Isaiah's Advice

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gossip, hearsay, inner work, Isaiah, judgmental, prayer, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

My two-day hiatus from writing was not because I was buried in the snow but I must admit to feeling the quiet and the inactivity that such a weather event has on me. I prefer to move with the silence that the storm engenders when there is no accompanying wind. Yesterday was certainly a day to attend to inner work even while looking out the window. Today I am back to checking what Isaiah has to say; his voice is very often present during this season of Advent. This morning he makes reference to King David as “the shoot” that will “sprout from the stump of Jesse,” (his father). He says a lot of hopeful things but there’s one statement that seems quite appropriate for our times and to which we might turn our attention for this day.

Not by appearance shall he judge, nor by hearsay shall he decide…(IS 11:3)

Just think about that for a moment. Consider all the hearsay on the internet and the gossip in magazines. Think of how celebrities are hounded and the political scene has turned into a race for scandalous tidbits. People are judged by the clothes they wear or the color(s) of their hair or the way they speak or how much money they have – because of course the media has shown us all that information.

Do I sound harsh or judgmental? If so, it’s probably because I think we’ve gone too far down this “information highway.” And don’t get me wrong. I can easily get seduced by a headline and follow it until I wake up and ask myself what the point of my search is…I’d be better off reflecting on Chapter 11 of Isaiah!

Getting to the bottom of things is different from digging in the dirt. We would do well to consider our sources and our own biases when making decisions about people in our lives, those who lead our organizations, candidates for office and the person who just joined our church. Finally, our prayer might well be that the Spirit of the Lord will be upon us, calling us always to look for and to find the truth in love.

Going the Distance

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anger, eclipse, follow, go the distance, gossip, Lazarus, let go, love, Martha, Mary, Matthew, perfect, sin, surrender, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I am sometimes awed at how much can be packed into a few verses of Scripture. What I mean is more likely where my mind and heart go after reading a short section, like today’s gospel about the rich young man who couldn’t quite “go the distance” in surrender. (MT 19:16-22)

Like most of us he claims having kept the commandments as they’re written and as Jesus enumerates them for him. No killing, no adultery, no stealing…easy enough, we might say. A closer examination might see us falling off that wagon though in the small things that lead to those greater sins. What about a burst of anger or joining in on a conversation about someone that might lead to stealing a bit of his or her reputation? And then there’s that last one: Love your neighbor as yourself. That one could be the subject of a very long retreat…

The last section of the text is very disturbing to many people. It’s the two sentences that would send many of us away sad like the rich young man. Jesus says to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell all that you have and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.” I stop after typing that because it is too difficult to interpret for anyone but myself. Okay, even for myself. I did have two thoughts for consideration though and they are connected.

1. I preached at my mother’s funeral about Mary and Martha because, as she moved deeper and deeper into dementia, I saw my mother let go of everything that seemed important to her in her younger day. In the end, she was like a bright light “sitting at the feet of Jesus, listening to him” like Mary, the sister of Lazarus, in the gospel. I noted her transformation as a process of letting go that I saw begin at the age of 45 when she had to move away from everything she had known because of my father’s job change. As she tested the waters of this move, she found new friends and new activities that soon allowed her to let go, to dive in and live fully – loving well even into eternity. What I said about her divestment was that she did not necessarily give up all her possessions – but rather that she gave up the need of them as she lived the totality of her life for God.
2. In one of St. Paul’s letters he speaks of his willingness to live whether he is rich or poor, has enough or not, as long as he can “have Christ…”

I think the two are synonymous and instructive in this conversation I’m having with myself. I will think on these things as I drive home today and as I contemplate the darkness of the eclipse that will overshadow the light of afternoon…another symbol, perhaps, of letting go only to welcome the light again as it returns. Stay safe out there, everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

The “In Group”

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disciples, do not be afraid, fear, gossip, James, Jesus, John, Luke, Mark, Matthew, Peter, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, transfiguration

The gospel for today is Matthew’s version of the Transfiguration of Jesus on the mountain. I understand the desire of Jesus to take time away in a quiet place to be alone as it seems he often did. I might have chosen the Sea of Galilee as my getaway, but the hills might have been a better bet for Jesus as a total escape from people. One could wonder why on this particular day he chose to take Peter, James and John with him. Did he know what was going to happen? Was he afraid he would need help if the depth of experience got too intense? Or did he just have a desire to have some quiet time with less than a dozen companions?

The Transfiguration story appears in all three of the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark and Luke) and the accounts differ only slightly. As usual, Peter jumps right in with a suggestion that they stay (forever?) on the mountain. He’s willing to erect shelters for Jesus and his guests, Moses and Elijah, so the vision must have presented those ancestors in a decidedly dense way. (How did Peter recognize who they were?) The disciples didn’t seem too shaken by all this – even the fact that Jesus was appearing in an altered state, until they heard the voice of God telling them to pay attention to Jesus, God’s Beloved. It was then that they fell prostrate in fear so that Jesus had to come and touch them (so they could tell they were still alive?) and tell them not to be afraid. At that point the event was ended and everything returned to “normal.”

