Psalm 8

Tags

Ancient Songs Sung Anew, born again, David Haas, Everything will live, nature, night sky, psalm 8, rebirth, resurrection, stars, Ward Bauman

This is the moment when, in concert with the Scripture texts about resurrection, the earth in my neighborhood begins to come alive again. I always say I would never want to live anywhere but in the Northeast of the United States because of the beauty and example of the cyclic nature of life that we see in the seasons. As I write, I hear somewhere deep inside the strains of a hymn by David Haas, repeating the words Everything will live! over and over. As I look out, I see the red that is the first sign of renewal on the maple trees. Soon there will be a red carpet on the ground and the tiny leaves will take their rightful place, having been “born again” from the sleep of winter. The psalmist sings the refrain: O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth! (PS 8:2) Surely it is a moment to join in praising the Creator for such a gift and to recognize as well our own place in the creation.

Ward Bauman reflects on this theme, saying: This psalm is a beloved hymn to the God of the universe. Imagine the psalmist standing at night under the bright canopy of stars singing this poem. The night sky has always been for humanity a source of wonder and awe. Looking up on a clear night with the vast star-field spread out above puts our lives and world into a very different perspective. We see ourselves as small and insignificant in this vastness, but are we? A voice out of the universe seems to answer our question, “You have a sacred place and a role to fulfill.” (Ancient Songs Sung Anew, p. 17)

As we move more deeply into this season of rebirth, let us be mindful of our relationship to the universe in which we live and to its Creator. In that mindful space, may we come to understand and to value more deeply the role that we are called to fulfill in the sacred place that we call our home.