Weather Report

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Ancient Songs Sung Anew, Lynn Bauman, pray, presence of God, psalm 67, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vision, voiceless

This spring has been unusually cold and rainy. Today promises to be the only day this week with no rain but predictions also say we may be wet again by 6:00 this evening. Before I start to moan and groan about it I need to pay attention to Psalm 67 which today reminds me to look farther and deeper than my own back yard. As Lynn Bauman suggests, Our task as contemporary creatures is not simply to pray for ourselves, or narrowly for those around us who are dear to us, but to give voice for the whole earth…Imagine yourself as creation’s voice, as an instrument through which those without a voice can enter with praise the presence of God.

He is speaking, of course, about more than the weather although in some places the loss occasioned by that one element in the world has lately been monumental. He goes on to offer a challenge to us that carries us beyond the borders of our own lives and our own times to a larger vision. Listen:

Reflect upon your vision of the future for the world. There is often a wide gap between the the vision of beauty held out for the world and the experience of pain and ugliness we find within it. Those who pray hold these two regions together and will not let them fall apart.

As you pray this prayer (Psalm 67) imagine yourself praying for the voiceless creatures of earth, and for those human beings who have lost hope that such a future might even exist. (Ancient Songs Sung Anew, p. 166)

Standing With Each Other

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courage, helpless, Holy Week, lament, loss, Notre Dame, Our Lady of Guadalupe, pain, pray, presence, suffering, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

This morning as I read the psalm of the day (69) on the USCCB website I was reminded of the prayer service that we prepared in December for the feast of Our Lady of Guadeloupe, a prayer of lamentation for the caravan of migrants streaming toward the southern border of the United States. Bereft and sorrowful because of great loss, God’s people are searching for comfort and consolation in the present in the same manner as has been true throughout the ages. This seeking, I realize, can be an inner or outer experience – or both – and I find it again appropriately expressed in the paragraph below that was an introductory reflection for our prayer service in December.

Lament is a tool that God’s people use to navigate pain and suffering. Lament is a vital prayer for the people of God because it enables them to petition for God to help deliver them from distress, suffering and pain. Lament prayer is designed to persuade God to act on the sufferer’s behalf. Lament is often most effective as a communal activity. Reading and reflection are intended to express empathy for people suffering as a result of great loss.

Today the flames that devastated the cathedral of Notre Dame in Paris have died out but the reality of the loss as seen in the photos rends our hearts. As was true at our prayer service, I believe that the spontaneous gathering of thousands in the Paris streets – inhabitants and visitors alike – who stood and wept, prayed and sang as the cathedral burned must have felt the power of community in that excruciatingly helpless moment.

On this middle day of Holy Week, I wonder if Jesus felt the lament of the few faithful ones who remained with him at the cross. Can we feel the reality of his suffering as present in the world today and enter in a true and visceral way to stand with those who deserve our presence and courage?

Antony of Egypt

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Antony of Egypt, humility, mercy, pray, righteousness, spirituality, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Today is the feast of one of the great Desert Fathers, a man living an amazingly long life (251-356), whose legacy is greatly revered by those seeking a depth of spirituality. At the same time, Antony’s words are often quite matter-of-fact and “down-to-earth” and occasionally sound even humorous in our day (although most likely unintentionally). Here are three examples.

A brother said to Abba Antony, “Pray for me.” The old man said to him, “I will have no mercy upon you, nor will God have any, if you yourself do not make an effort and if you do not pray to God.”

Abba Antony said, “I saw the snares that the enemy spread out over the world and I said groaning, “What can get through from such snares?” Then I heard a voice saying to me, “Humility.”

Abba Pambo asked Abba Antony, “What ought I to do?” and the old man said to him, “Do not trust your own righteousness, do not worry about the past, but control your tongue and your stomach.”

Words Across the Centuries

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Daniel Ladinsky, light, love, Love Poems From God; Twelve Voices from the East and West, pray, quiet, soul, St. John of the Cross, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

On this feast of John of the Cross, great 16th century mystic and Doctor of the Church I offer two short poetic “words,” translated by Daniel Ladinsky in his book, Love Poems from God: Twelve Sacred Voices from the East and West. Savor them as you will…

“My soul is a candle that burned away the veil; only the glorious duties of light I now have.”

“You might quiet the whole world for a second if you pray. And if you love, if you really love, our guns will wilt.”

Solidarity

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caravan, christians, community, conscious work, consciousness, Jewish Community Center, Jews, judgment, Muslims, pray, refugees, solidarity, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, vigil, Wisdom Schools

I had two experiences yesterday that, upon reflection, help me to understand more deeply what it means to “walk in the shoes of another” – at least in some small way.