I often think about the stricture Jesus put on the disciples on the way down the mountain, telling them not to share what they had seen with anyone. I wonder how difficult that knowing was for them and if/how it changed their lives. Did they feel more protective of Jesus? Did this experience make them wonder more deeply about his experiences when he left them to pray? Did their dreams of greatness as the ones closest to the Messiah increase? Or were they confused and bothered by the statement at the end of this text that says: As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus charged them, “Do not tell the vision to anyone until the Son of Man has been raised from the dead.”

This is all conjecture, of course, and we know that the gospels were not written down until years after the events happened so the writers had a post-Resurrection understanding by that time. My point in all this is – as usual – to look for application to our own lives. Sometimes it isn’t easy to keep the confidences with which people trust us, especially if the news is something sensational or a “tidbit” that others would love to know. We live in a world where gossip reigns and it is difficult to tell truth from fiction sometimes. If I had been one of the favored apostles on that mountain, would I have been able to hold my tongue and thereby protect Jesus – even if I wanted to share what I saw as an event that showed how amazing Jesus was? How difficult would it have been for me to come down that mountain and not go to any of the other nine to share the story? How would my relationship with someone change if I learned of some ability (or disability) that made them more (or less) acceptable to others? So many questions…so much to ask myself, looking for the deepest motivations and clearest truths of my heart, hoping for the touch of Jesus that says, “Do not be afraid.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

First Apostle

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Annunciation, Apostle to the Apostles, gossip, Jesus, John, Mary, Mary Magdalene, resurrection, resurrection body, sensationalism, service to God, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

One of the most severe cases of mistaken identity of all time belongs to Mary Magdalene whose feast day we celebrate today. After almost 20 centuries of notoriety, scriptural scholarship has finally recognized that there is no basis for her reputation as “a harlot” or a great sinner. On the contrary, we now recognize her as “Apostle to the Apostles” who first announced the Resurrection of Jesus to the disciples. She is the only person who is noted in all four gospels as having been present at the crucifixion and who remained at the tomb of Jesus. This day always reminds me of the danger of gossip and of the lure of sensationalism in stories told of famous people. We have only to look in the grocery store checkout lines to see lurid photos (often cobbled together and “photo-shopped”) that match rumored headlines about movie stars and are frequently untrue.

More than a reminder of right thinking, however, this feast is about relationship and the fidelity that springs from great love. Jesus defied convention in his day by having women in his company of disciples. Closest in relationship to him, as we now intuit especially from the stories of his death and resurrection, was Mary. Today’s gospel is my favorite of those scenes as John places Mary in a garden by the tomb, mistaking Jesus for the gardener. (JN 20:11-18) It is when he says her name that she recognizes him, an indication both that he is somehow changed and also that his tone implies deep love between them. Her second recognition is of the change in him, manifested in what is often called his “resurrection body” – the enlightened state that signifies a shift in relationship for them as well. This new expansiveness reminds me of the Annunciation where Mary hears that she is to be the mother of Jesus. She had always been, we believe, faithful to God in her young life but now God asks more of her. At the moment in the garden when Jesus says to Magdalene, “Do not cling to me for I have not yet ascended,” this Mary accedes to her new role (not an easy one!) of announcing to the “brothers” what she has been told.

It is often the case that we are asked in the course of our lives to go beyond what we thought our lives were about to become more in service to God. Although sometimes a small thing, it may instead be a dramatic event that calls us to respond to what we could not have imagined that will change our lives forever. Both Marys provide examples of the need to practice willingness in order to be ready to respond with great love and surrender when the moment calls us forward. May it be so for all of us.

Careless Speech

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gossip, Jesus, love, Luke, Pharisees, rumor, speak, speech, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

This morning’s gospel (LK 12:1-7) is a good reminder of the power of speech. Jesus is speaking to a large crowd about the hypocrisy of the Pharisees and warns the people by saying: “Whatever you have said in the darkness will be heard in the light and what you have whispered behind closed doors will be proclaimed from the rooftops.”

In the age of the internet, the “rumor mill” is more dangerous than ever. We know so much instantly about events and situations and people all over the world and much of it is swallowed before it is even confirmed to be true. And then there is the person to person gossip that we pass on only to our “trusted friends who would never repeat it.” It is important, certainly, for us to be able to share private information with those we trust, but it behooves us to remember that such information should not be private information about someone else…especially if we heard it from another someone else. A good rule of thumb, it seems to me, is Speak only love. That way no one ever gets hurt because of our indiscretion.

Look Deeper

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Baptist, Christ, Christianity, complain, God, Gospel of Matthew, gossip, Jesus, John, John the Baptist, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

The gospel for this morning from Matthew, chapter 11, has Jesus comparing the people “of this generation” (which, ironically, could be ours) to children who sit around in a marketplace complaining about each other. His point, it seems, is that nothing seems to satisfy them; they jump to judgment no matter what is presented to them. When John the Baptist came “neither eating nor drinking” they said he was possessed of a demon (“crazy” in our parlance). Then Jesus himself came eating and drinking and they said he was a glutton and a drunkard. So what is it that they wanted? What is it that we want? Most likely it is someone who looks like us, dresses like us, talks like us and acts like us. We’re not anxious to be moved very far from our comfort zone. It’s interesting that just this week, my teacher, Cynthia Bourgeault, said that it’s very difficult to grow if we remain in our comfort zone. Jesus said the same thing in another way this morning:

Wisdom is vindicated by her works. (Mt. 11:19)