The Gift of Creation

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care, creation, Creator, favorite, joy, love, psalm 8, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I love Psalm 8, the lectionary gift of today. I know I often say, “That’s one of my favorites!” and really mean it, but this one is really special to me, my most favorite of all. Just listen to these few lines. Repeat them aloud:

Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth! When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you set in place—who are we that you should be mindful of us, that you should care for us? Yet you have made us little less than the angels and crowned us with glory and honor…

If you’ve ever looked out on a star-studded sky or watched a rainbow appear after rain…if you’ve ever seen a field of sunflowers turning toward the sun or smelled a rose in her fullness, you will understand my bow to beauty. If you have watched from a screened-in porch the power of a storm and heard it announce itself in peals of thunder, counting the seconds between it and the lightning to determine your distance from the eye of the storm, you will feel the exhilaration of nature’s power…or if you have stood ankle deep in the ocean or on the edge of a placid lake at sunset, you will know the peace that overtakes you. If you lean down to study an inch worm or watch a grasshopper jump, you may have been able to share a smile with God who is delighting in the creation much more than you, yourself. And then there is the possibility of looking into the eyes of someone who loves you and whom you love, finding there the wonder and deep meaning of the word “love.” Then you may be grateful as I always am when this psalm shows up in prayer, expressing the immensity of the Creator’s love, the One who plays in joy at the amazing diversity of the creation that is ours and offering it to us as gift.

Earth Day at 50

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Earth, Earth Day, life, Mother Earth, psalm 8, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

On this 50th anniversary of the first Earth Day, I could sit all day today looking at photos and videos from NASA or taking photos myself outside my house where forsythia like ours could light up the world with their brilliant yellow! I could take a short walk outside once every hour to feel the exhilaration of fresh air as I stepped out the door. I could take a break to praise God for the loveliness of the world each time the wind outside caught the sun peeking out and then running across my bedroom floor. I could (and plan to) transplant the beautiful cuttings of my Prayer Plant (That is her real name; look it up!) that I have been nurturing along for awhile or attend to my Christmas cactus that deserves a more spacious home.

In the midst of a serious crisis, it is always good to stop and remember what is still good about this life on Earth. Today, if we can do nothing more, we should at least give thanks for and to the Earth, our home. Raise your arms or at least your eyes to the expanse of Her. Bend your body in a bow or at least a nod to the wonder of Her. Sing a song or at least call to mind a line of praise – (Psalm 8, for example) in thanks to the One who made Her.

Celebrate Earth and then make a new or renewed commitment to care for her because She is, indeed, Mother to us all.

Father’s Day

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example, father's day, fatherhood, lessons, memories, psalm 8, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, wisdom

This morning I am greeted with a rush of memories and feelings like smiles inside as I think of my father. A devout Catholic, my father loved the prayers and rituals of the Church and I can see his face as he humbly blessed himself “in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,” especially on this feast of the Holy Trinity.

As I read Psalm 8 just now (definitely my favorite of them all), I feel my father’s amazement in experiencing the beauty of nature. Whether on our front porch with us during a storm so that we would never fear thunder and lightning (although respecting the power by taking us inside when necessary) or floating effortlessly for hours on his back in the ocean at Cape Cod, his peace was palpable.

My father taught by example mostly and the lessons remain. I pray today in thanksgiving for the blessings bestowed on myself and my siblings, my cousins and the wider world of friends and co-workers as well as, of course, my mother, with whom he made love the purpose and center of his life.

I pray as well today for all fathers that wisdom may guide their steps, that their children may respect their efforts and that they have what they need of strength and the resources necessary to be equal to the role of fatherhood. May it be so!

Little Less Than the Angels

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angels, gratitude, music, psalm 8, sharing, Thanksgiving, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

The psalmist is “waxing eloquent” this morning. As Psalm 8 rings in my inner sight, I recall the beautiful blue sky and sunshine of yesterday afternoon as I drove and sang with the accompaniment of longtime liturgical musicians whose music always stirs me to praise. This weekend was well begun last evening (see yesterday’s post) with a sellout crowd for our communal “walk down memory lane.” I look forward to a full day of enthusiastic sharing in words toward a hopeful future and feelings of gratitude for what we have been given throughout our history from our roots in 17th century France to worldwide service in love of God and neighbor.

Who are we, the psalmist asks God, that you should care for us? You have made us little less than the angels…and today we will revel in thanksgiving!

 

 

 

 

 

 

Psalm 8

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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.

 

 

 

 

 

Creation Sings!

