south of the city of Syracuse, New York about 80 miles from my home. I was pleasantly surprised that Alan Cohen wrote today about the role of “Faithkeeper” as it is embodied by Oren Lyon and others like him. This person in the tribe consistently holds the higher vision, having been designated to be the voice of hope, an inspiration to remember the bigger picture when others forget it. Cohen remarks that “each of us needs to be a Faithkeeper. When others around us go into fear or confusion, we serve best by remembering the light and holding peace.” When in the presence of Oren Lyon, it was easy to sense what this means and why he holds such a designation for his people.
Some years ago in a Wisdom School with Cynthia Bourgeault, we learned a chant that was quite instructive for me. We sang: Listen, listen, wait in silence listening for the One from whom all mercy flows.” It was a very quieting verse and, sung over and over, had a mesmerizing effect, bringing us to stillness as we began our periods of Centering Prayer. I found those words again this morning in a translation of Psalm 130, verse 6, where the psalm was subtitled “The Call for Healing.” Even without the music, the words of that verse themselves could lead one to feel the healing presence of God, the One from whom all mercy flows. I was grateful for the additional commentary on the psalm, however, which emphasized the possibility contained in those words. See if you don’t agree.
I was listening to a program last night on my computer about “re-writing our own life script.” During the call-in portion the speaker, John Newton, asked the caller how it would feel to live in a place of “not knowing.” What would that feel like? I found the question rather interesting because I didn’t react negatively to it! Usually my first thoughts upon waking in the morning find me running through my schedule for the day (after I am focused enough to even know what day it is!) in order to know how quickly I have to move, whether I have had enough sleep to meet the challenges of the day and how much of my incidental agenda I will be able to fit in between appointments and meetings or whatever has been previously scheduled.
One of the “tricky” faculties of the human mind is our ability to judge. We need to be “razor-sharp” in using the quality of discrimination – knowing first the two sides of that “coin” – while refraining from making judgments based on insufficient information, hearsay or our own narrow perspective. To clarify what might sound rather complicated in that sentence, I have two examples.
The Sophia Center for Spirituality 