1. I took our house car to the local garage in the afternoon to have new tires installed. The mechanic told me that the process would take about an hour. As we needed a couple of items from the grocery store that I judged to be about a mile away, I decided to walk there in the interim. I had already thought about going for a walk while the process was completed but had estimated about half the time – and half the distance to the grocery store. It had been raining off and on but my windbreaker with a hood gave me sufficient protection and I had donned my best walking shoes in preparation. The road is a “country highway” – two-lanes, no sidewalks but with sufficient “shoulders” to keep me out of the way of the speeding cars and occasional trucks. The only issue (in addition to the minor splash of passing cars on a wet road) was the condition of those shoulders: broken pavement and in some places muddy patches of grass. The walk was, to coin a phrase, more than I had bargained for. I haven’t been walking much during the past year and my estimate of the distance was about a half a mile short, but soon after I began I decided to make this an exercise of what our Wisdom Schools call conscious work, uniting myself with the “caravan” of refugees walking through the countries of Central America. By doing that, the trek was not easier but my determination got me there and back in a way that was deeply meaningful. I considered the feet of those people and the terrain they tread each day. When carrying the rather small bundle of food on my return trip, I thought of parents carrying their children and all the possessions they could pack on their backs. When it began to rain again, I prayed for their safety and health and recognized how very privileged a life I lead. It took me just over an hour, including the stop at the store, until I wrote a check for the tires (knowing we had the money in the bank), slid into the car (knowing there was gas to power it) and drove home in warmth and ease in five minutes.

2. I felt drawn to the prayer vigil in our town last evening at the Jewish Community Center for the people of Pittsburgh. I knew it would be crowded but the gathering space is large and the parking lots quite expansive. When I arrived, it was already past sunset and in the gathering darkness I saw people streaming from every direction toward the venue. The parking lots were already full so I backtracked to the Catholic church a block away, grateful that their back lot still had a place for me – although far back from the road. As I joined the steady stream of walkers, I felt like we were going toward the Temple Mount in Jerusalem or some such holy place to beg for solace as the weight of all the hatred and senseless violence overtook me. I was one with the throng of pilgrims going to prayer in sorrow but solidarity. There must have been over 500 people there as all the seats were taken and there were as many of us standing close together in every nook and cranny of the building as there were sitting. For our rather small community, that was amazing. We were Jews and Christians, Muslims and most likely others who might call themselves “Nones” – professing no religion but standing in solidarity because there seemed no other place to be last night that would satisfy. The messages were of love, not hate, of community and willingness, of unity as a way to move through sadness and shock. I recognized very few of the people there but walking back to my car in the darkness, I felt the strength of communion and it was enough.

I am different because of these events of yesterday. There is a deeper, visceral consciousness in me of how everything is connected in this world. It is no longer as theoretical a concept as it was yesterday morning and if I continue to hold the world in this deeper way, I trust that it will continue to grow. It is as if what has just happened as I look out and up to see blue sky and a large white cloud over the mountain announcing sunrise is happening not just outside but within me as well. I now (I hope) will walk with the refugees and will add my voice to those who choose them as brothers and sisters. I will pray for my Jewish sisters and brothers and speak for gun control whenever an opportunity arises. More than anything I will try to love well and leave judgments out of my conversation, and I will pray for peace, the peace that only love can give.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Who Are We To Be?

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be the light, compassionate, Ephesians, imitators of God, kind, love, massacre, murder, pray, St. Paul, Thanksgiving, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Tree of Life Synagogue

I’m happy this morning for a tiny bit of good news: The Boston Red Sox won the World Series last night! (Sorry, I was born and half-raised in Newton, a suburb of Boston, and it’s generally impossible to get that heritage out of a girl!) I consider, however, as I revel in that news, how complex we are – able to entertain that kind of celebratory feeling at the same time as sensing such anguish for the people of Pittsburgh who are suffering the heinous crime of the Tree of Life Synagogue massacre. One hardly knows how to hold it all, especially because the murder of those innocent people follows on the heels of two other incidents of senseless killing in the same week. Things seem to be devolving into a deeper darkness with each day’s news. The questions now come from a place of near-frozenness: When and where does this stop? What will it take to cause a course change?

My answers all seem theoretical but the only option. Gather together. Love the people you know with a mighty love and the people you are just meeting in the same way. Be the light that you wish to see in the world. Do small things in a big way, fueled by compassion…

I read it all this morning in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians – exhortation from 2,000 years ago and still relevant! Brothers and sisters: be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you…Be imitators of God, as beloved children, and live in love…Immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be mentioned among you, as is fitting among holy ones, no obscenity or silly or suggestive talk, which is out of place, but instead, thanksgiving…Live as children of light.