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autumn, creation, glory of God, natural world, psalm 119, psalm 139, psalm 8, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

I occasionally mention my three favorite psalms (8, 19, 139) that all speak in some way of the grandeur of creation. I find it fitting that today, when we are at the peak of autumn beauty in the Northeast USA, Psalm 19 appears in the daily readings to wake me up (just in case I am missing the splendid show!). Perhaps even those not lucky enough to experience the brilliance of color in trees and the clarity of the chilly night sky full of stars can give thanks today for our natural world. There are oceans, mountains, deserts, birds and animals to observe and be amazed at – because of diversity as well as complexity. Whatever our experience of today, may it evoke a sense of what the Psalmist felt in singing the following:

The heavens declare the glory of God and the firmament proclaims God’s handiwork. Day pours out the word to day and night to night imparts knowledge. Not a word nor a discourse whose voice is not heard. Through all the world their voice resounds and to the ends of the world their message. God has pitched a tent there for the sun, which comes forth like a groom from his bridal chamber and, like a giant, joyfully runs its course. At one end of the heavens it comes forth, and its course is to their other end; nothing escapes its heat.

Omnipresence

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God is always with me, God is everywhere, God is within me, omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent, psalm 139, psalm 19, psalm 8, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Your hand shall guide me

As I recently mentioned, Psalm 139 is one of my top three favorite psalms (with #8 and 19). This morning it got me to musing how my image of all those qualities of God that I learned in elementary school – like omnipotent, omniscient and omnipresent – have shifted for me as I have grown older. It’s not that their meanings have changed; God is still everywhere, for example, but as my image of God has changed, the effect of these words has become radically different for me. Growing up, we were taught that God is everywhere, able to see everything we do. Had I been reading the psalms in those days, I might have been in a state of high anxiety to hear the psalmist say, “If I go up to the heavens you are there; if I sink to the nether world you are present there” if I felt that I had not measured up in my behavior. I can imagine trying to find a closet or a dark corner in the barn at the end of our street in which to hide in an effort to avoid God’s disappointment in me. Believing now that God is always and everywhere with me, not to mention within me, rejoicing in our relationship, never causes me to want to hide. Fidelity on both our parts allows me to look in the mirror of God’s presence even on my worst days and find comfort there because I trust that God loves me as I am and wants me to move always toward loving myself that way as well.

Today, then, I offer the reassurance contained in some of the early lines of Psalm 139 as sustenance for the day. Rain or shine, dark or light, success or failure, God will be there. If I take the wings of the dawn, if I settle at the farthest limits of the sea, even there Your hand shall guide me and your right hand hold me fast…

Up, Up and Away!

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God's name, how wonderful your name, Israel, Kathleen Degnan, Lectionary, Lord, pilgrims, psalm 8, sacred, spiritual experience, spiritual journey, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, Thomas Merton

Psalm 8 is one of my “top three” favorites. It is no wonder that it should appear in the lectionary this morning as I leave home today to begin a pilgrimage that will take me to Israel tomorrow. The refrain, O Lord, our God, how wonderful your name in all the earth! is an apt title, I think, for what will be a voyage of some 5,600 miles (one way!) to reach a place that is sacred to the three Abrahamic faiths. Along the way I hope to see the sunset from above and know the clarity of the atmosphere from at least 6 miles above the earth. Flying – even in a plane – is a spiritual experience for me and I relish the time even as I look forward to the adventure on the ground.

Because I cannot predict what the days will hold and want to be free to immerse in all the activities and reflection on what we experience, I decided to dedicate the two weeks of my absence to Thomas Merton, as we continue to be mindful of him during the centennial year of his birth. I have probed Thomas Merton’s Book of Hours by Kathleen Deignan for snippets from various Merton texts and have asked our administrative assistant, Mary Pat Hyland to post one each day until I return. I trust this will be a worthy exercise.

Just as I do not travel alone but with 20 other pilgrims, so I am aware of connections to others near and far who share the spiritual journey with me. So I have packed everyone in my suitcase and look forward to the journey that will, I hope, culminate in a deepening of appreciation for all of us of God’s wonderful name in all the earth.

Who Are We?

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angels, awe, creation, Earth, heavens, moon and stars, psalm 8, sacred place, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, universe, wonder

Today I’m happy to be accompanied through the day by my favorite Psalm. It speaks of all creation and our place in it. It seems to me lately that we are coming to understand better our responsibility toward each other as well as the “non-human” elements of what exists. The early biblical charge of God to “fill the earth and subdue it” has gradually morphed into a gratitude for the beauty that we experience and a reverence for what we have been given. We have a long way to go and some big mistakes to correct regarding environmental waste and carelessness, but the children of the world certainly seem to have a better grasp of how we and the cosmos are all connected, giving me hope for the future. All of that comes clear in Psalm 8.

O God, our God, how glorious is your name over all the earth!…When I behold your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars which you set in place, who are we that you should be mindful us, that you should care for us? You have made us little less than the angels and set us over the works of your hands… 

A reflection that I read this morning said that 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 role to fulfill.”

My point exactly.