Remain

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connection, flowering, fruit, Jesus, John, remain, steadfast, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vine, wine

In my neighborhood we’re just beginning to see the flowering of trees that we hope will later produce much fruit. In the southwestern part of our state vintners are hoping for just the right mix of sun and rain that will assure an abundance of grapes this year. Driving in wine country is a breathtaking experience of seeing acres and acres first of the perfectly pruned “naked” vines secured in row after row and later those same vines in full leaf. It’s then time to walk the fields in order to see the fruit hidden among the leaves and experience the fragrance of the ripening grapes. (Oh yes, and then there is the wine tasting…)

From observing nature in this and many other ways, we come to better understand the frequent references of Jesus to life and growth in the Spirit. Often, for me, there is a word (usually a verb) that deepens the meaning of the message. Today that word is “remain.” In what scholars have come to call the “final discourse” of Jesus in John’s gospel (ch. 14-17), there are many beautiful sentiments, none more vivid or familiar, perhaps, than “the vine and the branches.” Jesus says, Remain in me, as I remain in you. Just as a branch cannot bear fruit on its own unless it remains on the vine, so neither can you unless you remain in me. As I read those two sentences, the verb remain, repeated four times, reverberates in me as a clear call to fidelity. The essential truth is that if the connection of the branch to the vine is severed, life is irrevocably cut off. But the responsibility for connection is not all on us! The effort of remaining steadfast in all of life’s circumstances is made worthy of any struggle because of the promise that Christ also remains in us. Knowing this, I am willing for the pruning as much as for the ripening and trust that all will come to fruition in the fullness of time.

 

 

Harvest Prep

Tags

blossoms, expanded conciousness, fruit, harvest, Jesus, Matthew, priest shortage, priests, sacred cows, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vocations

I was in conversation last night with a group of people when the topic came around to fruit and other crops. We were eating grapes and cherries among other things. We noted what a poor showing the forsythia made this year – a big disappointment to some of us who wait all year for their brilliance. It was the same for apple blossoms and other fruit trees although some showed beautiful flowers. Someone wondered about orchards in upstate New York and what the apple harvest would be like this year…

This morning’s gospel has Jesus continuing to address the crowds and being moved to pity for them as they seem to him “like sheep without a shepherd. He says to his disciples, “The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest.” (MT 9:38) In my Church a familiar topic is the dearth of priests to serve the parishes. Some people also lament the drop in church attendance. I know these are both valid concerns and I encourage prayer for vocations to the priesthood and ways to build up parish community. I believe, you see, that the harvest is indeed great. I see a shift in focus, however, and The Sophia Center for Spirituality is a part of that shift. People seem to be longing for some opportunities to deepen their personal spirituality and to connect with others who are searching for the same. There are many church communities that are vibrant, doing a good job with incorporating different spiritual practices and outreach to their ritual and relationships. Communities of disciples are flourishing. But there are also places where the flowering of community has diminished over some years and especially concerning is the lack of presence of young people in their midst. Brave congregations face the “why” question head on and shift to meet the needs of a totally different population from the one that existed “when we were young.” Letting go of how “we’ve always done it” allows for creativity and welcome to young and old – and all of us in between.

Today is a good day, I think, to examine what are the “sacred cows” in my life and how willing I am to give them over to an expanded consciousness of who are the -perhaps unlikely – shepherds who are willing to put themselves at the service of a greater harvest. The next question is where and how to search for the deeper life that might ignite a renewal of spirit in our churches that are struggling. It’s all out there – just as it was in the time of Jesus. We have only to pray to the Master of the harvest and then start digging!