Miraculous Happenings

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Abraham, Magnificat, Mary, messenger, Sarah, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Everyone is busy in today’s lectionary readings. I smile as I think of long ago Saturdays in the convent when the primary activity was cleaning and making sure everything was done, readied for the week to come in our school work or wherever our ministry called us for love of the “dear neighbor.”

Abraham was front and center in the first reading, sitting at the entrance to his tent as if waiting for instructions about the day. When he saw three men standing nearby he sprang into action, ready to provide them with what is described as “a little food” for their journey. It became a group project as Abraham gave instructions first to Sarah—to make rolls —then to a servant who prepared the meat of a “tender, choice steer.” Abraham finished the job with curds and milk and then watched while they ate. There are lots of words that make it seem like there wasn’t much time to waste, words like “he ran,” hastened, “Quick!” and repetitions of the same. Abraham must have been aware that these three visitors were messengers from God because he was immediately on alert to do all that he (and his entourage) could do to serve the guests. And the news was startling, news that Sarah, in her old age, was to have a son. Unbelievable, at best! But the prediction came true, likely because of the hospitality shown to the guests.

The theme continues with people who are gifted with messages from God—first Mary, in the amazing news of her motherhood, impossible but true—sung by Mary in what we call the Magnificat, and for the humble centurion whose servant was paralyzed and suffering. Jesus was willing to come to his house to cure the man but because of his belief, Jesus made sure of the healing simply because of the man’s faith—no need to be in the presence of the needy one.

So how do we put this all together? Where are the connections and the willingness of the participants to surrender to the present moment and circumstances? Of what do they need to let go, suspending their beliefs when God steps in?

I leave that to your reflection and hope that the message becomes clear to you—for you—as you listen to God speaking to you and through you on this day.

The Forerunner

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forerunner, Jesus, messenger, St. John the Baptist, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I have a friend who often speaks of “the Forerunner” as the spirit of God in the form of John the Baptist when she has something important to accomplish—or when she has an important journey to make. Perhaps I’m thinking of the word because the Olympics are on the horizon and there will be many races for which runners have trained in earnest. Do you ever add John the Baptist to your list of companions on the journey?

Today we celebrate this “Forerunner of Jesus,” the one who announced the coming of the long-awaited “Savior,” the one who had been promised for generations, centuries even, “the one who was to come.” John the Baptist spoke of himself as “a voice crying in the wilderness” to announce the coming of “the One”…the One who had been promised, the laces of whose sandals John did not feel worthy to untie.

We have heard many stories about this John, this strange man who emerged from the desert “eating locusts and wild honey” with a message that would have perhaps been better announced with trumpets and drums than simply with his booming voice shouting “PREPARE THE WAY OF THE LORD!‘

Do you ever think about John the Baptist, relative of Jesus and deliverer (maybe “front man”) for the long awaited Messiah? Sometimes I think about some of the musicians that appeared in the late 20th century—like Bob Dylan who told us that “the times they are a changin,” upending the way we messaged music for generations.

Do you ever consider yourself as a messenger from God? What is the message you give to the world? I have come to trust a line in the Constitution of the Sisters of St. Joseph (the document that I live by in addition to the Constitution of the United States of America). It’s the first line and it says that”the Sister of St. Joseph moves always toward profound love of God and love of neighbor without distinction...” If I remembered that all day every day, I think I could be seen as preparing the way of the Lord. Some of us are called to speak with our voices, some with our actions—some in a more courageous way than we would choose. Whatever we are called to, we ought to trust that God will see us through if we continue to listen and respond when called.

“Oneing”

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angel, Annunciation, divine unity, God, Lady Julian of Norwich, Luke, Mary, messenger, oneing, Richard Rohr, soul, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, wisdom

I glanced at my “Wisdom” bookcase this morning as I sat down to ponder the day. All the books on those three shelves have something to do with going deeper spiritually. About two-thirds of them are still waiting to open their voices to me but I have great hopes of savoring each of their messages as I go forward. I noticed a thin volume on its side on the second shelf between three other books that arrived recently and found no room for standing upright. Since I couldn’t identify it I had to take a look, of course. As soon as I pulled it out I recognized it as a cherished Christmas gift two years ago named Ripening, a publication by Richard Rohr’s Center for Action and Contemplation, the second in a series called Oneing. I read again the meaning “oneing” as an old English word that was used by Lady Julian of Norwich (1342-1416) to describe the encounter between God and the soul. Rohr uses it to express the divine unity that stands behind all the divisions, dichotomies and dualisms in the world as in the words of Jesus “that all may be one.”

I took this as an answer to what I should write this morning on this day that Christians commemorate the “Annunciation” to Mary that she was to be the mother of Jesus. There are all sorts of questions around the gospel text (LK 1:26-38) – about the messenger/angel (who and how the message was received: just a light, a voice, an apparition, an inner knowing?), about Mary’s response: (fear, hesitation, confusion,disbelief, consideration of Joseph, plausibility of her immediate response?), etc. I’ve had many interesting and some deep conversations about what tradition says and what is a matter of personal faith. I think, though, we could do well to consider Julian’s word as what happened to Mary on that day and then continued to grow in her throughout her life as she lived toward God in the monumental events and the everyday tasks of being herself and being mother. Additionally, we might recall Rohr’s suggestion of how we might proceed to this “oneing” in our lives for the good of ourselves and the survival of the earth.