May it be so in our day. Let us pray.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The World We Live In

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balance, eyes, guide, hear, hearts, Jesus, Luke, Matthew, news, pray, Proverbs, psalm 119, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Sometimes it’s difficult to know what to say in this complex and over-stimulating world  in which we now live. This morning as I was considering the lectionary readings one by one I kept getting interrupted with news flashes. It went something like this:

“All the ways of a man may be right in his own eyes, but it is the Lord who proves hearts.” (PRV 21:2) -> -> Major problems with New Yorker’s second Kavanaugh accuser…

“Guide me, Lord, in the way of your commands.” (PS 119:35) -> -> How today’s multi-cultural couples are making their wedding ceremonies uniquely their own.

“Blessed are those who hear the word of the Lord and keep it.” (LK 11:28) -> -> U.N to caution against populism as world leaders convene for the annual summit.

“Jesus said to them in reply, ‘My mother and my brothers are those who hear the word of God and act on it.'” -> -> Former priest extradited to face child sexual abuse charges blamed cancer, prosecutors say.

I’m not saying there is any direct connection between the Scripture quotes and the specific news headlines. My point is to remind myself that no matter how bad or disturbing or confusing, or even wonderful (should that also be the case) the news is, it needs to be balanced with the basic premise of Scripture, repeated in several ways this morning, and that we need to look deeply into our hearts and minds to assess what we see and hear happening in the world. When it gets to be “all too much,” there’s that other piece of advice that comes to mind, i.e. “Go into your inner room, close the door and pray…” (MT 6:6)

 

 

 

 

 

I’ll Take the Risk

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enemies, hate, judge, love, Matthew, open heart, pray, relationship, see, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Today’s gospel (MT 5:43-48) is one that can make me feel as if it would be easier to go back to sleep. Turning over and saying, “Sorry, God. Those questions are too hard for this time in the morning” seems reasonable. It never works, though, because the questions keep nagging.

• If you love those who love you, what recompense will you have?
• If you greet your brothers only, what is unusual about that?

In truth, it’s easy to “hate” (too strong a word for my vocabulary these days) people that I have never met because there has been no energy exchange between us and I have no measure that has come from conversation with them. If I only know about people from what others have said, I may judge from externals rather than the depth of their hearts. I’m not saying that every person in the world is worthy of relationship but dismissing people because of hearsay is not fair. What room does that leave for conversion? Sometimes people who seem unlovable have grown that way because of never having been loved by anyone in their lives. Maybe we are called to be just what they need to see a different way to live. Jesus said, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” He knew how to do it and is willing to help us, I think, if we sincerely want to move toward unconditional love.

None of this means that we need to embrace the horrific actions of criminals. What it does mean, to me, is that everyone lives in the circle of God’s love and, if we work to keep our hearts open to possibility, we may just lift up the world a tiny bit toward the good. I’m willing to give it a try.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Glory of God

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Daniel Ladinsky, glory of God, kneel, pray, presence, psalm 19, sanctuary, St. Catherine of Siena, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Psalm 19 proclaims today that the heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament proclaims God’s handiwork! Even just the daffodils in our yard – very prolific this year – are a lovely sign of this as they turn each day toward the sun and dance so freely in the breeze. Here’s a random quote from Catherine of Siena, translated by the poet Daniel Ladinsky, that gives me pause in the same manner as I prepare for the day.

It could be said that God’s foot is so vast that this entire earth is but a field on his toe, and all the forests in this world came from the same root of just a single hair of His. What then is not a sanctuary? Where then can I not kneel and pray at a shrine made holy by His presence? (Love Poems from God, p. 205)

 

 

 

 

 

 

An Answer to Prayer

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change, Florida, gun reform, gun violence, Jonah, pray, teenagers, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, young voices

We all know the story of Jonah and the whale and probably the majority also know that Jonah took a second trip to Nineveh which was more successful. This morning’s first reading chronicles that part of the short book that tells of the response of the Ninevites to Jonah’s message of destruction, soon to fall on that wicked city. Surprisingly quick was the repentance of the entire populace – including the king of Nineveh who laid aside his robe, covered himself in sackcloth and sat in the ashes, after which he proclaimed a total fast for humans and animals. Who knows, he said, God may relent and forgive and withhold his blazing wrath, so that we shall not perish. And that is exactly what happened.

Reading that, I began to think about the teenagers in Florida whose grief and anger over the deaths of their companions is fueling a very loud cry for change. For a long time groups have been calling for reform of gun laws and a return to the spirit of the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution but the gun lobby has continued to win the argument. Is it possible that the hearts of the country may finally be moved to change by the rising of these young voices?

There’s more to Jonah’s story, but my hope for today lies in the above question about the possibility that lies in our younger generation. It is enough for today. With luck, Jonah may come back around at a later date. (If it piques your interest, read chapter 4 of the Book of Jonah. It’s only 3 paragraphs…) Let’s hear it for the young people and pray for the end of gun violence in this country and the world while asking ourselves what we are willing to sacrifice to make it happen.